Wednesday, March 3, 2010

Land Grab: I can see people getting shot over this, too.

Vandalized Bureau of Land Management trailer.

The Bureau of Land Management is not one of the most popular federal agencies in the west. Now we have this bright idea.

Oh, yeah, I can definitely see somebody getting shot over this.

And they just keep doubling down.

Sheesh.

Mike
III

DEMINT: White House land grab

Proposal to seize land would favor animals over Americans

By Sen. Jim DeMint


You'd think the Obama administration is busy enough controlling the banks, insurance companies and automakers, but thanks to whistleblowers at the Department of the Interior, we now learn they're planning to increase their control over energy-rich land in the West.

A secret administration memo has surfaced revealing plans for the federal government to seize more than 10 million acres from Montana to New Mexico, halting job- creating activities like ranching, forestry, mining and energy development. Worse, this land grab would dry up tax revenue that's essential for funding schools, firehouses and community centers.

President Obama could enact the plans in this memo with just the stroke of a pen, without any input from the communities affected by it.

At a time when our national unemployment rate is 9.7 percent, it is unbelievable anyone would be looking to stop job-creating energy enterprises, yet that's exactly what's happening.

The document lists 14 properties that, according to the document, "might be good candidates" for Mr. Obama to nab through presidential proclamation. Apparently, Washington bureaucrats believe it's more important to preserve grass and rocks for birdwatchers and backpackers than to keep these local economies thriving.

Administration officials claim the document is merely the product of a brainstorming session, but anyone who reads this memo can see that it is a wish list for the environmentalist left. It discusses, in detail, what kinds of animal populations would benefit from limiting human activity in those areas.

The 21-page document, marked "Internal Draft-NOT FOR RELEASE," names 14 different lands Mr. Obama could completely close for development by unilaterally designating them as "monuments" under the 1906 Antiquities Act.

It says all kinds of animals would be better off by doing so, like the coyotes, badgers, grouse, chickens and lizards. But giving the chickens more room to roost is no reason for the government to override states' rights.

Rep. Robert Bishop, Utah Republican, made the memo public because he didn't want another unilateral land grab by the White House, like what happened under former Presidents Bill Clinton and Jimmy Carter.

Using the Antiquities Act, President Carter locked up more land than any other president had before him, taking more than 50 million acres in Alaska despite strong opposition from the state.

President Clinton used the authority 22 times to prohibit hunting, recreational vehicles, mining, forestry and even grazing in 5.9 million acres scattered around the country. The law allowed him to single-handedly create 19 new national monuments and expand three others without consulting anyone.

One of the monuments President Clinton created was the Grande Staircase-Escalante in Utah, where 135,000 acres of land were leased for oil and gas and about 65,000 barrels of oil were produced each year from five active wells. But, President Clinton put an end to developing those resources.

President Obama could do the same in other energy-rich places unless Congress takes action. At least 13.5 million acres are already on his Department of Interior's real estate shopping list.

This includes a 58,000-acre area in New Mexico. The memo said this should be done so the lesser prairie chicken and the sand dune lizard will be better protected. Are these animals going extinct? No. The bureaucrats wrote that the land should be locked up to "avoid the necessity of listing either of these species as threatened or endangered."

In Nevada, the Obama administration might make another monument in the Heart of the Great Basin because it, supposedly, is a "center of climate change scientific research."

In Colorado, the government is considering designating the Vermillion Basin as a monument because it is "currently under the threat of oil and gas development."

Americans should be wary of any plans a president has to seize land from the states without their consent. Any new plans to take away states' freedom to use land as they see fit must be stopped.

That's why I sponsored an amendment to block Mr. Obama from declaring any of the 14 lands listed in the memo as "monuments." Unfortunately, the Senate, led by Democrats, rejected it on Thursday evening by a vote of 58-38.

It was particularly disappointing that the Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, of Nevada, voted against the amendment. The government owns more than 80 percent of the land in Nevada and the unemployment rate there is 12.8 percent. Surely it would help job prospects if more land were open for business.

This is a nationwide problem. The government currently owns 650 million acres, or 29 percent of the nation's total land.

Federal bureaucrats shouldn't be wasting time thinking up ways to acquire more, especially in the middle of a recession. Taking the nation's resources offline will stifle job creation and dry up tax revenues.

If anything, the government should be selling land off, not locking more up. By voting against my amendment, the Democrats tacitly endorsed Mr. Obama's secret plan to close off millions more acres to commerce.

If enacted, the plan would mean fewer jobs for Americans.

The Democratic Congress refused to stop it, but one sure way Americans could help block it is if they decide some Democrats should lose their jobs on November.

Sen. Jim DeMint, South Carolina Republican, is chairman of the U.S. Senate Steering Committee, a caucus of conservative senators.

26 comments:

Anonymous said...

I'm thinking politician will be an endangered species if they decide to go through with this.

Anonymous said...

They just keep moving their finger closer to us, all the while saying, "I'm not touching you."

I agree, people could get hurt over this.

daniel said...

Is that a recent picture of the broken windows on that trailer? looks like someone threw rocks or something.

RJIII said...

He needs it as collateral to pay China back.

Rev. Paul said...

Two points: a) the fed.gov already controls over 66 million acres of Alaska - that's 2/3 of the state. Native Corporations were given 44 million by ANCSA in 1971. Only 1 million is in private ownership. The Dems & greenies want to make the entire state a national park, and are actively pushing for people to get completely out. They see no problem with this policy; we residents have a BIG problem with it.

b) I note Utah's governor is backing a bill to use eminent domain to seize & develop federal lands there. I hope this idea catches on.

Anonymous said...

I can see this as a "test the waters" manuever.
If enough people put up a fuss (in spite of the secrecy - there will always be leaks) - the agency can always disclaim it as an "internal think tank only memo". In this case, the agency ends up with only a minor bruise.

If no one says anything, then they will go through with the action, in spite of how wrong it is. In THIS case, the agency wins.

B Woodman
III-per

F, B, Caver said...

Is that the USA or Zimbabwe/Angola?

Anonymous said...

If anything, the government should be selling land off, not locking more up.--Senator DeMint

Well, this is a neat trick. First they confiscate the land and then they sell it back.

I have a better idea. Return these properties to the states from which they were taken and let those states decide what to do with it.

The fedgov cannot properly manage existing properties. Why should it confiscate more?

MALTHUS

atexan said...

I live next to a National Recreation Area. Recreation? The rangers don't want anyone out there. Every year they come up with another reason to try to keep people out. Our small community has fought with them on several occasions but they just keep getting more restrictive. They don't realize how close they are to some major changes. People are tired of their heavy hand.

Anonymous said...

These "Muppet's" are really disconnected.......Let them start it and it will be finished. It is WAAAAY past the time for squaring this away but late is better than never, however it is going to be painful for all to be sure. It is a great time in history to be alive, that's for sure.

Chris
III

jon said...

this is another scare tactic. wait and watch for the less threatening version when a critical mass of chatty morons let slip what circumstances they would be okay with. carrot, meet stick.

Mayberry said...

How many land owners will get screwed on this deal I wonder... If I were one, I'd build me a bunker at the front gate, and fly my Gadsden flag. It is way past time to put a stop to these these bastards. Stand your ground, and show no mercy....

Anonymous said...

Figures they want to turn more public land into a private preserve for the political class. You can bet the "special" people will be able to access and enjoy it all on our dime.

wl moses

pdxr13 said...

Welcome to Zim. Wages are fixed to allow amazing wealth-looting (sound familiar?) and prices double in Z$ every 20 minutes. Store shelves are empty.

Then a miracle happened: foreign currency became legal tender, along with gold. Store shelves full again.

Watch out for Bob and his (late-70's Bush War)"veterans" who were not born until 1990, who have been promised your farm and the chance to beat and rape without reprisal.

Unfortunately, out West, our "farm" has always been owned by the FedGov and managed mostly-reasonably (grazing, mining, etc.) by DeptoftheInterior.

The Fed's do not have enough manpower to keep us from our land-by-right.

Cheers.

Anonymous said...

Replace the word "land" with some other commodity like, "water" or "food", or "electricity" or "gasoline", or "guns and ammunition." Would that be legal?

Oops, sorry, I just gave away their plan, didn't I?

Eric
III

Anonymous said...

There is no frikkin "authority" for the government to OWN any land in any State other than:

To exercise exclusive legislation in all cases whatsoever, over such district (not exceeding ten miles square) as may, by cession of particular states, and the acceptance of Congress, become the seat of the government of the United States,

(The above is Washington D.C.)

and to exercise like authority over all places purchased by the consent of the legislature of the state in which the same shall be, for the erection of forts, magazines, arsenals, dock-yards, and other needful buildings!!

There is nothing in the constitution delegating the president or congress the power and authority to confiscate land to save ... ANYTHING ... or to make it a national park.

Anonymous said...

Uh.. the caption for the trailer was supposed to say: "Vanderboegh-ized Bureau of Land Management trailer."

Let's maintain accuracy Red Mike, otherwise people will think you are a pusillanimous unmanly perverse son-of-a-gun who can't take responsibility for your actions, instead of the humorous fun loving stand-up fellow we all know you are...

I was wondering what Mike was doing during this latest internet 'outage', and now I guess we know - at least part of it, anyway - can't wait to learn the rest...

altho it seems we have to wait and wait for other things - talk about perverse... I just don't see the humor in it.. I really don't.. those idiot news folks just don't have a clue, not one... scribblers... who needs 'em...

jafaAf

Toastrider said...

You'd think after the stink over Kelo they'd know better...

...who am I kidding.

Anonymous said...

Sheesh. It's like when you walk outside and a couple of thieves have your car up on blocks. Then when you shout, "Put those damn tires back!", and they look at you and say, "We're not stealing your tires. Trust us!"

Anonymous said...

Some years ago, there was government talk about seizing huge tracts of the Loess Hill here in SW Iowa. Never got past the suggestion stage. Good thing too. Lots of folks promised that government men that showed up to tell people they had to move would have had nice funerals.

Anonymous said...

lampost...politician/bureaucrat....rope....some assembly required

Gabriel said...

One can list our grievances and the depredations of tyranny ceaselessly, and the lists will merely continue to grow as Liberty and any hope for its survival commensurately diminish and fade from memory.

Until we act to stop the enemies of Liberty permanently by any and all means necessary.

How much longer will we abide the destruction of our and our children's birthright? What will it take to convince even we, the supposedly already convinced, that the justification for "any means" has long since passed?

Harry "Midnight Misogynist" Reid said...

TOTALLY OFF TOPIC :

OOOHRAH!!!!!!!
Red Mike, you done made us proud!!!!
That was one FINE TV spot on WVTM ! !
I was very, very impressed. Of course you always make an exceptional public image - smooth but not 'oily', down-home, plain folk without being a bumpkin, rational and calm in delivery - the kind of fellow who can instantly quote Yogi Berra OR Savonarola or Pliny with equal aplomb.
But in this case - the effect was magnified at least ten-fold by the juxtaposition of the smooth, calm, nice guy Face of the Three Per Centers, and the wild-eyed, sweaty, and generally unkempt appearance of the ever freakish Potok, whose mannerisms would lead many to conclude that he'd dropped out of the drug rehab program a month too soon. What a cretin!!!

I thought that the interview and story were more fair than we can usually expect from the lame-stream media. I was mildly irked by the playing of the race card but Mike deflated that little fart-balloon handily.

( BTW - does it bother anyone but ME, to hear people refer to the Idiot-in-chief, as a black man??? He is HALF black and half white, a mulatto by definition. How hypocritical can one be when instead of trying to 'pass for white' as the black community once derided those who downplayed their ancestry, and trying to pass for black? )
Sorry to rant on, but I cam home form the hospital early to watch this and it was worth it by all measures!! I am proud to have you as a friend.
Final score:
articulate, kindly schoolmaster with cane and briefcase - 100.
babbling disheveled pseudo furry freak brother reject from an R Crumb nightmare - zero.

OOOOHRAH!
- j -

MamaLiberty said...

I've watched almost 60 years of abuse and terror imposed by this non-voluntary government. My mother used to say so many of these same things... the people won't stand for it... someone is going to get hurt...

I watched as Waco and Ruby Ridge unfolded. Where was the outrage? Why is "Lon" still walking around free? Or Clinton, or any of a thousand others?

Each new insult, infringement and tyranny is met with the vows that "one more" won't be tolerated. But it seems it's always the NEXT one they're talking about.

It's time - and past time, ladies and gentlemen. The line was supposedly drawn a long time ago.

What happened to "we're all done backing up?"

Gabriel said...

"It's time - and past time, ladies and gentlemen. The line was supposedly drawn a long time ago.

What happened to "we're all done backing up?""

Just so, MamaLiberty.

When Gabriel blows his horn....

Listen.

Jon

III

Anonymous said...

Looks like another good reason for forming an organization like the Western States Alliance/W.S.A.

The disgusting part about this & numerous other outrages committed by govts thruout history is that the repeated submission to & acceptance of them validates the tyrant's ancient claim that people WANT to be ruled by others. After awhile you wonder just what it'll take to get humanity to pull its head out of its back end & keep it out. Even after millennia of slavery, continents of corpses, multitudinous oceans of blood, & enough screams of misery to silence several thousand hyper-novae, there's STILL no fundamental & PERMANENT shift in mankind's thinking. Perhaps the other equally ancient claims of liberty not being for the weak & that the indulgence of weakness eventually ends in servitude are the true lessons of history & if that indeed is the case, then those who want to keep their liberty are going to have to make some VERY tough & VERY unpleasant choices if the freedom/slavery/freedom/slavery cycle is to be broken once & for all.


Cassandra (of Troy)