Sep 12, 2006 10:45 pm US/Central
Kaufman Residents Celebrate 'Horse Plant' Bill
by Brooke Richie
KAUFMAN (CBS 11 News) ―
The mayor of Kaufman and many of her neighbors, say they have reason to celebrate. They support a bill to ban the slaughtering of horses for food and when the house passed the bill last Thursday, they say the victory was personal.
Kaufman Mayor Paula Bacon says it was a crash course in democracy. "Sitting up there and watching how it all worked, and how it unfolded, it was inspiring. It made me proud."
Bacon traveled to Washington, D.C. on behalf of her city. Neighbors say Dallas Crown has cast a pall over Kaufman for years. The Kaufman plant slaughters horses for human consumption abroad.
"I'm so glad that we can look forward to the day when there's not horse slaughter in my community," Bacon said. The mayor and her neighbors think that day could be close.
The House of Representatives overwhelmingly approved a bill to end the transport and trade of horse meat for food.
The next step to closing the plants is to win over the Senate and Mayor Bacon says she is confident they can do that. "I think we're going to do good, and then I think the White House is going to sign this bill without a blink."
Bacon and her neighbors are cautiously optimistic. Kaufman resident Robert Eldridge said, ""We've been disappointed so many times. We're going to pray and see if it comes to pass that we can say one day that this plant is closed."
The next battle is against time; Congress plans to finish this session by the end of September.
Opponents of the bill expressed their disappointment with the outcome of the vote. Former Rep. Charlie Stenholm, the spokesman for the Horse Welfare Coalition, told CBS 11 News, "Production agriculture took a major hit last week. Horse owners were overwhelmingly opposed to HR 503. Now it's round two. We have a chance in the senate to get our story across."
(CBS 11 News)
