Washington Duck Ramp Irks North Carolina Lawmaker

CHARLOTTE, NC — In case you needed more proof that everything — everything — in our nation's capital is open to criticism and bickering, consider this: North Carolina Rep. Mark Walker saw fit to criticize the building of two decidedly low-tech duck ramps to help our furry friends waddle in and out of the Capitol Reflecting Pool.

"Government waste," he snorted in a tweet about the ramps.

His comments came after the Architect of the Capitol teamed up with City Wildlife, an animal rescue non-profit organization, to build the ramps to assist the four resident mallard families that live in the six-acre pool on the eastern end of the National Mall. “We can never truly predict their behavior, but our goal is to provide them the means to get in and out of the water, which is what they need to do in the wild to protect their duckling from becoming waterlogged or cold,” said City Wildlife president Anne Lewis.

She told The New York Times that without the ramps, the ducks would likely die.

“Ducklings get into the water — often helped there by visitors — and then can’t get out because of the high curb at the water’s edge,” she said in an email. “They will drown from exhaustion or die of starvation unless they have a way to get out of the water.”

Walker, a Republican from Greensboro who represents North Carolina’s 6th district, tweeted his criticism of the ramp project Tuesday, saying, “It it looks like a duck and walks like a duck, it must be government waste.”

The responses were decidedly in favor of the ducks.

Here is a video of the ramp in action:

What do you think about the ramp? Do you agree or disagree with Walker? Sound off in the comment section below.

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Photo via the Architect of the Capitol, Video via the U.S. Capitol