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NWF Action Fund 2008 Election Endorsements

The Candidates

Rep. Jerry McNerney

Jerry McNerney's election to Congress in 2006 was a resounding victory for conservation. He defeated Richard Pombo, one of the most anti-environmental members of Congress ever. Pombo's legacy included expansion of destructive oil and gas drilling in public lands, and attempts to sell off a hundred million acres of public land to developers and oil companies, to open the pristine Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to drilling, and to gut the Endangered Species Act. In his place, the United States got a wind energy engineer and terrific conservationist, Jerry McNerney.

In his first year in Congress, Rep. McNerney got a 90% score on the League of Conservation Voters scorecard indicating he voted for the environment 90% of the time. He was an original co-sponsor the Safe Climate Act of 2007, the strongest global warming bill in the House of Representatives. He has served as a member of the House Select Committee on Energy Independence and Global Warming, working to raise the profile of clean energy and global warming in the House of Representatives. Additionally he has co-sponsored the Clean Water Restoration Act, to restore the protections of the Clean Water Act to all U.S. bodies of water, and the Udall-Eisenhower Arctic Wilderness Act, to permanently designate the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge as wilderness.

Rep. McNerney faces a tight race for re-election in the California 11th congressional district in 2008 against Dean Andal. Andal is an anti-environment developer and member of the California legislature, voting against fuel efficiency programs and voting for opening up California coasts to oil drilling with few environmental safeguards. He has received a lifetime score of just 9% from the California League of Conservation Voters.

Read the Press Release: NWF Action Fund Endorses McNerney for U.S. House

Betsy Markey is running to take Rep. Marilyn Musgrave's seat in the tightly contested Colorado 4th district. Markey has been a public servant, businesswoman, and most recently has served as the 4th congressional district regional director for US Senator Ken Salazar.

She sees global warming and clean energy as some of the most critical issues of our times. She supports research and development of new clean energy technologies, saying "Success in developing alternative energies is important not only to the environment, but also to America’s security." She has pledged to support the Clean Water Restoration Act, oppose drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife refuge, and oppose leasing public lands in Colorado and throughout the West to environmentally destructive development of highly polluting oil shale.

Her opponent, Rep. Marilyn Musgrave is one of Congress' worst environmental offenders. Musgrave has a 2007 LCV score of 5% and a lifetime score of just 3%. She was a leader in trying to sell off America's public lands to the highest bidder, and has consistently voted against doing anything on global warming. Not coincidentally, since 2000 she has taken over $170,000 in contributions from the oil and gas industry.

Read the Press Release: NWF Action Fund Endorses Markey for U.S. House

Mark Kirk is a 4th term congressman running in a very tight race for re-election in the Illinois 10th congressional district. A self proclaimed "independent voice" in the Republican Party, his (lifetime) League of Conservation Voters score is 67%, and in 2007 it was a terrific 90%.

With an Illinois district that borders Lake Michigan, Rep. Kirk has positioned himself as a leader on Great Lakes issues. He has worked closely with NWF staff and other conservationists to ensure the Great Lakes are protected from pollution and invasive species. He is the co-chair of the Great Lakes Task Force, an original co-sponsor of the Great Lakes Collaboration Implementation Act, and in the 110th Congress he has introduced legislation to end sewage dumping in the lakes, protect the lakes from invasive species, and penalize refiners who increase pollution above 2006 levels into the lakes.

He states, "Unfortunately, the decreasing water levels of the Great Lakes only demonstrate how pervasive our climate and energy problems are. Global warming is most certainly contributing [to] the frighteningly quick depletion rates of our lakes. Thus, it is nearly impossible to solve any other environmental problem without simultaneously engaging in a comprehensive effort to solve our climate and energy crises." For that reason, he is an original co-sponsor of the Climate Stewardship Act, has actively supported and tried to build Republican support for passing a renewable portfolio standard that requires 20% of our energy comes from renewable resources by 2020.

Rep. Kirk is also an original co-sponsor of the Clean Water Restoration Act, which would restore the protections of the Clean Water Act to all U.S. bodies of water, and the Udall-Eisenhower Arctic Wilderness Act, which would permanently designate the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge as wilderness.

Read the Press Release: NWF Action Fund Endorses Kirk for U.S. House

Martin Heinrich is running for the New Mexico 1st Congressional seat, the seat left open by Heather Wilson's retirement. He has served on Albuquerque's city council and served for five years as executive director of the Cottonwood Gulch Foundation, an educational institution that exposes young people to science and nature through wilderness experiences. He is also an avid sportsman who hunts and fishes on New Mexico's public lands.

As a city councilman, he worked to protect Tijeres Canyon and parts of the Rio Grande State Park. He also helped create incentives for buying Hybrid cars and helped re-introduce curbside recycling pick up. He has campaigned on the promise to be a champion in addressing global warming and our reliance on fossil fuels. He advocates renewable energy and sensible mining and drilling, keeping pristine places, such as the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, protected. His lifelong devotion to getting kids to experience nature and his conservation ethic, make him a likely congressional leader in reversing nature deficit disorder.

Read the Press Release: NWF Action Fund Endorses Heinrich for U.S. House

Governor Jeanne Shaheen is running for Senate against Sen. John Sununu, who narrowly beat her in 2002. As Governor, Jeanne Shaheen developed New Hampshire's first comprehensive energy plan, increasing renewable energy use in the state and increasing energy efficiency. She forged a bi-partisan coalition to pass the Clean Power Act, making New Hampshire the first state in the nation to enact a law requiring its power plants to reduce emissions of four pollutants: carbon dioxide, sulfur dioxides, nitrogen oxides and mercury.

Gov. Shaheen has pledged, when elected to the Senate, to make global warming a top issue for her, saying, "Reversing global warming and becoming energy independent are not just our most urgent environmental challenges, they are among the most urgent of all our national and international challenges. In the Senate I will work for a smart national energy policy that invests in clean, renewable energy sources and energy efficiency technologies and ends the subsidies and tax breaks for oil companies and outdated technologies which do not help address these critical problems."

She has also committed to supporting the Clean Water Restoration Act, supporting the Forest Legacy program that provides critical funding for protecting the Northern Forest, and opposing drilling for oil in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.

Sen. Sununu, on the other hand, has proven he cannot be trusted to protect the environment or wildlife. His lifetime League of Conservation Voters score is just 35%. While he has slowly begin to come around on global warming (even voting to continue debate on the Climate Security Act), he has spent much of his six year term opposing legislation that would reduce our reliance on fossil fuels and opposing any mandatory limits for global warming emissions. Since 2000, he has accepted over $197,000 in campaign contributions from the oil and gas industry, including $63,000 in the past 2 years alone, which is sixteenth most in the Senate.

Read the Press Release: NWF Action Fund Endorses Shaheen for U.S. House

Mark Udall Rep. Mark Udall is a five term congressman from Colorado's second congressional district running for the open senate seat left by retiring Senator Allard. Udall has been a huge champion for public lands, wilderness and clean energy, but is supportive of nearly all environmental measures. There is not a more reliable conservation vote in Congress than Mark Udall: he has a 2007 League of Conservation Voters score of 95% and a lifetime score of 99%.

Rep. Udall has authored and introduced conservation legislation ranging from supporting renewable electricity to making sure hunting and fishing regulations within a state's borders are managed by that state. He is dedicated to protecting Colorado's natural resources and public lands, introducing bi-partisan bills in Congress to ensure better management of Colorado's forests, to protect roadless areas, and to establish wilderness areas in Colorado.

Rep. Udall is an avid outdoorsman a hiker, rafter, and mountaineer (even attempting to climb Mt. Everest). Prior to serving as a member of Congress, he was coarse director and then executive director of Outward Bound School.

In contrast, Bob Schaeffer, Udall's opponent and former member of congress from the Colorado 4th district, has long supported oil and gas development and has been in opposition to a variety of environmental, including the Endangered Species Act. He is part of LCV's "Dirty Dozen" and had a lifetime LCV score of 5% before leaving Congress.

Read the Press Release: NWF Action Fund Endorses Udall for U.S. House

Mark Gordon Republican Mark Gordon has a strong conservation background. He's a member of Wyoming's Environmental Quality Council, and former Sierra Club officer in the state. Gordon's record has shown a strong commitment to conservation and protecting wildlife for our children's future.

"Global warming is a critical issue for our time. We must step up to this challenge by fostering alternative energy sources that minimize carbon emissions, and by encouraging energy efficiencies and conservation," said Gordon.

He has pledged to protect the Wyoming Range for wildlife, sportsmen and outdoor enthusiasts, while allowing responsible energy development in limited areas, with limited offset footprints through improved practices like directional and dendritic drilling.

Update: Mark Gordon lost in the August Republican primary.

Kathy Dahlkemper Kathy Dahlkemper is a civic leader, small business woman and conservationist. She and her husband built a landscape architecture and contracting business that incorporated environmental stewardship and energy conservation in their designs. She is also the founder and director of the Lake Erie Arboretum at Frontier Park.

Dahlkemper is committed to continuing her conservation work as a member of Congress. She publicly states, "Our earth is our livelihood. The environment is the most precious resource we have, and I am committed to taking a leadership role in the fight against climate change." She will work for a clean energy economy that supports green energy and green jobs.

Kathy Dahlkemper practices what she preaches: she's running a carbon neutral campaign, offsetting all the global warming emissions that are generated by her campaign.

In contrast, her opponent, Rep. Phil English has time and again opposed efforts to invest in renewable energy, keeping America more dependent on oil and stopping the growth of green jobs. He has opposed efforts to end subsidies to big oil companies while opposing efforts to provide incentives to wind and solar energy. Rep. English has taken over $30,000 in campaign contributions from big oil companies--including Exxon Mobil and Sunoco--in just the past two years.

Read the Press Release: NWF Action Fund Endorses Kathy Dahlkemper for U.S. House