An Unlikely Advocate

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Matthew Scully doesn’t fit the profile of someone who advocates for animal welfare. Until this past summer he was a senior speechwriter for President George W. Bush. Before that he was an editor of the conservative magazine, National Review.

But Scully takes the cause of animal protection seriously — so much so that he has made it his mission to convince fellow Republicans that the money-saving efficiencies of factory farming pose serious moral issues that his party needs to face.

Republicans generally ridicule the cause of animal protection — claiming it belongs to those far on the Left. But Scully argues that conservatives, with all their talk of compassion and values are a natural ally for the cows, chickens, and pigs caged in ungodly conditions.

Guests:

Matthew Scully, former deputy director of presidential speechwriting for President George W. Bush, former literary editor of The National Review and author of “Dominion: The Power of Man, The Suffering of Animals, and the Call to Mercy.” His most recent work is an article in The American Conservative magazine, “Fear Factories: The Case for Compassionate Conservatism — for Animals.”