Votes on wildlife funds illustrate struggle Obama faces over spending

As President Barack Obama last week pushed his new campaign to cut government spending by $100 million, the House of Representatives authorized $50 million to help protect cranes, snow leopards, wild African dogs and other endangered species. Critics called last week's votes symbols of Democratic budget hypocrisy. "With federal spending, bank failures and home foreclosures reaching historic levels," asked Rep. Rob Bishop, R-Utah, "is it really appropriate to spend our constituents' hard-earned money to conserve an African wild dog, an Ethiopian wolf or a Borneo bay cat?" Sure, said Rep. Jay Inslee, D-Wash. He called the effort "a very, very modest step to try to preserve these endangered species that, in fact, are threatened and are listed on international lists." The House overwhelmingly passed "The Great Cats and Rare Canids Act" and the "Crane Conservation Act." Each would authorize $5 million annually from fiscal 2010 to 2014 to help preserve the species. The debate captured in miniature the struggle that Obama faces as he tries to trim anything in the federal budget. Every line, it seems, has a congressional champion and an army of special interests; for instance, more than 80 conservation, sportsmen and hunting organizations backed the cats act...McClatchy