The Barbi twins summed up the situation pretty well considering Twitter’s 140-character limit, but we’ll let the New York Daily News add some detail.
A turf war has erupted in rural Nevada as a longtime rancher and hundreds of his supporters battle the federal government, which has moved to seize cattle that graze on thousands of acres of public land.
Cliven Bundy, 68, has been embroiled in a two-decade-long dustup with the federal Bureau of Land Management, which finally sent in men armed with large guns to surround Bundy’s ranch in Bunkerville, west of the Arizona and Utah border, as contracted cowboys roundup the man’s 900 beef cattle during the next several days.
Bundy’s cattle have been grazing on public land, but Bundy hasn’t paid grazing fees to the federal government. That makes his cattle “trespass cattle,” and agents are currently rounding them up. Environmentalists have an interest in the case as well: the area has been designated a critical habitat for the threatened desert tortoise.
Bundy is NOT refusing to pay grazing fees. He refuses to pay them to the fed gov! should be paid to the county or state! #BundyRanch
— ???? (@Rockprincess818) April 10, 2014
Cliven Bundy: "I've bought and inherited rights of forage, water, to this land." #BundyRanch #dlrs
— Dana Loesch (@DLoesch) April 10, 2014
OUR LANDS?: I GIVE CLIVEN BUNDY THE RIGHT TO LET HIS CATTLE GRAZE FREE OF CHARGE#BundyRanch #BundyRanchinvasion pic.twitter.com/IcLT0EJ80c
— Furious Nurse (@Furiousnurse) April 10, 2014
Protesters siding with Bundy have been given a “First Amendment Area” in which to protest, but that hasn’t been welcomed.
We now live in an America that posts signs like this when bringing armed agents to family's ranch #BundyRanch #sad pic.twitter.com/mp4RTIZX1f
— Jarrod Cash (@MarketingPro13) April 9, 2014
This is awesome! @hughhewitt @i2idotorg @mkibbe @DeanClancy #BundyRanch #1a pic.twitter.com/iJ29bs6080
— Owen Hill (@owenjhill) April 10, 2014
The first amendment is not an area! #BundyRanch pic.twitter.com/xpaEHRkvwo
— Urban Armed (@urbanarmed1) April 10, 2014
@owenjhill @TheBrandonMorse @hughhewitt @i2idotorg @mkibbe @DeanClancy
1 Amendmt Area? I got one too. Wanna see it? pic.twitter.com/C8yfWowDAf— RJ Carter writes The Destroyer | @CriticalBlast (@RealRJCarter) April 10, 2014
https://twitter.com/C0d3fr0sty/status/454082876573618176
https://twitter.com/Mike_USPatriot/status/454305081232736257
The protesters have not stayed in their “First Amendment Zone,” and today, things have gotten ugly, as seen in this YouTube video. (Caution: language warning.)
EVERYONE WATCH THIS. "@bothofus7: “@DLoesch: Are you serious?? Watch this #BundyRanch protest video. WOW. https://t.co/irGqSIdYge”"
— Dr Hugo Hackenbush (@MangyLover) April 10, 2014
The standoff continues, and some are wary of a Waco-like situation developing. Others wonder why America’s southern border hasn’t drawn this sort of enforcement.
https://twitter.com/DeeC748/status/454283023400189953
The #BundyRanch cattle are just "dreamers," guys. #TrespassCattle
— Dana Loesch (@DLoesch) April 10, 2014
https://twitter.com/mrbunnylamakins/status/454318467403894784
Prayers for all the brave people standing up to tyranny. #BundyRanch
— Eddie (@JN31621) April 10, 2014
Instead of being alarmed that a fed agency is attacking a civilian, the left are criticizing the civilian. I find that alarming. #BundyRanch
— ?? The?FOO ?? (@PolitiBunny) April 10, 2014
https://twitter.com/lancerawlinson/status/454367607282364417
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