this is happening

Idahoans love their public lands. I have yet to meet anyone who isn’t upset by plans to take them from us and offer them to the highest bidder.

But who leads the charge to keep these lands of leisure and recreation?

In the past Idaho has enjoyed leadership when it came to our outdoor heritage. Whether it came from Ted Trueblood, Sen. Frank Church or Gov. Cecil Andrus, fellow Idahoans gave us representation and voice.

Who leads us now? Despite the overwhelming support for public lands, our congressmen have been disappointingly quiet on the matter. Recently Congress passed rules with explicit language to allow the sale of public lands. Idaho Republican Reps. Raul Labrador and Mike Simpson voted for it. Who are they representing? Not me.

Labrador also brazenly introduced a bill in Congress last year to help the sale of public lands. Does he not realize how much Idahoans love their public lands? Does he not care?




Sen. Mike Crapo, R-Idaho, says he supports changes in the way public lands are managed but wants to keep them in public hands. If he wants these lands to be managed by the state, is he aware that Idaho has sold more than 40 percent of the lands it has owned? Or that state lands are not managed for multiple purposes? In fact, they often have “No entry” signs on them.

Gov. Butch Otter has at least said that he no longer supports the movement because he has “seen the bill for firefighting on those lands.” That seems a rather obvious concern; have our congressmen not seen those bills? Perhaps they should.

And in the Idaho Legislature, Judy Boyle has promised to introduce numerous bills to move lands to the state. Who is she representing?

Meanwhile, Idaho’s would-be thieves are watching Utah, as troublemakers there are the leaders of this movement. In the past week, Utah, which hosts the national outdoor retailers trade show (which brings in $40 million), found out it risks losing that show if it continues to back the war on public lands. The industry accounts for 120,000 jobs in Utah’s economy — why are your representatives gambling with your livelihoods, Utah?




And Idahoans watching this should consider how important outdoor recreation is to us. It’s our third-largest industry. Utah’s got nothing on us. Our public lands are used over and over to access whitewater rafting, rock climbing, mountain biking and so much more. To snowmobile, ski, camp, hunt, go target shooting and just connect with the natural world.

Idaho’s elected officials wouldn’t do anything that could harm our farmers; why don’t they protect our third-largest industry?

Picture yourself a year from now going to a favorite spot only to find locked gates and “no trespassing” signs? That’s not our way of life. But if these lands are sold, will rich buyers from out of state let you cross their lands? Don’t bet on it.

Why are our representatives not protecting our public lands? Who speaks for us?

My friends, its called the Looting of America. Its been going on for quite some time now by Wall Street, under both Republican and Democrats. Its just now they have seized control so completely and militarized the police to suppress any dissent, that they feel they don't need to hide it anymore.

Meanwhile the marches and the protest which do absolutely nothing go on, to distract the populace from focusing on the real issue of the corruption of the Democratic party leadership.

WASHINGTON —
Idaho Republican Rep. Raul Labrador won a new assignment on Tuesday when he was named to lead the House Natural Resources Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations.

Republican Rep. Rob Bishop of Utah, who heads the House Natural Resources Committee, made the announcement.

“As a Westerner, Congressman Labrador understands the importance of natural resource issues to our states, communities and economy,” Bishop said.

Labrador, 49, who won a fourth term in November, said he was “honored to lead this subcommittee and help hold federal agencies accountable.”

“Idaho and the West have suffered under misguided and overreaching policies that hurt rural communities and our natural resource economy,” he said.

The subcommittee has oversight over a wide range of issues, including public lands, irrigation and reclamation, relations with Native American tribes, national parks and national cemeteries, mining, fisheries, wildlife and coastal management.

Why does this man want to take Our public lands away from us & ultimately sell them to the highest bidder? It appears a large majority of folks in Idaho really enjoy hunting, fishing, & recreating on our public lands. As a politician, Labrador should be made aware of that fact.