Bush Appoints "Darth Vadar" as Head of U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

True to form, President Bush has nominated (and the Senate has approved) as Director of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Dale Hall, a 27-year veteran of the Service. Hall, according to the Daily Grist, is

notable mainly for his unwillingness to strongly support protections for endangered and threatened species in the Southwestern U.S., including Mexican gray wolves. He also has a reputation for trying to get staff to "change the science" in ways that might weaken the case for species protections, says a longtime colleague.

Although some groups such as the Western Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies and the Southwest Tribal Fisheries Association support Hall, environmentalists are generally aghast. According to Kieran Suckling, executive director of the Tucson-based Center for Biological Diversity, "Hall was picked because he has proven himself to be the Darth Vader of endangered species." More here.