Posted on 01/04/2016 10:33:31 AM PST by ObozoMustGo2012
Republican presidential hopeful Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas.) on Monday slammed the protesters who have taken over a federal building in rural Oregon, urging them to lay down their arms.
“Every one of us has a constitutional right to protest, to speak our minds,†Cruz told reporters at campaign event in Iowa, according to NBC News.
“But we don't have a constitutional right to use force and violence and to threaten force and violence on others,†he said. “And so it is our hope that the protesters there will stand down peaceably, that there will not be a violent confrontation.†Cruz said he is praying for everyone involved in the dispute, particularly law enforcement officials who “are risking their lives.â€
The protesters, led by two sons of the Nevada rancher Cliven Bundy, say they are taking a stand against a prison sentence for two landowners convicted of arson on federal property.
They’re also part of a group that frequently protests against federal government's management of Western lands. They protesters have told media outlets that they plan to stay on the refuge for years.
The standoff has put Republican presidential candidates on the spot, with some of them having expressed support in a similar dispute in 2014 between Bundy and the government over unpaid grazing fees.
The support for Bundy eroded when he began making racially charged statements in interviews.
Up until Monday, most of the GOP's White House contenders had refrained from speaking out on the Oregon dispute, but that is beginning to change.
Like Cruz, Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) condemned the takeover at the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge, though he told an Iowa radio station that he sympathizes with the movement to shrink federal land holdings.
“You’ve got to follow the law. You cannot be lawless,†Rubio told KBUR in an interview highlighted by Buzzfeed. “We live in a republic. There are ways to change the laws of this country and the policies. And if we get frustrated with it, that’s why we have elections, that’s why we have people we can hold accountable.â€
Rubio lent some credit to the stated goals of the occupation, reported by local media to involve a small group of armed men with very few local residents. The group is objecting to federal land control and ownership and pushing for the federal land to be given to states or individuals.
“I agree that there is too much federal control over land, especially out in the western part of the United States. There are states, for example, like Nevada that are dominated by the federal government in terms of land holding, and we should fix it,†Rubio said, adding that it shouldn’t be done “in a way that is outside the law.â€
Among the 2016 hopefuls, Cruz has been one of the most vocal advocates for reducing federal land ownership, along with Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.).
Cruz led the charge against the Bureau of Land Management’s claims over property around the Red River in Texas, saying he wants to “protect landowners from federal overreach.â€
Rubio has been less vocal about federal land ownership, but his energy policy platform calls for more local and state control over federal property for oil and natural gas drilling or other uses.
Land management is a major political issue in Western states. Nationwide, the federal government owns and manages nearly 630 million acres, with most located west of the Mississippi River.
Cruz and Rubio have increasingly clashed in recent weeks, with both seeking to overtake Donald Trump in polls of the Republican race.
While Rubio is seeking to gain ground in New Hampshire, the first primary state, Cruz has taken the lead in Iowa, which will hold its caucuses on Feb. 1.
I happen to agree with you on this specific incident.
Cruz however made sweeping statements about Constitutional rights that go to all cases, everywhere. They are couched as absolutes. THAT is what I want more clarification on.
I can tell you I will not ‘rally’ for some irresponsible ranchers who set a fire that got out of control and went onto someone else`s land. Terroristic Arson? NO, that`s a bit of a stretch, but if there was a ban, they did violate it. Reckless endangerment? Destruction of property? Sounds about right.
And that is exactly the root of this problem, nothing more. I would wish that Cruz would tell them he will defend them against the "double jeopardy" ruling.....it is illegal.
We control a majority of state governments, the senate, and the house and we may soon control the Whitehouse. There’s no need to abandon the ballot box at this time. This just isn’t my hill to die on. I truly hope the situation can be resolved peacefully and quickly.
How much is too much in your book? What will it take to wake you up to the threat against EVERY citizen in the united States to be stripped of their land, their property. How many YEARS have these people been stomped on by a Fed that has one thing in sight, to deprive Americans of their property and put us all in stack and pack “Sustainable” living “reservations.” What do you know about Agenda 21? Better do some research!
I have to agree. Apparently, “the law” - or what’s left of it, only applies to “We, the Sheeple”...
Utterly untrue.
The colonists were angry that, once again without any input from themselves, the UK government had changed the system of duties.
It was all about the lack of representation, from start to finish.
Trump could certainly gain some points with this one, offer to defend them in court......hire CRUZ.
Agreed. This group is a fuse looking for a match. There may be a time to light a fuse that will go off resulting in CWII but this ain't the time or the place. Everybody stand down and wait till after November.
Deserves repeating:
“Cruz is right again.
This isn’t the fight or hill to die on, this is no Bundy ranch situation and it’s no wonder the militia’s themselves aren’t rallying and flooding in to this situation.
This will all just fade away as it should.”
I am more PRO-Cruz than ever. He has access to Wisdom.
I agree with Cruz, BUT HE NEEDS TO USE THIS AS A LAUNCHING PAD TO START EXPOSING THE BLM!!!
The BLM stands for Bullying Land Monarchs.
Your timid candidate wouldn't even stand up for Kim Davis and Pam Geller and both weren't even advocating violence.
Cruz is funded in part by the same people who fund Rubio and bush. Would you call that the “Establishment” or not? Club for Growth has a finger in every pie except Trump’s.
Jesus made Peter sheath his sword but he promised to come back armed when the time came, etc.
It was neither legal or illegal - the UK government had basically suspended the rule of law by excluding the colonists from participation in their own government.
It does appear overzealous prosecution and sentencing.
The prosecution was wrong to charge them at all, and a successful conviction was wrongly achieved, but they did it all under the color of existing law.
Add to that, the existing law is an ass, of course.
What is the potential for success? Are the parties amenable or able to compromise? Is there something that can be brought to the table?
The situation with Kim Davis had gone past the point where there was much to negotiate. The courts wanted to publicly enforce their edicts, Kim Davis wanted to be a martyr. In the end, both parties got what they wanted.
“I don’t get why non violent disobedience is frowned upon by the right these days for our causes - it is a Christian aka Conservative invention we should take back from the leftists. The leftists - if you recall - were the ones arguing for armed uprisings in the 60s and 70s.â€
I don’t either, especially when the founders themselves set that precedent. Years of correspondence, essays and emissaries were attempted first by American patriots. YEARS.
Exactly - the Founders only rose up to break with the king when Boston was placed under an inhuman blockade - and in the meantime they perused non-violent resistance and persuasion. It is not weak to not resort to armed struggle first.
Trust me. This is NOT the American Revolution... it’s a liberal elite wet dream.
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