Senator Hauschild has announced his re-election bid, no doubt presuming he can count on the votes of those of us who are fighting to save the BWCAW. However, his active efforts to open the wilderness to toxic sulfide mining do not come close to warranting this expectation. The assault on the BWCAW is not just the result of actions by Pete Stauber, but a long-term effort by Sen. Hauschild as well. Early on, the senator worked with his ally, Roger Skraba, urging the federal government to strip our cherished wilderness of protection. Now his other ally, Pete Stauber, has answered the call. What is at stake is nothing less than the destruction of the BWCAW. Never mind that a super majority of Minnesotans want the wilderness preserved and support state protections for this treasure. Sen. Hauschild says he opposes such measures. Many of us are working hard to obtain state protection for the wilderness. I can only imagine the behind-the-scenes lobbying by the senator within the DFL caucus and elsewhere to counter the advocacy and efforts of his own constituents. Is he working to convince his colleagues to abandon the BWCAW for his political benefit? I fear that is the case. It is one thing having a Republican who will not listen to pleas to protect the BWCAW but far worse to have a supposed Democrat working to thwart such efforts from the inside.
It is obvious that the senator takes the votes of supporters of the BWCAW for granted. He is counting on voters to make a utilitarian trade, one that sanctions the permanent destruction of the BWCAW in exchange for Hauschild remaining in the Senate. So, what do we really get in return? Well, if the senator’s politically motivated anti-immigrant vote last summer is any measure, we get very little while losing something that cannot be replaced or fixed. If you care about the future of the BWCAW, are you really going to spend your precious vote on someone dedicated to its destruction?
Kelly Dahl
Linden Grove Township