Republicans for Environmental Protection
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Republicans for Environmental Protection (REP) is a national organization of United States Republican Party voters formed in 1995. REP’s stated purpose is to strengthen the Republican Party’s stance on environmental issues and support efforts to conserve natural resources and protect human and environmental health. Incorporated in Illinois, its headquarters are in Sturgis, Michigan.
REP's membership is open to Republicans who support a strong conservation and environmental stewardship ethic. REP has members in 49 states and formal chapters in 10 states.
REP’s slogan, "Conservation is Conservative," is based on the traditional conservative philosophy of writers and thinkers such as British statesman Edmund Burke, President Theodore Roosevelt, and authors Russell Kirk, author of "The Conservative Mind: From Burke to Eliot," and Richard Weaver, author of "Ideas Have Consequences." REP argues in its literature that conservation and responsible environmental stewardship are core conservative values that necessarily extend from concepts such as prudence, personal responsibility, thrift and Burke’s view that society is a partnership among past, present and future generations. (See Burke's observation in "Reflections on the Revolution in France" that society is a "partnership not only between those who are living, but between those who are living, those who are dead, and those who are to be born.")
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[edit] Mission
REP’s stated mission is: To resurrect the GOP's great conservation tradition and to restore natural resource conservation and sound environmental protection as fundamental elements of the Republican Party's vision for America.
REP cites the conservation achievements of Republican leaders, including Abraham Lincoln’s initial protection of Yosemite Valley and Theodore Roosevelt's establishment of national forests, monuments, parks, and wildlife refuges. (Reiger, John (2003). "Lessons from History: The Conservation Legacy of Theodore Roosevelt". Theodore Roosevelt Association Journal 25 (4): 10–15) Other Republican leaders often cited by REP for their conservation records include Presidents Herbert Hoover, Dwight Eisenhower, Richard Nixon, Gerald Ford, and Ronald Reagan, Senators John Chafee, William Roth and John McCain, Congressman John Saylor, and California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger.
[edit] History
REP was founded by three women, Martha Marks, who at the time was a member of the Lake County, Illinois, Board of County Commissioners; Kim O'Keefe-Wilkins; and Aurie Kryzuda. They met at an endangered species conference in Chevy Chase, Maryland in 1995. As lifelong Republicans, they were concerned that the new Republican majority in the 104th Congress was seeking to weaken the Clean Water Act and other environmental laws.
In 2000 and in 2008, REP endorsed Senator John McCain for President. REP advised the McCain campaign on climate change mitigation. REP did not endorse George W. Bush in 2000 or 2004, and publicly opposed the 2001 nomination of Gale Norton as Secretary of the Interior.
In 2005, REP worked to block efforts to open the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to oil drilling. REP helped organize a group of Republican House members to oppose an attempt to include drilling authorization in budget legislation that would be immune from filibuster in the Senate. William H. Meadows, President of the Wilderness Society, noted: “There are many organizations—national, regional, local—that have worked diligently to protect the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge for decades, but the most important organization in the campaign this year has been REP.”
[edit] Issue advocacy
REP advocates for conservation and environmental protection on a wide variety of environment and energy-related issues. The organization favors retention of environmental laws that were adopted with bipartisan support, such as the Wilderness Act, Clean Air Act, Clean Water Act, Endangered Species Act, the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and the Wild & Scenic Rivers Act.
Some examples from its website: Military Leaders Sound Climate Alarm and Myths Power Critics of Solar and Wind Energy.
In recent years, REP has focused heavily on energy and climate issues. REP advocates for reduced U.S. dependence on oil and other fossil fuels through more energy efficiency, and more use of renewable and nuclear energy.
REP’s environmental policy positions are covered in the organization’s policy publication C.E.P. Quarterly and detailed in a variety of REP policy papers. These resources are posted to the organization’s website.
Each year, REP publishes a Congressional Scorecard that rates Republican members of Congress based on the votes they cast and the leadership actions they took to advance what REP considers environmental stewardship. The Congressional Scorecards are posted to the organization's website at [1].
[edit] Political activity
REP endorses Republican candidates that the organization believes generally share its positions on environmental issues. REP made endorsements in 2006, 2008, and 2010. REP's 2010 endorsements are posted to the organization's website at [2].
REP has an affiliated political action committee called REP PAC and an independent 527 group called the REP Conservation Fund. Both work to elect or defend Republicans who have what REP calls strong environmental credentials.
[edit] State chapters
REP’s 10 state chapters take positions on state environmental issues and advocate for them in their state legislatures. The chapters also hold educational events for members and others. REP’s chapters are located in California, Colorado, Florida, Illinois, Michigan, New Mexico, New York, Pennsylvania, Texas, and Washington.
[edit] Board of directors
- President: Rob Sisson
- Vice President for Policy & Communications: Jim DiPeso
- Vice President for Government & Political Affairs: David Jenkins
[edit] Honorary Board
[edit] Senate
- Lincoln Chafee, Rhode Island (defeated in 2006 general election)
- Susan Collins, Maine
- John McCain, Arizona
- Olympia Snowe, Maine
[edit] House
- Sherwood Boehlert, New York (retired following 2006 general election)
- Michael Castle, Delaware
- Vern Ehlers, Michigan
- Jim Gerlach, Pennsylvania
- Wayne Gilchrest, Maryland (defeated in 2008 primary election)
- James C. Greenwood, Pennsylvania (retired following 2004 general election)
- Nancy Johnson, Connecticut (defeated in 2006 general election)
- Tim Johnson, Illinois
- Sue Kelly, New York (defeated in 2006 general election)
- Mark Kirk, Illinois
- Jim Leach, Iowa (defeated in 2006 general election)
- Jim Saxton, New Jersey (retired following 2008 general election)
- Joe Schwarz, Michigan (defeated 2006 primary election)
- Chris Shays, Connecticut (defeated in 2008 general election)
- Rob Simmons, Connecticut (defeated in 2006 general election)
- James T. Walsh, New York (retired in 2008)[1]
[edit] Other Officials
- David Cargo, former Governor of New Mexico
- William Milliken, former Governor of Michigan
- Christine Todd Whitman, former Governor of New Jersey and former Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency
- Russell Train, former Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency
[edit] References
- ^ Hernandez, Raymond (November 10, 2007). "Citing Health, Lawmaker Announces Plan to Retire". New York Times. http://www.nytimes.com/2007/11/10/us/politics/10saxton.html?_r=1&adxnnl=1&adxnnlx=1196572930-whAzTi2tav27hzd9pGVZ3w&oref=slogin. Retrieved 2008-10-27.
[edit] External links
- Official Website
- http://donklephant.com/2008/11/14/the-green-conservative-an-interview-with-jim-dipeso/
- http://www.mlive.com/us-politics/index.ssf/2008/11/rfk_jr_too_controversial_for_e.html
- http://www.expertclick.com/NewsReleaseWire/default.cfm?Action=ReleaseDetail&ID=23836
- http://www.edgeboston.com/index.php?ch=news&sc=&sc2=news&sc3=&id=83388
- http://www.wvobserver.com/november08/obamamccain1108.html
- http://www.poynter.org/column.asp?id=31&aid=153563
