Why Trump’s ‘God Squad’ decision to expand oil drilling in Gulf of Mexico is a vote for a whale’s extinction

A federal decision, approved upon the request of the Trump administration, to expand Gulf oil drilling has heightened fears of extinction for the critically endangered Rice’s whale, with fewer than 50 individuals remaining. Scientists note the species already lost over 20% of its population after the Deepwater Horizon spill, warning that renewed industrial activity could push it beyond recovery and erase one of the ocean’s rarest whales.