A BRIEF HISTORY OF REPUBLICAN CONCERNS ABOUT CARIBOU SEX

Representative Louie Gohmert of Texas, February 2012:

Rep. Louie Gohmert, patron saint of amorous wildlife? The Texas Republican, who's not exactly known as a champion of animal rights, said his primary concern in the development of a massive Alaskan oil pipeline is the love life of the caribous surrounding the project. [...]

Here's his theory: The caribou very much enjoy the warmth the pipeline radiates. "So when they want to go on a date, they invite each other to head over to the pipeline," he informed his colleagues. It’s apparently the equivalent of being wined and dined. And that has resulted in a tenfold caribou population boom, he concluded.

“So my real concern now ...if oil stops running through the pipeline...do we need a study to see how adversely the caribou would be affected if that warm oil ever quit flowing?” he asked.


Vice President George H.W. Bush, talking about the original Trans Alaska Pipeline, on the presidential campaign trail in May 1988:

Bush says that petroleum exploration and production in Alaska have improved wildlife habitat. "Caribou like the pipeline," he has said. "They lean up against it, have a lot of babies, scratch on it. There's more damn caribou than you can shake a stick at."


Great minds think alike.


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(Gohmert via Daily Kos. And yes, I know: a lot of you read the story days ago.)