By Steven Horsford July 18
Steven Horsford, a Democrat, represents Nevada’s 4th District in the House of Representatives.
It has been more than three months since my constituents in Bunkerville, Nev., had their lives turned upside down by the standoff at the Bundy ranch. Although Bunkerville (population 1,300) is no longer in the media spotlight, life there has not returned to normal. The militia presence may have dwindled, but a sense of chaos and uncertainty lingers in my state and the broader American West.
When news of a rebellious rancher facing off with federal agents broke in April, conservative media and politicians pounced, quickly lionizing Cliven Bundy as a patriot. They handed Bundy a megaphone, and self-proclaimed militia members from across the country rallied to his side.
Conservative media painted Bundy as “The Last Rancher” and, with apocalyptic fanfare, Bunkerville was transformed into some fevered final bastion of freedom. For some pundits, this was a simple tale about a rancher defending his way of life against an overgrown federal bureaucracy. But for others, the stakes swelled far beyond that, and Bundy became a magnet for a mishmash of frustrations, from legitimate to conspiratorial.
In the frenzy to pillory the government that ensued, almost no viewpoint seemed too extreme to voice. Emboldened by attention from such high-profile conservative media figures as Sean Hannity, armed militia members set up checkpoints, stopped traffic and occupied roads. At one point, local police had to physically place themselves between the militia and agents from the Bureau of Land Management, fearing for their lives while trying to prevent a bloodbath.
Simultaneously, local elected officials were working behind the scenes to cut the fuse on the powder keg. But at a safe remove, Fox News and other conservative outlets dedicated nonstop coverage to the stalemate during the tensest hours on the ground. Finally, the Bureau of Land Management withdrew, and a victory was declared for Bundy. Then came Bundy’s now infamously racist rant, in which he questioned whether African Americans were better off when enslaved, and his support fell away.
At this point, Hannity and Co. washed their hands of the story. They had their anti-government victory, and now they needed to distance themselves from Bundy’s racism. Unfortunately, it was too late to truly pull the plug. The fringe had long since taken encouragement from all the supportive coverage.
Soon, a Bureau of Land Management agent working in Utah was threatened by two hooded men in an unmarked vehicle, who approached him while holding a sign that read: “You need to die.” One man reportedly brandished what appeared to be a Glock handgun.
Last month, Brent Douglas Cole, an anti-government conspiracy theorist, allegedly shot two law enforcement members in California. His online footprint is full of references to conspiracy theories, some illustrating his support for Bundy.
Most horrifically, two months after the Bundy conflict, Jerad and Amanda Miller shot and killed two Las Vegas police officers, plus a third person. They were at the Bundy ranch during the height of the conflict, and Jerad Miller wrote on his Facebook page that the situation at the ranch could be the “start of revolution.” He said he was protecting the Bundy family from “Federal Government slaughter.”
I am not suggesting that we draw direct lines of causation between these crimes and the Bundy ranch. That is impossible. But such events don’t occur in a vacuum. They all happened in or near my congressional district. They were all perpetrated by individuals with ideological sentiments apparently in the same constellation as those amplified by far-right talking heads during the Bundy standoff. Such extremists could find only comfort in the small-town standoff that took place in Nevada in April.
My plea to my fellow public servants and the media is this: Please, recognize that evocations of tyranny and oppression, counterbalanced by patriotic sacrifice and love of country, are powerful motivators. I watched as a small community was transformed into a hotbed for extremism. That did not happen organically but in an environment created by nonstop attention and demagoguery from media and politicians alike.
There can be reasonable disagreement about the Bundy ranch. But we can disagree without offering refuge to dangerous individuals on the fringe.
This case is not closed. Cliven Bundy has yet to answer to the law, and the Bureau of Land Management has said it will pursue the matter “aggressively through the legal system.” Of those who broke the law at the Bundy ranch, Clark County Sheriff Doug Gillespie said, “They need to be held accountable for it.”
Elected officials and the media have control over the megaphones that those such as Cliven Bundy hold temporarily. We have a responsibility to understand the language we use and to consider how it will be heard by others.
First of all am a US citizen and pay taxes, So why are you Democrats letting all these Illegals in our country with out a visa and feeding them, putting them in shelters and giving them medical care. But when a taxpayer and citizen works this land and Feds send an army of armed men to make a citizen comply with the law, why aren’t the armed feds down at our borders keeping out the real criminals and our country safe from our real enemies, the jihadists that want to kill us and the illegals.Pissed off citizen
Wake up. It’s the Republican business owners who want the “illegals” here to work for cheap wages. The US Chamber of Commerce, the LDS church…ALL support immigration.
I would like to say us citizens, taxpayers and veterans are not extremists, Obama, Harry Reid and the likes of the democrats who run this country are the extremists, You fuel the immigration crisis and praise the Muslins. You screw us taxpayers and veterans, by giving welfare to 50% of the population and then want more money for your socialize agenda and stop the influx of illegals coming across our borders and giving them free medicine, food and a place to stay. and us American taxpayer citizens pay taxes, pay for our health insurance and buy our own food.
Also for the government sending BLM gunners to get a mans right to bear arms and raise his cattle is absurbed , the Obama and the democrats should have them on the borders to protect our country from Jihudists and the Illegal immigrants, they are ones that are leaches on our systems that we as taxpayers are suppose to reap the benefits, not the welfare and illegals.
One pissed off Citizen
I agree wholeheartedly with Dave. Let’s start by getting rid of Rep. Horsford he doesn’t represent me or my beliefs.
First. How many illegals work at the Bundy Ranch?
Second. What is your issues with Muslims? 99% are a peaceful religious group. It’s the extremist groups that cause issues. FLDS, Taliban, ISIS, ect…the list goes on. You are very closed minded when it comes to this subject. I agree our government is in crisis. Take religion out of government, & it will work. To many wars based on religious views.
I agree….I am a Muslim, but I am also an American-born Citizen of German-British heritage. I am also the Command Sergeant Major for my State Militia in Pennsylvania. These issues really have nothing to do with religion. Muslims have committed terrible acts against this Country…..so have Christians. The issue at hand is that of the Government overstepping its authority. Let’s keep the discussion on topic and not get lost in the myriad of side issues and bigotry.
Thank you!
Elected officials and the media have control over the megaphones that those such as Cliven Bundy hold temporarily. We have a responsibility to understand the language we use and to consider how it will be heard by others.,,,,
I was at an event “One Hero At A Time” (OHAAT), in the Casa Blanca, Mesquite awaiting band members and Patriots to join us from the south when I-15 was shut down halting their passage during this stalemate.
It was sad our Honored Veteran and who was critically wounded while protecting our way of life on foreign soil (and his Family), didn’t receive the recognition he so deserved.
We had little idea of what or why this was happening in the beginning yet felt the way our government has trained it’s self to set up these giant perimeters impacting the surrounding communities really need to be looked at and addressed.
What we did see was Nevada Senator Harry Reid (Senate Majority Leader), being the first voice to speak out against the Bundy’s.
We then learned the Reid family owns land near the Bundy ranch and later something about a multi Billion dollar deal with a Chinese Energy organization and a giant solar field.
Then Senator Reid’s arm exercise equipment broke sending him to the hospital with multiple injuries with later stories suggesting a bout with a brother-in-law.
Soon after came a leak of a vain of magnetic rare earth running through these properties.
FACT OR FICTION???