Bundy's rebellion: saga or fiasco? part three
or, Why protests by groups of guys with guns are almost never a good idea.
Things to consider
Cliven Bundy and his legacy The central element in this situation is the Bundy family, headed by Cliven Bundy, the Mormon rancher who gained notoriety in 2014 after an armed standoff between protesters and law enforcement stemming from a 20-year legal dispute with the Bureau of Land Management over grazing fees.
After the confrontation, where federal law enforcement officials left peacefully, Bundy became a folk hero to the far right, supported by politicians such as Rand Paul, Ted Cruz, Ben Carson and Mike Huckabee. Some of this support, however, disappeared when he was quoted in the New York Times as saying: “I want to tell you one more thing I know about the Negro . . . They abort their young children, they put their young men in jail, because they never learned how to pick cotton."
Some of the Oregon group participated in the 2014 standoff. Ryan Payne claims to have helped organize militia snipers to target federal agents and Blaine Cooper said, “I went there to defend Cliven with my life.”
For organizations that track violence in America, what’s happening in Oregon Cliven Bundy's legacy. “We believe these armed extremists have been emboldened by what they saw as a clear victory at the Cliven Bundy ranch and the fact that no one was held accountable for taking up arms against agents of the federal government,” said Heidi Beirich, director of the Southern Poverty Law Center's Intelligence Project.
Terminology
A lot of inflammatory words and phrases have been bandied about in the last week, but what do they really mean?
Domestic terrorism Under current United States law, as set forth in the USA Patriot Act, acts of domestic terrorism are those which: "(A) involve acts dangerous to human life that are a violation of the criminal laws of the United States or of any State; (B) appear to be intended— (i) to intimidate or coerce a civilian population; (ii) to influence the policy of a government by intimidation or coercion; or (iii) to affect the conduct of a government by mass destruction, assassination, or kidnapping; and (C) occur primarily within the territorial jurisdiction of the United States."
Are Bundy and his cohorts terrorists? It depends who you ask. For many, it comes down to race — if the group was Islamic they would be called terrorists, etc. Do a Facebook search and you'll see that opinions are vociferous on both sides. The mainstream media, however, is a little more reserved. The Washington Post called them “occupiers” while the New York Times used “armed activists” and “militia men.” Only CNN seems to have called the group terrorists from the beginning.
Is it a militia? Bundy and his Citizens for Constitutional Freedom call themselves a militia and the Second Amendment refers to a well-regulated militia, but what does the word really mean? The simple definition is a group of people who are not part of the armed forces of a country but are trained like soldiers. It seems doubtful that this fits the Bundy group. They have a lot of guns but have they trained like soldiers?
Is it treason? While there have been cries of “Treason!” across social media and Bundy's actions certainly fit the definition, such a charge is unlikely.
According to 18 U.S. Code § 2383: "Whoever incites, sets on foot, assists, or engages in any rebellion or insurrection against the authority of the United States or the laws thereof, or gives aid or comfort thereto, shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than ten years, or both; and shall be incapable of holding any office under the United States."
“These men came to Harney County claiming to be part of militia groups supporting local ranchers,” Sheriff Dave Ward said in a statement on January 3. “When in reality these men had alternative motives, to attempt to overthrow the county and federal government in hopes to spark a movement across the United States.”
Said Ryan Bundy: "What we're doing is not rebellious. What we're doing is in accordance with the Constitution, which is the supreme law of the land." He did not specify what part of the Constitution he was referring to.
Coming next . . . Part four: Analysis. In which we consider the Second Amendment, martyrdom, how likely is a siege to work and Ammon Bundy himself.
Part five: The media. How mainstream media fears the word "terrorist" while social media goes to town on the Bundys.
