Land Tawney - December 08, 2005
National Wildlife Federation
This Land is Your Land
This land is your land, this land is my land, from California…to the New York Islands, this Land was made for you and me…” When I first heard this song as a young kid I thought its sole purpose was to antagonize me. As I have matured I learned that this song gets at what we are as Americans, our soul, what separates us from our predecessors in England….instead of the kings land, THIS IS OUR LAND!
In today’s world of leasing and posted signs…public lands provide places for the man and woman of average means to hunt, fish and recreate. Most of our public lands can be traced back to Theodore Roosevelt, the greatest conservation president this country has ever seen. By the time Roosevelt left office in 1909 he had set aside 230 million acres of public lands…or 84,000 acres a day for every day he was president He set aside these lands for you and me, for every American Citizen…yes this land was made for you and me.
But all is not right in America. Recently Representative Richard Pombo from California introduced some mining provisions to the House Budget Bill that could allow the sale of public lands at bargain basement prices. Our very own Representative Denny Rehberg voted for the Bill in the wee hours of night two weeks ago. Now the Budget bill is set for conference between the House and Senate versions.
Basically the Pombo provisions place on the auction block public lands where mining claims have been staked, and even lands close-by or adjacent to mining claims – a wildly vague provision that could encompass millions of acres of land now open to all for hunting fishing, camping and other outdoor recreation., By some estimates 6 million acres are at risk…over 250,000 right here in Montana…other says literally hundreds of millions of acres could be loss to the public , while the bill’s few supporters claim the numbers are lower. Regardless of the acreage, these are our public lands and they should not be sold, especially being slipped into a large Budget Bill in the dark of night without full public hearings. THESE ARE OUR LANDS!
Both Montana Senators have come out in strong opposition to the mining provisions. Senator Baucus said, "This bill is an assault on the values westerners hold as gospel," "We hunt, we fish, we take our kids hiking and camping. Public lands define us as Montanans. This provision is a threat to our outdoor heritage and we're going to stop it in its tracks."
At a recent public hearing in Missoula when asked about the provisions, Senator Burns said that "crazy" bill won't make the final cut. "It's not going anywhere.”
Gov. Schweitzer joined seven other western governors in a letter of opposition and today during a press conference compared the measure to a skunk that doesn’t smell much better even if you bring it inside and wash it off in the shower – it’s still a skunk.
What of Congressman Rehberg? Since he voted for the Pombo mining law giveaway, he’s heard from sportsmen and women from across Montana and has begun to realize that his position is badly out of step with the voters. Just today, Representative Rehberg sent a letter to the House Leadershhip saying he would vote against the Budget Bill when it comes back from the Conference Committee unless the mining provisions are fixed.
While I appreciate Representative Rehberg has listened to hunters and anglers, he has the wrong solution. The Pombo mining law amendments have no place in a massive federal budget bill. The solution is not another deal behind closed doors in conference committee. The solution is stripping the Pombo amendments out of the budget bill and telling Rep. Pombo to introduce them as legislation. Such a bill would be debated on its merits and the impacts would be measured through public hearings.
The question for Rep. Rehberg is, who is he going to listen to, a Rep. from California or Montana hunters, anglers, and outdoor users? If he listens to Montanans, he’ll ask the conferees to simply take the Pombo amendments out of the budget bill.
Is he willing to jeopardize our Montana heritage and legacy set into motion by Theodore Roosevelt 100 years ago?
Rep. Rehberg needs to show Montana folks that he does care about our great heritage and legacy and work to cut these provisions all together. Call him and let him know how you feel at: 202-225-3211 or go to Congress.org.
As I look back on my childhood experiences and those to come in the future, I cannot imagine them without public lands. We must defend these uniquely American places for our children’s future.
In the words of Theodore Roosevelt, “I admire the man and woman who take the next step, not those who theorize about the 200th.”
These are our Lands! Take the next step and let Rep. Rehberg know about how you feel about the sale of our public lands.
This has been Land Tawney, Regional Representative for the National Wildlife Federation. Thanks for listening.
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