The Do Nothing Strategy: An Expose of National Progressive Politics

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The talented Coalition staff of 24 employees designed a simple, compelling, campaign message meant to resonate with all Americans by emphasizing the link between issues of human health, ecosystem protection, economics and the protection of endangered plants and animals. We successfully used the message that the “Endangered Species Act Protects US” to build a large base of grassroots support for the Act, recruiting and training 1,000 citizens leaders who were to lobby and lead our efforts on the local level, 4,500 volunteers and 10,000 individual donors. We raised one million dollars. We accomplished all this in a little over 1 year’s time.

In short, the Coalition was fully prepared to fulfill our mission of reauthorizing and strengthening the Endangered Species Act (ESA) with a powerful organizational infrastructure, grassroots base, and adequate funding. There was one obstacle—not the American people—but the Steering Committee of the Endangered Species Coalition.

The Steering Committee was a small, self-appointed, decision-making group which led the Coalition. It had no criterion for participation and provided no direct funding or other assistance to the Coalition effort. The larger Coalition included 145 organizations but was governed by this self-selected Steering Committee representing 10 of the largest, national environmental groups. The Steering Committee members list reads like a Who’s Who of the national environmental groups and included organizations like Sierra Club, Sierra Club Legal Defense Fund, Environmental Defense Fund, National Audubon Society, Greenpeace, National Wildlife Federation and the World Wildlife Fund. (Members of the Steering Committee of the National Endangered Species Coalition 1993-1994 included Sierra Club Legal Defense Fund, Environmental Defense Fund, National Audubon Society, The Wilderness Society, Greenpeace, National Wildlife Federation, Sierra Club, Center for Marine Conservation (advisory status), Defenders of Wildlife, Humane Society of the United States, the World Wildlife Fund, the Natural Resources Defense Council (advisory status).) What the Steering Committee did not include were representatives from the 145 grassroots regional, state and local groups. Even the Coalition staff of 24 had no vote on the Steering Committee.

As the Coalition staff and I traveled the country laying the groundwork for an effective campaign, grassroots member groups who had no voice in decision-making were clamoring for reauthorization of the ESA. They urged me, as the Director of the campaign to help make it happen. The Steering Committee, however, made the unilateral decision that the Endangered Species Coalition would not move for a vote on reauthorizing the ESA in 1994. That singular decision has sealed the ill fate of 10’s of thousands of threatened and endangered species and contributed to overall environmental degradation.

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