Two powerful Western Republicans announced they would
not seek re-election in 1996. Sen. Mark Hatfield of Oregon, the
chairman of the Appropriations Committee, said in early December
that he would step down because “Thirty years of voluntary
separation from the state I love is enough.” Soon after, Alan
Simpson of Wyoming said that he, too, would retire after serving 18
years.
The loss of Hatfield looms huge for the
Northwest, which has seen its clout wane with the departure of
Oregon’s Bob Packwood and former House Speaker Tom Foley of
Washington. The moderate Hatfield delivered money and jobs to the
state and looked after its largest industries, cutting deals to
ensure federal logs for the timber industry and cheap power for the
aluminum industry. Though Hatfield helped pass several Oregon
wilderness bills and co-authored the landmark Endangered Species
Act – which he now says goes too far – environmentalists say they
won’t miss him.
“He has used his power to harm
the environment much more than help it,” says Andy Kerr of the
Oregon Natural Resources Council. As for Simpson, who earlier this
year lost his majority whip position for not being conservative
enough, environmentalists say they will miss the man for his
candor, if not his record. Simpson opposed many wilderness areas
and fought hard for development interests in the Yellowstone area,
says Larry Mehlhaff of the Sierra Club. But “Simpson definitely
wasn’t part of the no-brainer wise-use crowd” now in Congress, he
says.
* Paul
Larmer
This article appeared in the print edition of the magazine with the headline They’re stepping down.
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