Sheriff calls off plans to talk with armed group

The younger Bundy’s anti-government group is critical of federal land stewardship.

Burns Paiute tribal chair Charlotte Rodrique talks to reporters about the armed occupation of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge near Burns, Ore., on Wednesday. Ammon Bundy’s protestations to the contrary, no ranchers were ever evicted from the refuge.

The Republican congressman whose district includes the occupied wildlife refuge protesters declared on Capitol Hill today that it’s time for the group to pack up and go home.

“We are exercising our constitutional rights”.

Bundy claims the two ranchers were targeted for not selling land to the government. But Cruz identified her jailing as “judicial tyranny” and said Davis was operating “under God’s authority”. They did so at length and with plenty of emotion. Oregon Live reported that despite Ammon Bundy’s previous plea for snacks and other supplies, the group plans to remain on refuge land and will not be surrendering on Friday.

Later he explained why he felt so angry about the takeover.

Indeed, in 1911 in a pair of landmark decisions – Light v U.S. and United States v Grimaud – the Supreme Court asserted that the public lands were, in fact, public; that federal ownership of them was indisputable; and that Congress through a series of legislative acts had granted the Executive Branch, and by extension the federal land management agencies, administrative authority to manage these acres in accordance with the relevant rules and regulations.

He continued to tell the history of his tribe’s fight over land.

Fast forward to 1879 after the treaty was signed.

“A hundred people died in that”, Moore said. “They’re waking us up!”

“We’re not about fear, we’re not about force, we’re not about intimidation”, he said.

Members of the Burns Paiute Tribal Council held a press conference yesterday, January 6, in Burns, Oregon to comment on the armed protesters. They made no agreements about a possible resolution to the standoff.

“It’s tough out here”. “They are just making a statement for us, to wake us up”.

There may be a good argument that the two ranchers in this case, Dwight Hammond and his son, Steven, were punished unreasonably harshly for their crimes. The two men left eastern OR early Sunday to report to Terminal Island in San Pedro, California, to serve their prison sentences. Prosecutors said the Hammonds set the fire to cover up poaching in the area.

A few ranchers have supported the group, bringing protesters warm soup and supper.

According to the Sheriff in the center of the OR occupation, David Ward, the FBI plans to prosecute the protesters for several federal charges once they leave the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge. What led up to that is unfortunate, too.

Sheriff David Ward and Ammon Bundy met Thursday afternoon.

But he also said he wanted the occupiers to leave so residents could “get back to our lives”.

During the meeting, the Sheriff asked Bundy to please leave and respect the wishes of Harney County residents.

Bundy’s bunch obviously has other grievances against the federal government. Their overarching philosophy seems to be that people like them should be able to use federal land for free, or that it should be “returned” to them, even if they never owned it in the first place. That has basically been waiting them out and not physically challenging them.