“There’s more to this decision than meets the eye,” Missoula-based
Backcountry Hunters & Anglers Conservation Director John Gale said
in an email. “Neither sportsmen nor other public lands users would stand
in the way of an objective attempt to ensure the integrity of recent
monument designations. Yet the administration’s announcement could
create unintended consequences that jeopardize important fish and
wildlife habitat on public lands and invite unproductive dialogues that
distract us from enhancing management of our public lands and waters.”...more
They wouldn't stand in the way of an "objective" review, but the mere announcement by Trump jeopardizes wildlife habitat? The review will cause "unproductive dialogues"? Sounds to me like they don't want the light of day shown on some of these designations. Abuses discovered might lead to legislation, so let's don't talk about it.
Indiana University environmental law professor Robert Fischman noted
that the Antiquities Act gives a president the power to designate a
national monument, but stands silent on disestablishment. So while Trump
can order reviews of borders and management, he said only Congress has
authority to erase a monument. “I think what is happening here is
that President Trump wants to make a big show of ordering a review (for
which he needs no executive order) to appease opponents of monuments and
parks,” Fischman wrote in an email. “Then, he can do nothing but make
some suggestions to Congress. Revoking monument designations would
undermine much of Trump’s popular support. “Congress has altered
and disestablished parks,” Fischman continued. “The presidents have
altered monument boundaries. None were done with the kind of fanfare we
are seeing today. I think that suggests that Trump is acting for the
fanfare and not for the disestablishment/revocation agenda.”
Fischman thinks this is all a "big show" done for fanfare and in the end, Trump will only make some recommendations to Congress. Fischman just can't bring himself to believe this President might actually diminish some National Monuments. Hell, I could hardly believe it myself! But I don't believe the "fanfare" is just throwing meat to the " disestablishment/revocation" types. No sir. I think a blow against executive branch overreach is about to be struck.
Issues of concern to people who live in the west: property rights, water rights, endangered species, livestock grazing, energy production, wilderness and western agriculture. Plus a few items on western history, western literature and the sport of rodeo... Frank DuBois served as the NM Secretary of Agriculture from 1988 to 2003. DuBois is a former legislative assistant to a U.S. Senator, a Deputy Assistant Secretary of Interior, and is the founder of the DuBois Rodeo Scholarship.
Saturday, April 29, 2017
Trump's monument order raises questions of presidential overreach
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As an attorney who watched Obama ignore every single requirement for local input on monument designation, I am cheering for Trump and Zinke to study the reasons for monument designations that violated almost unanimous local and tribal opposition while pandering to extremist so-called environmentalist nonprofits that support Agenda 21.
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