Note: We've recently updated our online systems. If you can't login please try resetting your password. You must login with an email address. If you don't have an email associated with your account email circulation2@journalnet.com for help creating one.<doc-sep>The official insists he didn't do anything unethical. Washington -- Idaho's Fish and Game commissioner has resigned amid growing backlash after he shared photographs of him smiling and posing with animals he killed during a hunting trip to Africa. In an email sent to more than 100 friends and colleagues, Blake Fischer attached 12 pictures of himself and his wife posing with various kills in Namibia: an oryx, a giraffe, a waterbuck, a leopard and a group of four baboons, The Idaho Statesman first reported on Friday. Idaho's Republican Gov. C.L. "Butch" Otter asked for, and received, Fischer's resignation Monday evening, his office said in a press release. “I have high expectations and standards for every appointee in state government,” Otter said in the press release. “Every member of my administration is expected to exercise good judgment. Commissioner Fischer did not. Accordingly, I have accepted his resignation from the Idaho Fish and Game Commission.” Fischer sent the photo of himself smiling with "a whole family of baboons," saying his wife wanted to watch him hunt since it was her first African trip. “I think she got the idea quick,” Fischer wrote, according to the newspaper. Earlier, Fred Trevey, a former Fish and Game commissioner who served from 2007 to 2015, had asked Fischer to resign, the newspaper reported. He wrote in an email that he hoped a resignation would "shield the commission as an institution and hunting as a legitimate tool of wildlife management from the harm that is sure to come.” “I’m sure what you did was legal, however, legal does not make it right,” Trevey wrote in the email obtained by the Idaho Statesman. Trevey wrote that it “dismays and disappoints me” that Fischer would include the photos of the baboons in his email. “I have a difficult time understanding how a person privileged to be an Idaho Fish and Game commissioner can view such an action as sportsmanlike and an example to others,” he wrote. In a subsequent email to Gov. Butch Otter's office, Tony McDermott claimed at least seven ex-commissioners, including himself, shared Trevey's concerns and the belief that Fischer used "extremely poor judgment." The former commissioners and pro-hunting groups, in demanding he resign, pointed out that Idaho's hunting manual says to "refrain from taking graphic photographs of the kill...." An Otter spokesman said that he is aware of Fischer’s email and has heard a complaint from at least one constituent. “It’s fair to say the governor is concerned about it,” Jon Hanian said told the newspaper. “He is aware of it and did look at the pictures and we’re looking into it.” Fischer told the Idaho Statesman that he "didn't do anything illegal." "I didn't do anything unethical. I didn't do anything immoral," he added. Fischer was originally appointed to the Idaho Fish and Game Commission in 2014 and was reappointed in 2018. His resignation is effective immediately, and according to the governor's office, the search for his replacement begins immediately as well.<doc-sep>Idaho Fish and Game Commissioner Blake Fischer resigned his position after a photo of him smiling with dead baboons sparked a public backlash. The Hill reports that Fischer submitted a letter of resignation to Gov. “Butch” Otter (R), which said in part: I recently made some poor judgments that resulted in sharing photos of a hunt in which I did not display an appropriate level of sportsmanship and respect for the animals I harvested. While these actions were out of character for me, I fully accept responsibility and feel it is best for the citizens of Idaho and sportsmen and women that I resign my post. The Idaho Statesman reported that Fischer hunted the baboons in Africa last month. Upon sharing photos of the hunt he immediately faced calls for his resignation. Even former Fish and Game commissioners asked him to resign. Former commissioner Fred Trevey emailed Fischer saying, “I’m sure what you did was legal, however, legal does not make it right.” Another former commissioner, Tony McDermott, said he concurred with Trevey’s call for Fischer to resign. However, the Statesman could not reach McDermott for comment because he was on a hunting trip. Fischer did not apologize for the hunt. Rather, he explained that hunting is part of species management: “I didn’t do anything illegal. I didn’t do anything unethical. I didn’t do anything immoral … I look at the way Idaho’s Fish and Game statute says we’re supposed to manage all animals for Idaho, and any surplus of animals we have we manage through hunting, fishing and trapping. Africa does the same thing.” On December 6, 2017, Breitbart News reported that huntress Nikki Tate received death threats after posting photos of her hunting adventures. When Tate faces criticism she tells the critics, ““I hunt for food, conservation, friendship, and so much more, all of which are very important to me. If I can respect others’ beliefs, values, and reasons, even those that involve human life and death, please respect mine.” AWR Hawkins is an award winning Second Amendment columnist for Breitbart News, the host of the Breitbart podcast Bullets, and the writer/curator of Down Range with AWR Hawkins, a weekly newsletter focused on all things Second Amendment, also for Breitbart News. He is the political analyst for Armed American Radio. Follow him on Twitter: @AWRHawkins. Reach him directly at awrhawkins@breitbart.com. Sign up to get Down Range at breitbart.com/downrange.<doc-sep>
Governor “Butch” Otter announced Monday that he asked for -- and has received -- the resignation of Blake Fischer as an Idaho Department of Fish and Game Commissioner. Fisher came under intense criticism for graphic photos taken during an African hunting trip he participated in last month. “I have high expectations and standards for every appointee in state government,” said Otter. “Every member of my administration is expected to exercise good judgment. Commissioner Fischer did not. Accordingly, I have accepted his resignation from the Idaho Fish and Game Commission.” Under the provisions of Idaho Code section 36-102 [legislature.idaho.gov] Commissioners serve at “the pleasure of the governor and are subject to removal by him.” Fischer’s resignation letter was submitted via e-mail to the Governor’s Office late this afternoon. The Governor accepted his resignation upon receipt. Fischer was originally appointed to the Idaho Fish and Game Commission in July of 2014 and was reappointed in June of 2018. Fisher’s resignation is effective immediately and the search for his replacement begins immediately, said Otter’s spokesman, Jon Hanian. In his resignation letter, Fischer stated, “I recently made some poor judgments that resulted in sharing photos of a hunt in which I did not display an appropriate level of sportsmanship and respect for the animals I harvested. While those actions were out of character for me, I fully accept responsibility and fee it is best for the citizens of Idaho and sportsmen and women that I resign my post.” Idaho residents interested in applying should go to gov.idaho.gov and fill out the application for appointment, Hanian said.