So, Who, Again Are The Bundy Supporters, Now That We Know He’s An Unrepentant Racist?
To his credit, Kentucky Senator Rand Paul has pulled the plug on his Bundy support. But here are others who jumped quickly to defend the welfare king.
U.S. Sen. Dean Heller
What he said then: Last week, during a debate with Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, Heller said that he thought the Bundy ranchers were patriots. “What Sen. Reid may call domestic terrorists, I call patriots,” Heller said. He added that he wanted hearings to figure out “who’s accountable for this.”
What he’s saying now: Chandler Smith, a spokesman for Heller, said the congressman “completely disagrees with Mr. Bundy’s appalling and racist statements, and condemns them in the most strenuous way.”
Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott
What he said then: Abbott didn’t come out in defense of Bundy so much as his ideas — he used the media attention surrounding the Bundy stand off to highlight federal land claims in his home state. “I am deeply concerned about the notion that the Bureau of Land Management believes the federal government has the authority to swoop in and take land that has been owned and cultivated by Texas landowners for generations,” Abbott wrote in a letter to the BLM this week. The letter echoed Bundy’s language, as he argued his family has also owned the land for generations.
What he’s saying now: Laura Bean, Abbott’s spokeswoman, told the Times that the letter “was regarding a dispute in Texas and is in no way related to the dispute in Nevada.”
Nevada State Assemblywoman Michele Fiore
What she said then: Nevada’s Democrats were quick to call out all the local Republicans who supported Bundy, including Cresent Hardy, Niger Innis, Adam Laxalt and Michele Fiore.
Fiore spoke with both Sean Hannity on Fox News and Chris Hayes on MSNBC to argue the Bundy cause. Hayes spoke with Fiore over video, as she was attending the Bundy ranch barbecue. She stopped short of saying that she agreed with Bundy in not recognizing the authority of the federal government, but questioned the heavy handedness of the BLM….
What she’s saying now: Fiore hasn’t commented publicly on Bundy’s statements yet. The Wire reached out to her for a comment, and we’ll update if she responds.
What she’s saying now: Fiore hasn’t commented publicly on Bundy’s statements yet. The Wire reached out to her for a comment, and we’ll update if she responds.
