Carole King lobbies to protect the Rocky Mountains

Ever since Bono began his never-ending quest to save the world, rock star endorsements have become the chic accessory for advocacy groups looking to pass bills through Congress. Unfortunately, the fact of the matter is that most of our Congressional leaders aren't yet up to speed with the musical trends of 25 years ago, let alone all of the action that's shaking down today. As such, it helps to have a veteran artist that the (predominantly) old white guys on Capitol Hill will recognize.

So for all of those pork-barrel pols who want to flatten the Rocky Mountains to make way for an interstate super-mall, maybe the name "Carole King" will give some pause. Seriously... who could refuse to sign a bill to protect the Rockies with something as heartwarming as "You've Got A Friend" playing in the background? Besides Dick Cheney, of course. (We kid because we love ya, Dick!)

King is currently stumping on behalf of the Northern Rockies Ecosystem Protection Act (NREPA), a little piece of bipartisan legislation that would designate as wilderness millions of acres of land in the Great American West. She will testify on behalf of the bill to a Congressional subcommittee on Oct. 18. Reading about NREPA on the Wild Rockies Action Fund's website, it seems like a no-brainer: this bill purports to preserve the environment, save tax-payers millions of dollars, and create thousands of new jobs. Sing that all to the tune of "Will You Love Me Tomorrow" and Congress should collectively swoon.

Not so fast, though: former Idaho senator Steve Symms, whose home state would have a whopping 9.5 million acres set aside as wilderness, once called passage of the bill "the end of Western civilization as we know it." Outside Magazine, meanwhile, admires the bill for its "sheer brassy political nerve," but called the potential approval of NREPA "the longest of longshots." That was in 1999, however. How much will King's presence (oh yeah, and eight years of advocacy lobbying) impact the proceedings? We'll find out in a couple of weeks.

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