DeMint demands a block to Obama land-grab attempt

posted at 2:55 pm on March 5, 2010 by Ed Morrissey

Jim DeMint took to the Senate floor and the pages of the Washington Times earlier this week to expose a plan by the White House to seize over 10 million acres of land in nine Western states. Using an obscure clause in the Antiquities Act of 1906, the Department of the Interior under Ken Salazar would designate the land as “monuments” in order to block the use of the resources in those states. DeMint correctly asserts that this is not only a perversion of the intent of the Antiquities Act, but also a huge power grab by the federal government at the expense of the states:

Americans should be wary of any plans a president has to seize land from the states without their consent. Any new plans to take away states’ freedom to use land as they see fit must be stopped.

That’s why I sponsored an amendment to block Mr. Obama from declaring any of the 14 lands listed in the memo as “monuments.” Unfortunately, the Senate, led by Democrats, rejected it on Thursday evening by a vote of 58-38.

It was particularly disappointing that the Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, of Nevada, voted against the amendment. The government owns more than 80 percent of the land in Nevada and the unemployment rate there is 12.8 percent. Surely it would help job prospects if more land were open for business.

This is a nationwide problem. The government currently owns 650 million acres, or 29 percent of the nation’s total land.

Federal bureaucrats shouldn’t be wasting time thinking up ways to acquire more, especially in the middle of a recession. Taking the nation’s resources offline will stifle job creation and dry up tax revenues.

If anything, the government should be selling land off, not locking more up. By voting against my amendment, the Democrats tacitly endorsed Mr. Obama’s secret plan to close off millions more acres to commerce.

It’s not the first time an administration has used this act to seize land from states. Jimmy Carter grabbed 50 million acres from Alaska over their loud objections, and Bill Clinton almost 6 million in 22 separate actions. These executive actions bypassed Congress altogether and made a mockery of state sovereignty. After all, if a state can’t keep the federal government from unilaterally declaring that their land no longer belongs to them, then states have no real power at all — and neither do the people, represented by Congress.

DeMint’s amendment got defeated on a party-line 58-38 vote.

Tags: , , , , , ,

Blowback

Note from Hot Air management: This section is for comments from Hot Air's community of registered readers. Please don't assume that Hot Air management agrees with or otherwise endorses any particular comment just because we let it stand. A reminder: Anyone who fails to comply with our terms of use may lose their posting privilege.

Trackbacks/Pings

Trackback URL

Comments

Comment pages: 1 2

Another law that needs to be repealed. What about all of the Executive Orders done by all of the presidents? Are they something that can be overturned by another Executive Order? I thought W did that with the ban on drilling off shore.

Mirimichi on March 5, 2010 at 6:23 PM

Tyranny.

fossten on March 5, 2010 at 6:40 PM

One day we’ll have to sell our land to the Chinese to pay off the massive debt created by our keepers, just as Greece has been told by the Germans to sell some of the Greek Isles.

Kissmygrits on March 5, 2010 at 7:21 PM

Obama is laughing at the kerfluffle about the health care bill. He is busily taking possession of America by hook and by crook.

PattyJ on March 5, 2010 at 8:22 PM

Stop this and stop that, but the offenses will just be renewed. The Americans have spent decades turning their federal government into a “federal” government with trillions of dollars to spend each year, and no severe constitutional limits. I do not see how they can keep their liberty, dignity, or prosperity under such a government. It seems they must quickly take away its wealth and return it to its constitutional limits in whatever little time remains. Nor do I know of any criterion other than success.

Kralizec on March 5, 2010 at 10:01 PM

a plan by the White House to seize over 10 million acres of land in nine Western states.

I bet they aren’t seizing ted turners ranch.

peacenprosperity on March 5, 2010 at 11:40 PM

Is this the same sham or a different one from the “Horse Sanctuaries” that just happened to all be right on the deposits of Oil Shall?

What’s scary is the amount Obama is going for right away, 10 Million Acres? How much longer till that becomes 25 Million, then 50 Million, then every state he’s afraid will vote against him? In one year this guy has managed to out swindle Slick Willy.

Rbastid on March 6, 2010 at 1:56 AM

The usurpation of power from states, from Congress, and from the courts continues apace. We don’t want no stinking king.

The Executive has overreached way too far — it’s time for the Supremes to flex their muscles while we still have any separation of powers left. The AG’s from the various states, hopefully, will be working nonstop to stop this blatant power grab.

We fought a revolution to get rid of one king; now we see a megalomaniac trying to accumulate power in unconstitutional fashion, and nothing but crickets…

hillbillyjim on March 6, 2010 at 3:13 AM

As surfs our King, has done his usual to enrich his family and allies to give wealth and power to them at our expense.

We’ve fallen asleep or allowed the country to run itself waking up to the reality that those that were supposed to be instructing our youngsters in the fine citizenry of self government to a new generation of mindless followers of a cult.

Now, how can we pull those members from the cult without actually killing them. The attrition rate of muslims exiting that cult is extremely low or non existent, this will be no different if we continue to send them to the indoctrination camps known as public schools and universities?

larvcom on March 6, 2010 at 10:36 AM

You guys don’t get it.

Everytime the gov’t raises the debt ceiling, they go out and ‘grab’ a couple million acres. Why? Because, as did the German Republic post WWI, foreign governments and other global entities will only purchase your debt if you’ve got sufficient land to back up the debt notes you’re trying to float on the Int’l Money Market. The idea is that if you default on your payments (interest or principal), they can ask for title of the gov’t owned lands. And, the World Court is likely to give it to them.

The bottom line? The Federal Gov’t is essentially grabbing title to millions of acres of land belonging to the individual States so they can use it as collateral for the debit notes they’re selling.

Mahdi on March 7, 2010 at 10:28 AM

Comment pages: 1 2