SACRAMENTO (CBS 8) - The cries for the resignation of California's Fish and Game Commissioner are growing louder, after a photo of him hunting a mountain lion went viral. But Dan Richards is fighting back against his critics with some choice words for them on AM talk radio.
Richards recently made headlines after he posted a photo of himself with the carcass of mountain lion he had killed during a hunting trip in Idaho, sparking outrage among many Californians. While hunting mountain lions is legal in Idaho, it is not permissible in the state of California.
Thursday, state assembly member Ben Hueso from Logan Heights drafted a resolution to remove Richards from his commission post.
But on KFI's "John and Ken Show" show Thursday, Richards blasted his critics and pointed fingers, and even described what the meat from the mountain lion he killed tasted like.
"The closest thing I could say is it's like a pork loin," Richards said. "It's white meat and it's really good."
Richards also dismissed a growing chorus of critics calling for him to step down.
"What I call environmental terrorists.... they are consistently trying to shut down gaming in the state," he said.
Richards also claimed the Humane Society was the driving force behind this move to oust him.
"Their stated mission by the executive director is to eliminate all hunting and fishing in the United States of America," Richards said.
While the head of the Humane Society has called Richards' comments "crazy," a spokesperson for the non-profit did take Richards to task.
"We feel our state's leaders in wildlife management at a minimum should be sensitive to the wishes of ca voters and their values, even if they themselves don't share them," Jennifer Fearing of the U.S. Humane Society told News 8.
Lt. governor Gavin Newsom has also joined the fray.
"I appreciate hunting, I really do," Newsom said. "But I don't think this action will hunt with the voters of California. I just think it's inappropriate and I felt compelled to say something about it."
"But what he forgot to mention was that he's lobbying extensively to have his father put on the commission," Richards countered.
Newsom's chief of staff later called that suggestion a lie.
In the meantime, Richards also faces a formal ethics complaint, charging he violated state law by hunting that mountain lion as a guest of the ranch's owner, without paying the usual $6800 fee.
State elected officials and members of state commissions are not permitted to accept gifts exceeding $420 over the course of a year.
The state legislature could vote on whether or not Richards is ousted from office as early as next week.