Long before the killing of Cecil the lion in Zimbabwe by a Minneapolis dentist triggered an international outcry over the illegal hunting, one U.S. Congressman confidently bragged about killing — and eating — his own conquests.

It also led us at CQ Roll Call to what former Rep. Paul Broun, R-Ga., displayed in his congressional office — a lion he killed during a hunt in Zimbabwe!

Broun also spent a little quality time with Roll Call’s “Office Space” report discussing, among other things, what each one of his kills tasted like, including the Zimbabwean lion.

Broun, a medical doctor, told the political newspaper Roll Call in 2010 that his big kill came that year in Zimbabwe.

'After eating this animal, the natives called me Boss Shumba, which means Boss Lion,' he boasted.

'They’d never seen a guy come and actually eat a lion.'

.....

He began his political career as a volunteer lobbyist for Safari Club International, working on the big game hunting group's efforts to oppose gun-control measures.

.....

In September 2012 he spoke at the Liberty Baptist Church Sportsman's Banquet in Hartwell, Georgia, insisting that 'all that stuff I was taught about evolution and embryology and the Big Bang Theory, all that is lies straight from the pit of Hell. And it's lies to try to keep me and all the folks who were taught that from understanding that they need a savior.'

'You see, there are a lot of scientific data that I've found out as a scientist that actually show that this is really a young Earth,' Broun continued, speaking in front of a wall covered with finished taxidermy projects.

'I don't believe that the Earth's but about 9,000 years old. I believe it was created in six days as we know them. That's what the Bible says.'

In the same speech, Broun reminisced about his lion hunt.

“God directed that bullet,' he said, 'because if I’'d missed, that lion would have been in the back of the truck with me and I'd have been clawed to death.'

Not surprisingly, Broun has nothing kind to say about President Barack Obama, once tweeting during a State of the Union address that Obama believes in socialism.

.....

He also compared the president to Adolph Hitler and Karl Marx in 2008.

Senate Bill Would Protect Legal Ivory Owners and African Elephants

Have your Senator co-sponsor S1769 to stop the ivory ban and focus on African elephant poachers.
Stop State Level Ivory Bans

Domestic Ivory Bans crush small businesses, hurt innocent Americans, and waste law enforcement resources without stopping African Elephant poaching.
Stop State Level Ivory Ban Bills

Ivory Ban Bills are pending in these states that make selling ivory a FELONY offense, even including MAMMOTH IVORY! Contact state legislators to stop these bills NOW!
Co-Sponsor HR 697, the African Elephant Conservation and Legal Ivory Possession Act

Email your Representative and to co-sponsor this commonsense legislation that both preserves Americans' property rights and protects elephants in Africa

Nevertheless, the Advisory Council suggested a domestic ivory ban for the first time in a public meeting held on December 16, 2013. On February 11, 2014, President Obama announced the National Strategy for Combating Wildlife Trafficking & Commercial Ban on Trade in Elephant Ivory. USFWS elaborated on how it intends to implement the National Strategy in a Questions & Answers page on the USFWS website,


According to the USFWS, if the proposed Ivory Ban is finalized, the following activities WILL BE PROHIBITED:



Commercial import of African elephant ivory
Export of non-antique African and Asian elephant ivory (except in exceptional circumstances as permitted under the ESA)
Interstate commerce (sale across state lines) of non-antique African and Asian elephant ivory (except in exceptional circumstances as permitted under the ESA)
Sale, including intrastate sale (sale within a state), of African and Asian elephant ivory unless the seller can demonstrate that the ivory was lawfully imported prior to listing in CITES Appendix I (1990 for African elephant; 1975 for Asian elephant) or under a CITES pre-Convention certificate or other exemption document.

Also, if finalized the following activities WILL BE LIMITED:



Imports of African elephant ivory will be limited to certain items and purposes where the ivory item will not be sold, including ivory for law enforcement and scientific purposes, specified worked ivory items such as musical instruments, items in museums and other exhibitions, and items that are part of a household move.
Import of African elephant sport-hunted trophies will be limited to two trophies per hunter per year.

USFWS began implementing the intensified African ivory ban on February 25, 2014 by issuing Director's Order No. 210 which



Strictly applies all criteria under the ESA antique exception which makes it practically impossible to import or export antique elephant ivory
Shifts the burden of proving an exemption to the importer, exporter or seller, so if necessary paperwork does not exist, the ivory is presumed to be illegal

These new rules apply to antiques, musical instruments, and other raw or worked ivory.



On March 20, 2014, the Advisory Council conducted a second public meeting in Washington, DC. There, they further elaborated on additional penalties for wildlife trafficking, which under new rules would include violations of the Domestic Ivory Ban. Proposed penalties include:

Prosecuting wildlife trafficking under RICO, Money Laundering and Travel Laws
Elevating sentences to felonies punishable by 5 year prison sentences
Creating a "Restitution Fund" that would enhance penalties and could be used for NGOs or other enforcement agencies when the country of origin of seized contraband (ivory) was not clear

ALL OF THESE ACTIONS ARE PROPOSED EVEN THOUGH THE ILLICIT TRADE OF IVORY IN THE UNITED STATES IS INSIGNIFICANT!

.....

Existing U.S. ivory regulations mostly concern the import and export of the material from the country, while allowing some legal trade of the material between states. The new regulation, which will be finalized later this year, would restrict interstate trade to antique items that are over 100 years old or contain a minimal amount of ivory. The proposed rule also contains new restrictions on the international trade.

Prior to the Saturday’s announcement, many animal conservationists had argued that allowing some legal ivory trade provided a cover for criminals who were actually selling illegal ivory. In a 2009 investigation, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service officials seized more than a ton of ivory from a Philadelphia art store that had been manipulated to appear old enough to meet federal standards. Ivory from that seizure was destroyed at a “ivory crush” event in Times Square last month.

“By tightening domestic controls on trade in elephant ivory and allowing only very narrow exceptions, we will close existing avenues that are exploited by traffickers and address ivory trade that poses a threat to elephants in the wild,” said Fish and Wildlife Service Director Dan Ashe in a press release. “Federal law enforcement agents will have clearer lines by which to demarcate legal from illegal trade.”

The announcement comes as conservation groups have warned about an increase in the prevalence of elephant poaching and a subsequent decline in the number of African elephants. Fewer than 500,000 elephants roam the continent today, and more than 50,000 are killed each year. After China, the U.S. is the world’s second largest market for ivory product sales, according to some estimates.

In addition to protecting elephants, the regulations will promote economic growth in Africa in the many countries rely on wildlife-based tourism, officials said. It will also aid the fight against terrorist groups that fund their efforts with money from the ivory trade.

“This is an issue not just about protecting elephants, but alleviating poverty, spurring economic growth, and fighting off people intent on destroying governments and terrorizing communities,” said Wayne Pacelle, president and CEO of The Humane Society, in an emailed statement. “Here’s a case where protecting wildlife is bound inextricably with core concerns about economic and national security.”