| Dear Mother Jones Reader, |
| As Earth Month began, the Trump administration called a meeting of the "God Squad." Their only order of business was to give the oil industry carte blanche to ignore all Endangered Species Act protections across the Gulf of Mexico, using a national security rationale. |
| The committee claimed that endangered species rules are inhibiting oil production and impacting national security. But removing endangered species protections will not increase oil production nor impact national security. |
| Instead, it is an illegal abuse of power, and endangered species are paying the price. |
| The Trump administration is counting on all of us being too overwhelmed to fight back. But at Earthjustice, we don’t give up. We go to court. |
| So we filed a lawsuit to challenge this gross abuse of power — and we’re counting on loyal Mother Jones readers like you to be right beside us. |
| We just announced a $2:$1 match and a $1 million goal for Earth Month. Every lawsuit we file is funded by supporters like you, so please make a gift to Earthjustice today and help us defeat the Trump administration’s assault on our environment. |
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| What is the God Squad? |
| The Endangered Species Committee — also known as the "God Squad" — was named for its ability to decide the fates of imperiled species. |
| It’s met less than a handful of times since 1978, when Congress amended the Endangered Species Act so the committee could waive protections in exceedingly rare cases where they are at odds with public interest. |
| Why is the God Squad meeting now? |
| The Trump administration is claiming that the Endangered Species Act is getting in the way of oil production, which they have called a threat to national security. |
| But this doesn’t add up. |
| No oil projects in the Gulf have been rejected due to the Endangered Species Act, nor is the oil industry facing any burdensome requirements under the law that are slowing or halting offshore drilling activities. In fact, oil production in the Gulf is at its highest since 1998, and the U.S. is producing more oil than any nation in history. |
| Rising and unstable oil prices are yet another reason for why we need an urgent transition to cheaper, more reliable, and more sustainable clean energy. |
| The Endangered Species Act provides the committee with the authority to waive protections only in extreme circumstances — and requires all alternatives to be exhausted before removing species protections. |
| Simply put, the God Squad's decision is illegal — and the only beneficiaries will be a handful of fossil fuel companies. |
| What is at risk? |
| Rice’s whales, the only whales that live year-round in the Gulf, are down to fewer than 100 individuals on Earth. Their population was previously decimated by the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill. |
| In a 2022 letter, 100 scientists warned that, unless the whales are better protected, we could see the first human-caused extinction of a large whale species in recorded history. |
| This fight is not just about Gulf species; every handout to the oil industry also takes us further away from renewable energy that is cleaner, cheaper, more reliable, and more efficient than ever before. |
| Last month, the Trump administration approved “Kaskida,” a new, ultra-deepwater drilling project. The developer is BP, the same company responsible for the Deepwater Horizon disaster, the worst oil spill in U.S. history. |
| We are prepared to go to court every time the Trump administration breaks our environmental laws. |
| Every lawsuit we file is funded by Earthjustice supporters like you. Give today to help us defend our future on Earth and your tax-deductible donation will be matched $2:$1.
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| Thank you for your partnership. |
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Sincerely,
The Team at Earthjustice |
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