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Citizen's Posse Stops Land Rustlers
In a battle at midnight worthy of a paperback western novel, the alert actions of citizens
stopped a horrendous stealth effort to take control of private land away from its owners and into the hands of
government and environmentalists. The bill was S990, "The American Wildlife Enhancement Act of 2001."
The rustlers were Sen. Harry Reid (D-NV), the second-in-command to Majority Leader Tom Daschle (D-SD); outgoing
Sen. Bob Smith (R-NH), who was defeated in a bitter primary in his home state with newly elected John Sununu and
retiring Rep. James Hansen (R-UT). The leader of the citizen's posse was the ALRA - American Land Rights Association
(www.landrights.org) - but the Gatling gun that saved the
day was the Internet. Here is the tale.
The Senate. It is December 20, 2001. The media has its entire attention on Sen. Daschle's refusal to allow
a vote on the administration's economic stimulus package. It is late, almost midnight. Senators are rushing home
for the holidays. The last role call vote of the year has been taken. There are perhaps three senators on the floor.
"I rise," says Sen. Harry Reid," to ask for unanimous consent." The bill -S990 - is passed.
There is no record of who voted for or against. Was there even a quorum still in town? No one will ever know.
The bill, as described by columnist Henry Lamb, provided $600 million a year for five years for the "acquisition
of an area of land or water that is suitable or capable of being made suitable for feeding, resting or breeding
of wildlife," A purpose this broad opens up any land anywhere to condemnation and acquisition by any government
agency. The bill also authorizes grants to environmental organizations to pay for land acquisition and explicitly
exempts such land deals from the scrutiny and oversight required by the federal Advisory Committee Act. Our government
is gearing up to use tax dollars to buy the land it cannot legitimately control through regulation. Presently,
federal, state and local governments own 40 percent of the total land area of the United States. How much is enough?
No debate has occurred. The bill moves on to the House.
The House. It is now 11 months later. It is 2:30 am on November 15, 2002. Rep. James Hansen is nearly alone
on the House floor. "I rise," he says, "to ask for unanimous consent." The bill passes. No
debate has occurred. However, the bill has been altered and must return to the Senate.
The revised bill cuts the appropriation in half but has an even worse feature. There is a major amendment to the
1973 Endangers Species Act included. According to journalist Sarah Foster, the legislation adds a new designation.
Besides the already vexing "threatened" and "endangered" categories, a new one has been added
- "species at risk." The term is defined as "candidate species" for future inclusion. Some
$150 million in grant money would be available for environmental groups to define not only such potential species
but potential habitat as well.
This week, the lame duck Senate is scheduled to vote on The Homeland Security Bill, terrorism insurance and the
judgeship of Dennis Shedd while hoping to adjourn by the 21st. Another midnight vote is in the works.
Enter the Internet. With a weekend to plan and three days to execute, Mike Hardiman of the ALRA recruited
rank-and-file organizations, cooperated with the American Farm Bureau Federation, the National Cattlemen's Beef
Association, the National Water Resources Association, which represents irrigators, and others.
Under the rules of the Senate any one senator can place an anonymous hold on a piece of legislation. With time
running out, such a hold would effectively kill S 990 for this session and require it to start over again in the
next Congress.
Through the use of the Internet, the groups launched an "each-one-reach-one" campaign that flooded senate
offices with so many objections that fax machines were turned off and office telephones put on answering machines
during business hours. The E-mails volume was even greater.
The Internet contact system worked. Offended by both the lack of merit in the bill and the underhanded dark-of-night
methods used to secure passage, the people of the nation responded. The wave was so great that six senators put
holds on the bill and would not yield to personal pressure from Sen. Reid. The bill was dead for the session.
Next Year. The bill did not include the $9 million retiring Sen. Bob Smith has requested for the Trust for
Public Land to buy $7 million worth of property. It did not include the $15 million for the state of Utah to purchase
properties in the Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge in Bear River Bay of the Great Salt Lake.
In that $15 million, $5 million is designated for trail development, including $2 million for the "James V.
Hansen Shoshone Trail." Columnist Foster also reports that there is to be an $11 million education and administration
center at the Bear River refuge. The suggested name for the center has been James V. Hansen.
The two legends in their own minds will be retired from the new Congress which begins the second week of January.
No appropriations authorizations except defense have passed the Daschle-led Senate.
The evidence that alleged eco-terrorists such as Earth Liberation Front (ELF) and Animal Liberation Front (ALF)
are turning to violent criminal behavior is overwhelming. The duration and intensity of the forest fires this year
can be linked to management practices influenced by harassing environmental lawsuits. No one has yet to seriously
look at Klamath Falls. There is plenty to do if the new Congress wants to address the environment. Perhaps they
might try holding public hearings.
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