Posted on 04/12/2014 10:50:43 AM PDT by Red Steel
A Nevada cattle rancher appears to have won his week-long battle with the federal government over a controversial cattle roundup that had led to the arrest of several protesters.
Cliven Bundy went head to head with the Bureau of Land Management over the removal of hundreds of his cattle from federal land, where the government said they were grazing illegally.
Bundy claims his herd of roughly 900 cattle have grazed on the land along the riverbed near Bunkerville, 80 miles northeast of Las Vegas, since 1870 and threatened a "range war" against the BLM on the Bundy Ranch website after one of his sons was arrested while protesting the removal of the cattle.
"I have no contract with the United States government," Bundy said. "I was paying grazing fees for management and that's what BLM was supposed to be, land managers and they were managing my ranch out of business, so I refused to pay."
The federal government had countered that Bundy "owes the American people in excess of $1 million " in unpaid grazing fees and "refuses to abide by the law of land, despite many opportunities over the last 20 years to do so."
However, today the BLM said it would not enforce a court order to remove the cattle and was pulling out of the area.
"Based on information about conditions on the ground, and in consultation with law enforcement, we have made a decision to conclude the cattle gather because of our serious concern about the safety of employees and members of the public," BLM Director Neil Kornze said.
(Excerpt) Read more at abcnews.go.com ...
He is stealing. I am sorry you cannot understand that. He has paid the fees in the past. Now he won’t pay despite court decisions against him. He still uses the resources he once paid for. Therefore now he is stealing them.
For the day anyway. They’ve returned Bundy’s cattle and they’re being moved back to the grazing land now.
Been watching live streaming video from the ground all morning:
http://www.ustream.tv/channel/thepetesantillishow
LOL Nice graphic! I think I’ll steal it. ;^)
Link please.
“You might want to learn a little US history”
Yes, you should. And you might want to go back further and “review” how the Federal Government’s extortion plan garnered them 85% of Nevada “in exchange” for statehood. This land was a “taking” by the Feds and it needs to be returned to the citizens of each state from which they took it. Right now, Nevada would do a whole lot better being an “independent” state. Just look at what “bribing the Feds” has gotten them, and for that matter all the rest of the Western States as well. These fed bastards “own” more than half of California! Go look at a map that shows their “ownership” state by state. They need to be “compelled” to return what they stole.
You never beat the Feds…These BLM and and Forest Service people can be real pricks…they run there areas like dictators…most are no good
I’m pretty sure ‘grazing fees’ and BLM active management were part of New Deal legislation.
“you will find how those ‘fees’ were and are weaponized to drive people off public lands.”
I guess Bundy must disagree with you since he has said he is willing to pay those fees but only to the county, not the Federal government.
I’m not sorry is what you can’t seem figure out the is underlying reason that are in play. The behind the scenes people are not good guys but are manipulative for selfish reasons. Your ‘self-indignation’ is toward the wrong people and wrong subject. The decisions come from an unlawful Obama Administration that you should be focusing on, and not some rancher out in Nevada.
Good effort in convincing the rest of how misguided we are. I’m certain Harry and Rory Reid are very thankful for your support.
And you know what will happen if news of that gets out? There are BLM buildings in every major city. I found three nearby. Find out where the one closest to you is.
Doesn’t matter. The BLM has driven many companies out of the desert with ‘user fees’ ever increasing, bogus claims about desert tortise ‘endangerment that cost people $20,000 fines per touch costing the state millions. I in part, built the early part of my career writing about it.
you might want to learn how the current solar fiasco south of Vegas was built on land so endangered that 20 plus years of human use had to be stopped because of the havoc it was wreaking. How use of that land came to a halt, revenue from it ceased and suddenly it was paved in steel and glass.
But your agenda is obvious so I won’t waste time detailing it.
Would you say people in Colorado who save and use the rainwater that falls on their houses are stealing from the King, too? That’s taxed, and not just in CO, either.
FYI, the BLM’s current stance is they don’t want him grazing his cattle there for any amount of money. It’s not about the money anymore.
"AG" = "Accomplice General"? Or maybe "Accessory to Graft"?
Although I kinda like "Appended Greasebag".
Yes I understand that many think it’s unfair that the government owns so much land out west but honestly that argument is a big red herring in this case.
The ownership situation is what it is. It is no secret who owns that land. Bundy willingly entered into permit agreements to use the land. Nobody forced him to use the land or increase his herd so he needed more land. He owns his own property that he has free use of, however he wants to extend the same “rights” to property that simply isn’t his. He wants to use US taxpayer owned property for his business, with no restrictions and at no cost.
He has consistently lost in court and has no legal leg to stand on.
I maintain if the Feds arrest Bundy, it will be over trumped-up charges (like illegal guns or explosives), even if they have to plant the evidence on him. This will sow more doubt of the kind we are seeing from a particular statist poster on this thread, in order to separate Bundy from his supporters.
They’ll probably “discover” a dog-fighting facility or something.
As my name might suggest, I’ve followed this story with great interest. While the behavior of the BLM is open to discussion and criticism, I would argue the government has been incredibly patient with Mr. Bundy. He stopped paying his grazing fees in 1993 (about $1.35 per cow/calf pair per month), continued to graze his cattle on public land after his leases were cancelled for non-payment and ignored a federal court order to remove his cattle. Mr. Bundy is not a hero; he is a freeloader. Ranchers have access to more than 158 million acres of federal land. The grazing fees are used primarily to help mitigate and repair the damage that larges herds of cows can inflict. Anyone who has ever been around cattle can attest that they can stomp a mud hole quicker than any other critter on earth. This is not the first time - nor will it be the last - the BLM impounds cattle for non-payment and non-compliance. On average, it happens about four times a year. This time, some BLM employees in Nevada got a bit overzealous in carrying out their duties. Imagine if you owned pastureland and leased it to a rancher. What would you do if he had refused to pay rent for more than 20 years and refused to remove his cattle from your land?
That wouldn’t surprise me at all. The whole idea is strongly tinged with socialist principles.
I agree.
This:
<big><big><big><big>Pr<img src="http://www.conservativedailynews.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/Obama-Logo.png" height="30">gre<img src="http://www.reichslieder.com/0947_ss_runes.jpg" height="35">ive</big></big></big></big>
Displays this:
Pr
gre
ive
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.