The Absurd GOP

[Paleophyte]

Can you imagine if Obama had done that shit? They'd have been able to hear the shrieking on the far side of the moon.

[Fake Messiah]

Senate votes 50-49 to overturn mining ban near Boundary Waters

The U.S. Senate has voted to overturn a 20-year ban on mining on about 350 square miles of federal land near the Boundary Waters Canoe Area, paving the way for Twin Metals to renew efforts to open an underground copper mine near Ely, on the doorstep of the wilderness area.

The resolution, sponsored by Minnesota Republican U.S. Rep. Pete Stauber, is expected to be signed by President Donald Trump, who promised during his 2024 campaign to repeal the mining moratorium, which President Joe Biden imposed three years ago.

The measure passed 50-49, mostly along party lines. All Democrats opposed it, including Minnesota U.S. Sens. Tina Smith and Amy Klobuchar. Smith spoke for hours against the proposal late Wednesday night and again Thursday morning, urging her Republican colleagues to oppose the resolution.

Two Republicans broke ranks and voted against the proposal: Sen. Susan Collins of Maine, and Sen. Thom Tillis of North Carolina.

The Senate vote is a big blow to conservation groups and others who argue the watershed of the Boundary Waters — a fragile and unique ecosystem and one of the most popular wilderness areas in the country — is the absolute wrong place for this kind of mining, which carries with it much more serious water pollution risks than iron ore mining.

“We can support the need for mining, but that doesn't mean that we mine on the edge of Chaco Canyon or on the rim of the Grand Canyon, and it does not mean that we think that a copper-sulfide mine on the doorstep of the Boundary Waters is a good idea,” Smith said in her remarks before the vote today.

Conservation groups sounded off following the vote.

"Today is a dark day for America’s most beloved Wilderness area, the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness, and a stark warning call for public lands nationwide," said Ingrid Lyons, executive director of Save the Boundary Waters.

"This is a serious blow to the Boundary Waters and to the future of America’s public lands," added Chris Knopf, executive director of Friends of the Boundary Waters. "A few politicians in Washington chose the interests of a foreign mining conglomerate over the will of the American people, over sound science, and over one of the most irreplaceable wild places on the planet."

Opening of copper-nickel mines on the edge of the wilderness threatens a burgeoning outdoor recreation based economy that supports tourists and retirees and cabin-owners drawn to the area’s quiet beauty.

https://www.mprnews.org/story/2026/04/16...e-thursday

[BrianSoddingBoru4]

This is a place that CLEARLY needs a copper mine.

Copper mining causes severe ecological damage, including acid mine drainage, heavy metal contamination, and destruction of habitats. Sulfide ores exposed during mining create sulfuric acid, which leaches toxins like mercury and lead into water sources, affecting aquatic life and contaminating drinking water for centuries.

Boru

[Angrboda]

[BrianSoddingBoru4]

If I’m going to take medical advice from a former heroin addict, imma go with Keith Richards.

Boru

[Angrboda]

If I’m going to take medical advice from a former heroin addict, imma go with Keith Richards.

Boru

Okay. That being said, it isn't his history with heroin that troubles me. Plenty of recovered addicts live good lives.

[BrianSoddingBoru4]

If I’m going to take medical advice from a former heroin addict, imma go with Keith Richards.

Boru

Okay.  That being said, it isn't his history with heroin that troubles me.  Plenty of recovered addicts live good lives.

I know. Like Keith Richards.

Boru

[Angrboda]

[BrianSoddingBoru4]

Ask him how they feel in their wallet of wallets…

Boru

[Angrboda]

Ask him how they feel in their wallet of wallets…

Boru

Probably the same way they feel in their bunghole of bungholes.