It has become abundantly clear that the federal action to round up cattle in our region is much more than it appears. It isn’t about whether Cliven Bundy’s cows are in trespass on federal land; or whether Bundy should have paid his grazing fees; or whether the cattle harm the endangered desert tortoise habitat; or whether the land ought to be under state, not federal, jurisdiction as Bundy claims. While all of these elements have contributed to the story, none of them are at the core of the issue for northeast Clark County residents.
To us here on the ground, the real issue has been the over-reaching display of excessive federal power. It is really about the disturbing police action which has restricted all of us from accessing hundreds of thousands of acres of public land; all over a trivial matter of one rancher and his 500-some-odd head of cattle.
There is no longer any point to arguing who is right and who is wrong in the matter of Cliven Bundy. That has been done to death without resolution. Admittedly it is hard to defend Mr. Bundy in his long-standing refusal to accept jurisdiction and pay the appropriate grazing fees. But that is no longer the chief concern.
The fact is that the BLM is acting under the authority of two federal court orders which grant authority to “seize and remove to impound any of Bundy’s cattle that remain in trespass”. The documents also order that “Bundy shall not physically interfere with any seizure or impoundment operation”. That’s simple enough. Five hundred head of cattle ought to be a fairly manageable task for a group of seasoned “cowboys” being paid an exorbitant amount.
But nowhere in these court orders does it give authority to throw the general law-abiding public off this huge tract of land, much of which has absolutely nothing to do with the roundup. Federal officials have insisted that they are sensitive to the needs of the public and are only closing off smaller areas directly affected by the action. But 300,000 acres is not small! And it would be a stretch to argue that the east bench of Moapa Valley and much of the western side of the Mormon Mesa has any relevance whatsoever to this project. The fact is, in all of these closures, the federal agencies have far overrun the federal court documents, and have far exceeded what is needful for a safe and successful roundup operation.
In addition, nowhere do the court orders give these agencies power to intimidate the general public with an army of heavily armed federal officers itching for an opportunity to draw and shoot at a moment’s notice. If anything has ratcheted up the tension in Clark County it would be that unwarranted threat of force.
It has reached a point here where the general law-abiding citizenry of rural northeastern Clark County actually fear to venture into their own backyards. This is due to the very real worry of being arrested and/or shot because they may have accidentally stumbled out onto a restricted landscape. The vast open hills and mesas around us, which are usually bustling with recreational activities of all kinds, are now nearly silent. And so are many of the area businesses that usually thrive on tourism at this time of the year. Again, in this intimidation of the public, the federal agencies have far overreached the mandate of the federal court documents.
Finally, nowhere do the court orders give the feds power to marginalize, micromanage and restrict the free speech rights of the public to two small fenced-off areas on the margins of the federal action. Indeed, nowhere do the court orders give federal agents power to arrest and detain people without probable cause or without clearly stating the charges. For example, there are no special powers given to arrest an otherwise law-abiding citizen who is, casually and without threat, exercising his first amendment rights in an unrestricted space outside of these specified free speech areas. This is exactly what happened to Davie Bundy on Sunday afternoon. This example of thuggery is perhaps the most outrageous example of these agencies operating far outside of the legal mandates of their court orders.
...But who is the trigger happy party here, really? The escalation of tensions that have taken place out there on the range, and in the hearts and minds of the general public, has been directly due to the petty, vindictive, excessive and unjustifiable behavior of the federal agencies in this matter. That is what is truly driving the emotions and the conflict at this point.
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