News
Missouri legislature overrides ag bill veto
The Missouri Legislature has voted to override Missouri Governor Jay Nixon’s veto of an agriculture bill that a state ag leader says will send a strong message to cattle rustlers and animal rights activists.
Missouri Cattlemen’s Association Executive Vice President Mike Deering tells Brownfield Ag News this is a HUGE victory and will, for one thing, increase the penalties for cattle rustling, a menacing problem in Southwest Missouri, “It’s not just about stealing cattle. It’s not just about stealing livelihoods. It’s about blatant animal abuse. These rustlers don’t care how they treat animals. They don’t load them properly. They’re not Beef Quality Assurance Certified. I mean, these people don’t care about the animal.”
In addition, Senate Bill nine will fix the animal abuse and neglect statute, removing the stigma of producers being charged with animal abuse if their cattle get out onto neighboring properties, “Animal extremist groups like HSUS love to see innocent cattle producers charged with animal abuse and we need to stop it. Because of this override we ARE going to stop it.”
Producers will instead receive citations for animal trespass. Deering says this is only the 13th veto override in Missouri since 1820 and were it not for the state’s ag groups coming together, it may not have happened.
Interview with Mike Deering (3:30 mp3)
Bravo! Missouri legislature! That’s standing up to the animal rights juggernaut. States are starting to do this, but unfortunately, the AR extremists are infiltrating even more into the federal government and getting rules pushed through like the current USDA APHIS anti-pet-breeding rule that will negatively affect most small home-based pet breeders. Our state legislators need to talk seriously to our federal legislators and tell them to stand up to the special-interest anti-animal-enterprise criminals who are blatantly attacking legitimate animal enterprises with laws and regulations that will put most of the long-time knowledgeable expert animal enterprises out of business. Seems like AETA violations right in our own federal government!