Jason Chaffetz Runs from Army of Hornets
Republican congressman Jason Chaffetz unleashed a storm of protest from sportsmen left and right when he introduced a bill that would direct the Bureau of Land Management to sell off 3.3 million acres of federally owned land.
The CEO of Backcountry Hunters & Anglers, Land Tawney, warned: “Mr. Chaffetz, you’ve kicked the hornets’ nest, and the army is amassing. . . . The only thing you can do to make this right is to pull those bills back.” He was joined by the National Wild Turkey Federation, Pheasants Forever, Trout Unlimited, Remington Arms, as well as the National Wildlife Federation, who joined to circulate a petition that quickly gathered 46,000 signatures.
Chaffetz pulled the bill. For details see (you may want to check out the “Further Reading” at the end of the article):
http://www.vox.com/energy-and-environment/2017/2/2/14479462/chaffetz-public-lands-backlash
What Is the Public’s Purpose?
In withdrawing the bill, Chaffetz characterized it as disposing of small parcels of land that “President Clinton identified as serving no public purpose. . . . ” (emphasis mine)
That’s not actually what the Clinton survey showed. Instead, it said that those land were “not generating revenue for taxpayers.” Then went on to point out that there were conflicts “which may preclude them from being considered for disposal or exchange.” Some of the areas “hosted endangered species or wetlands, for instance,” and that others had “cultural significance.”
The translation Chaffetz made of “not generating revenue” to “serving no public purpose” evinces the narrow mindset of certain policy-makers. . . .
This is the kind of mindset shared by many a “conservative,” for whom money is the key measure of value. There are some hunters and anglers—most of them of a literally conservative bent—who have a broader view of public value.
[Note that new Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke said at his confirmation hearing that he was “absolutely against transfer and sale of public lands.” Let’s see if Zinke sticks to that position when political winds blow another direction.]
Update on Chaffetz: he’s the chairman of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform who is refusing to investigate Trump’s ethical misadventures. Instead, he’s looking at tweets by a national park employee. Read them at this link and be appalled: http://www.salon.com/2017/02/23/jason-chaffetz-will-finally-investigate-something-a-national-parks-tweet/