Gov. Polis finally pulled his head out of … the sand and responded to the growing chorus of condemnation from rural Coloradans over his penchant for turning predatory creatures loose on the Western Slope.
Wait.
False alarm.
The governor was just being a smart ass and mocking an opinion piece in the Wall Street Journal by Helen Raleigh, who criticized the Democrat’s wildlife policies warning it will come back to bite him on the … ass.
Raleigh writes about Colorado’s disastrous relocation of wolves, and Polis’s decision to play Mother Nature once more by rounding up wolverines from their snow dens in some faraway land and dumping them on rural residents.
From the Wall Street Journal:
Like gray wolves, Colorado’s wolverines have their own minds and won’t do what conservationists want them to. They’ll move where they believe they can find food. Colorado’s wolverines may quickly discover that trash cans full of food waste in neighborhoods on the east side of the Continental Divide are easy pickings. An all-you-can-eat buffet in the suburbs beats fending for yourself in the Rocky Mountains.
Many Coloradans share Gov. Polis’s love and concern for animal conservation, but conservation should begin with respect for nature, including an appreciation of animals’ natural instincts. Wolverines, like gray wolves, aren’t pets. They’re predators.
Polis gaslights with this response:
We grew up with bears and lions in our backyards and know how to handle it. Yes we get people who move here from the cities and east coast and they complain about wildlife, but they learn how to deal with the realities of living in the west soon enough. And yes, the deer will eat… https://t.co/AY1DwDc5gw
— Jared Polis (@jaredpolis) June 16, 2024
What a putz.
Republican State Rep. Matt Soper of Delta fired back at Polis on social media for the governor’s cavalier attitude towards ranchers and voters.
“Growing up with bears and mountain lions in our backyards is one thing; the reintroduction of a highly predatory species like wolves is another,” Soper said.
“This issue is not about urban versus rural or new residents versus longtime Coloradans. It is about ensuring that all of our communities, especially those whose livelihoods depend on ranching and agriculture, are protected and supported,” Soper said.
“Gov Polis’s tweet trivializes hardships faced by ranchers dealing w/ wolf depredations. It’s not about tulips being eaten by deer; it’s about devastating loss of livestock & emotional & financial toll on families who’ve been stewards of the land for generations.”
It is disheartening to see Governor Polis dismiss the serious concerns of rural Colorado residents and ranchers with a cavalier attitude. While it is true that living in the West requires adapting to the presence of wildlife, (1/4) https://t.co/V7omn46imJ
— Representative Matt Soper (@SoperMatthew) June 18, 2024
We hope someone in the media will question Polis about all those times he faced down bears and lions in his backyard threatening to kill one of his animals and ask how, exactly, he dealt with the situation.