Obama’s Animal Report Card

The Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) gave the Obama administration a B-minus for its animal-welfare tactics in 2009. HSUS praised the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) for taking action to stop downed cattle from entering the food supply. It also commended the Environmental Protection Agency for examining the greenhouse gas emissions from factory farms. However, HSUS condemned the administration’s decision to take gray wolves in Idaho and Montana off the endangered species list, making the animals vulnerable to hunting. HSUS also criticized the USDA for financially supporting the meat industry without requiring any reforms that would benefit animals. Overall, HSUS says Obama is doing a better job with animal welfare than the previous administration, but there is still a great deal of room for improvement.