BLM standoff ends at Bundy ranch

Clive Bundy (Photo: Habitat for Horses)

BLM ends standoff at Bundy ranch

LAS VEGAS — After a week of conflict that began on April 5, the BLM standoff at the Bundy Ranch has ended with Clive Bundy winning the latest round.

The dispute started over 20 years ago when Clive Bundy stopped paying grazing fees on the land because of his belief that the government is not the landlord. Since that time the government has been keeping track of how much money they believe Clive Bundy owes and claim the figure exceeds $1 million dollars. 

Clive Bundy says the figure is closer to $300,000.

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The government claimed that they only stormed the ranch as a “last resort” to enforce court orders for payments due them.

Members of Bundy’s family claim that more than 200 armed government personnel stormed the ranch and had them surrounded. Under the BLM’s direction nearly 400 of the almost 1000 cattle that belong to Bundy were rounded up, sparking fears among Bundy and his supporters that the cattle were going to be euthanized.

Supports of Bundy included protesters and militia groups. The standoff reached a boiling point when protesters were limited to two single areas to protest which violated their first amendment rights. Bundy’s son was arrested and another family member was tasered,

Nevada Gov. Brian Sandoval issues a strong statement on the BLM standoff with Bundy and said,

Due to the roundup by the BLM, my office has received numerous complaints of BLM misconduct, road closures and other disturbances. I have recently met with state legislators, county officials and concerned citizens to listen to their concerns. I have expressed those concerns directly to the BLM. Most disturbing to me is the BLM’s establishment of a ‘First Amendment Area’ that tramples upon Nevadans’ fundamental rights under the U.S. Constitution. To that end, I have advised the BLM that such conduct is offensive to me and countless others and that the ‘First Amendment Area’ should be dismantled immediately. No cow justifies the atmosphere of intimidation which currently exists nor the limitation of constitutional rights that are sacred to all Nevadans. The BLM needs to reconsider its approach to this matter and act accordingly.

On Saturday the BLM has pulled out and Director Neil Kornze issued the following statement discussing the end of the BLM standoff,

Today we announced the decision to conclude the cattle gather because of our grave concern about the safety of employees and members of the public.

This afternoon, demonstrators gathered at the area where personnel and cattle were located. Due to escalating tensions, the cattle have been released from the enclosures in order to avoid violence and help restore order.

Safety has always been our number one priority, and the Bureau of Land Management and the National Park Service appreciate the support of those who called for a peaceful conclusion to the operation.

Nevada officials are urging Bundy supporters to leave the ranch peacefully in an attempt to further diffuse the situation and have the cattle that the BLM had rounded up have been released.

The situation is far from over.

Bundy and his supporters claim that American Citizens are simply taking back their cattle and the government contends it is still owed more than $1 million dollars.

There are a number of websites that claim that Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev. was behind the BLM’s decision to storm the Bundy Ranch which led to the tense BLm standoff.  Red Flag News cites that Reid’s former senior adviser now serves as the BLM Director and claim that the BLM has removed pages from their website that directly references Bundy.

Top Right News as of this writing has screen shots of the alleged removed documentation.

Reid has not commented on the matter.

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