WASHINGTON (Newswire) — At a time when the public is increasingly suspicious of the White House’s handling of environmental policy, the Heritage Forests Campaign is launching a new TV ad and website: http://www.allears.org — that call on the Bush administration to keep its promises on national forest protection.
“The Bush administration has turned a deaf ear to the
overwhelming public support for environmental issues like national
forest protection,” said Jane Danowitz, director of the Heritage
Forests Campaign. “The White House could pay a political price if
it continues to listen to big corporations and not the American
public.”
The TV ad, entitled “All Ears,” criticizes the Bush
administration for failing to uphold the Roadless Area Conservation
Rule, an historic measure to protect 58.5 million acres of pristine national forest land.
The ad calls on the White House to listen to
the overwhelming public support for the roadless rule and cites the
1.6 million comments submitted by Americans favoring national
forest protection.
Viewers are also encouraged to visit a new website — http://www.allears.org — to learn more about the Bush administration’s mishandling of the national forest issue.
Similarly, the Heritage Forests Campaign is running ads in key locations along the DC Metro and on The Hotline.
www.allears.org provides documentation of promises made by
Agriculture Secretary Ann Veneman and Attorney General John
Ashcroft to uphold and defend the roadless rule and cites specific
examples of the Bush administration’s failure to keep those
promises.
The site also documents the close industry ties to key
officials in the Bush administration and the strong public support
for national forest protection.
The TV ad and website come on the heels of a CNN/Time poll that
shows growing public support for strengthening environmental laws.
According to the poll, only 36 percent of Americans trust President
Bush to protect the environment. As the Congressional campaign
season begins to heat up, the poll also shows the environment to be
one of the top four political issues.
The TV ad hits the airwaves in Washington, D.C. on Thursday,
just one day after Agriculture Secretary Veneman is expected to
make her first appearance before the House Resources Committee.
She is expected to face tough questions about her handling of
national forest policy.
