Friday, October 17, 2014

Grazing Wars: Grass March Cowboys Ride to Capitol Hill

A Prius driver pulled up next to the horse trailer parked on Maryland Avenue midday Thursday, a block southwest of the Capitol, and asked Nevada ranch hand George Martin what issue brought him to Washington. “Regulation without representation,” responded Martin, 69, who was keeping a watchful eye on a dozen horses and three of his great-granddaughters, while the rest of the crew that rode with him for nearly 2,800 miles paid a visit to the Hill. Capitol Police rules ban the Grass March Cowboy Express from saddling up on Capitol grounds, so the two horse trailers and a chuck wagon stayed parked outside the National Museum of the American Indian. Sparked by a conflict over grazing rights in central Nevada, the caravan originally rode from Elko to Carson City to get the attention of Republican Gov. Brian Sandoval. The ranchers reject the Bureau of Land Management’s drought-inspired restrictions on grazing, and want the man in charge of the Battle Mountain field office in central Nevada removed. On Sept. 26, they started a second ride from Bodega Bay, Calif., to deliver petitions to Western lawmakers on Capitol Hill about land and environmental issues. They’ve found at least one ally in Congress: Nevada Republican Rep. Mark Amodei. He hasn’t gone so far as to call for anyone’s ouster, but he did write a letter to BLM Director Neil Kornze questioning some of the state-level management practices. Amodei said in his letter that bordering districts in California, Oregon, Utah and Idaho — states where the federal government owns far less land — do not get similar treatment from BLM on grazing in the context of drought conditions. He was meeting with BLM officials this week to talk about those issues. About a dozen congressional staffers milled around eating barbecue sandwiches and slaw off disposable plates, listening to the ranchers talk about their problem. Organizers said the House Natural Resources Committee and Rep. Chris Stewart, R-Utah, were among the congressional offices that paid the Grass March some attention during their visit. Organizer Katie Jones told CQ Roll Call the group didn’t get any promises during their brief visit to Capitol Hill, but “we have gained ground.” After a few hours in D.C., the Grass March Cowboy Express rode on. They pinpointed Annapolis, Md., for the final stop in their long trek. The cowboys wanted to end near water, just like they began...more

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