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Thieves in the night:
Senate Sneaks Through Land
Grab Bill
By Henry Lamb
Like thieves in the night, a handful of U.S. senators have set
into motion a new law that can steal the property rights from
private owners in the name of protecting wildlife.
Late in the evening of Dec. 20, while the media focused on
Daschle's refusal to allow a vote on the economic stimulus
package, while senators were racing to wind up business to get
home for the holidays, Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev., called for
"unanimous consent" to pass S. 990 – The American
Wildlife Enhancement Act of 2001. The bill passed.
Who voted for and against this bill? No one will ever know. Was
there even a quorum
present? No one will ever know.
This is the same tactic used on Oct. 18, 2000, the result of
which was the ratification of 34 international treaties, including
the controversial U.N. Convention on Desertification – without
debate, without a recorded vote.
This is the kind of shenanigan that takes place at the end of
every session, to enact legislation that can't stand the scrutiny
of public debate and public opposition.
This particular bill should have been entitled
"Screw-The-Landowner Act of 2001." It is one of several
proposals to provide tax dollars and authorization to convert even
more of the rapidly diminishing private property in America to
government inventories.
This bill provides $600 million per year for five years for the
"acquisition of an area of land or water that is suitable or
capable of being made suitable for feeding, resting or breeding by
wildlife." With this broad purpose, no land anywhere is safe
from condemnation and acquisition by an agency of government. The
money can also be given to environmental organizations
for land acquisition. Moreover, this bill explicitly exempts land
deals from scrutiny or oversight required by the federal Advisory
Committee Act.
Apparently, the U.S. Senate will use our taxes to buy pigswill
if it is sold in a green bucket. Government's push to purchase
private property in recent years goes far beyond "wildlife
enhancement." Those who vote for such measures may think that
the objective is wildlife, or open space protection, but those who
promote wave after wave of these proposals have a much, much
bigger agenda: total government ownership, or control, of land use
in America.
It is time for the federal government to confront, debate and
decide this question: How much land should the government own or
control? Presently, federal, state and local governments own more
than 40 percent of the total land area in the United States. Once,
our federal government believed that land should be owned by
private parties, and that the only land the government should own
is that land specified in the U.S. Constitution. Now, just the
opposite is true. Our federal government is using our tax dollars
to buy the land it cannot legitimately control through regulation.
Where will it end?
The push for government ownership and control of land comes
from environmental organizations. In the 1930s, the Wilderness
Society openly called for the nationalization of all forests. Of
course, socialism was popular then. Now, their arguments for
government ownership and control downplay the goals of socialism
and promote the idea of "wildlife enhancement" and
"open space."
How much land should the government own?
If this question remains un-debated and undecided, the
government will eventually
own it all. This is the goal of the environmental agenda. Land,
and the natural resources it contains, is the source of all
production. When government owns or controls all the land, and its
natural resources, government will control the source of
production – which is the classic definition
of socialism. Since governments now own more than 40 percent of
the sources of production, does this mean that America is more
than 40 percent socialist?
If America is to become a socialist nation, as is the objective
of global governance, then it should be a deliberate action
authorized by the people who have had opportunity to disagree,
debate and ultimately vote the issue up or down.
Shrewd bureaucrats and politicians, however, are unwilling to
address the issue head on. Instead, they keep inching their way to
total government control, with regulatory measures and stealth
maneuvers that accomplish their goals incrementally – out of the
view of a trusting public.
This legislative agenda is not limited to the Democrats. Sen.
Reid had help from Republican Bob Smith of New Hampshire and a
handful of others. Any senator could have prevented the unanimous
consent caper by simply objecting. Whether they were unaware of
the schedule or unwilling to go on record opposing the bucket of
green swill, we will never know.
The fact remains that once again, like thieves in the night, a
handful of senators have pushed through a bill that erodes more of
the foundation of our freedom. When government owns the land,
there can be no freedom – except that which government bestows.
*Action to Take*
1. Call and write both of your Senators to let them know that
you don't appreciate the slimy, sneaky, dishonest tactics used to
pass S. 990, the land grab
bill. This is the sort of thing that gives politicians the bad
name they deserve. House Switchboard: (202) 225-3121.
2. Call and write your Representative, urging him or her to
vote against S. 990, "The American Wildlife Enhancement Act
of 2001." Tell them that you don't approve of the Senate's
sneaky, underhanded passage of the bill, and you recognize that S.
990 is simply a smaller chunk of the massive CARA (Conservation
and Reinvestment Act) land grab bill. Senate Switchboard: (202)
224-3121.
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