‘God squad’ waives animal protections to expand oil drilling in Gulf of Mexico
A US federal panel has voted to exempt oil and gas drilling in the Gulf of Mexico from a decades-old law to protect endangered species. A vote by a committee known as the “God Squad” – because of its ability to influence the future of certain species – followed a request by Pete Hegseth, US secretary of defence. Speaking on Tuesday, Hegseth said “recent hostile action” by the Iranian government illustrated why securing more domestic oil production was important for the country’s national security. Environmental groups tried to sue to stop the vote, claiming it could push some species like the Rice’s Whale into extinction – only 51 remain in the wild. US states sue Trump over his move to scrap greenhouse gases ruling How Trump’s ‘drill, baby, drill’ pledge is affecting other countries