NRA lobbyist packs heat for mockingbird in a very Florida state bird debate
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A clipping from a 1999 edition of the Miami Herald. Photo: Newspapers.com
A riddle: What do the National Rifle Association and Florida's state bird have in common?
Answer: A powerful ally in retired gun lobbyist Marion Hammer. Hammer, 84, wielded her immense influence for more than four decades to block gun restrictions in the Gunshine State.
- She also happens to have a soft spot for the mockingbird and has thwarted attempts to knock it off its top perch.
Yes, and: That doesn't seem to have changed in retirement.
Driving the news: While a new proposal to replace the mockingbird with the American Flamingo was introduced by three GOP lawmakers and has the backing of several conservationists, Hammer isn't having it.
What they're saying: "The Mockingbird has been Florida's state bird since 1927. That's almost 100 years," she wrote this week in an email to Axios.
- "Do Legislators who seek to change it have no respect for history? Or are they just uninformed about history? History is who we are and those who have no knowledge or respect for history should not try to change it."
Plus: She attached a copy of testimony she delivered to a Florida House committee in 1999 singing the mockingbird's praises and hating on another bird that has come up periodically as a potential replacement: the Florida scrub-jay, a species unique to our state.
- "Scrub-jays are so lazy and scurrilous they eat the eggs and nestlings of other birds," the testimony says. "That's robbery and murder and those ARE NOT GOOD FAMILY VALUES."
- It goes on: "Some folks say we should change because scrub-jays are sweet and will eat peanuts out of your hand. Begging for food isn't sweet — it's lazy and adds a welfare mentality to their criminal conduct."
- And, perhaps the greatest offense of all? They can't even sing.
- "On the other hand," Hammer said, "John J. Audubon himself praised mockingbirds for their appearance, their sweet song and devotion to their families." (It's true.)
The intrigue: She didn't weigh in this week with any thoughts specific to the flamingo. But one argument she uses against the scrub-jay could also apply to flamingos.
- The scrub-jay is considered a threatened species, so it's rare a Floridian would come across one in the wild. Flamingos are native to Florida but haven't repopulated since they were hunted by the millions for their colorful feathers.
The other side: "I certainly respect her point of view," flamingo bill sponsor Rep. Linda Chaney, R-St. Pete Beach, told Axios.
- But "if you asked nine out of 10 Floridians or people across the country what bird they identify with Florida, it would not be the mockingbird. It would more likely be the flamingo."
What we're watching: Whether Chaney's effort — and yet another attempt to crown the scrub-jay — gain any traction when the legislative session begins next month.