Ted Cruz Says BLM Needs To Sell Land, Not Grab More

Ted Cruz feels the BLM (Bureau of Land Management) should be reducing claims on public lands. The Republican Texas Senator is among those lawmakers weighing in on the Red River Texas and Oklahoma boundary dispute with the federal agency.

As previously reported by The Inquisitr, the BLM Red River boundary dispute may cause approximately 90,000 acres of privately held land to fall into the hands of the federal government. Texas rancher Tommy Henderson has become the focal point of the BLM dispute. Supporters from around the country are rallying around Henderson, much in the same manner as protesters did for Cliven Bundy and the Bundy ranch standoff in Nevada. Armed BLM agents have not arrived in Texas as they did in Bunkerville, but the issue many are calling yet another “land grab” by the federal agency could ultimately evolve into a similar standoff.

US Senator Ted Cruz, Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott, and Governor Rick Perry have all commented on the plight of rancher Tommy Henderson and his neighbors along the Red River.

Cruz had this to say about the BLM attempting to claim land which is currently held in private hands with a legal deed in the Lone Star State:

“This is an important story that Breitbart broke and it is something that concerns me a great deal. In my view, the BLM already controls far too much land. We should be reducing the amount of federal land that the BLM controls and the amount of land that the federal government owns.”

The Texas Senator went on to say that while debating the 2013 budget, he proposed an amendment designed to cap the amount of land the federal government could own in the United States. The stated goals of the amendment also include plans to initiate a “significant reduction” in the amount of public and private lands already owned and managed by the federal government.

Ted Cruz went on to say this about the land battle brewing between Texas and the BLM:

“Where it stands right now, the intentions of the BLM are not entirely clear. Attorney General Greg Abbott, my former boss and soon to be the next Governor of Texas, has sent a detailed letter to the BLM asking them to clarify their intentions and to clarify the legal grounds for any assertions to control to these 90,000 acres in North Texas that they might have.”

As previously reported by The Inquistr, the Texas Attorney General penned a letter to BLM Director Neil Kornze, a former Harry Reid aide, asking the federal agency’s intentions towards the private property owned by Tommy Henderson and his neighbors and questioning the Red River boundary dispute. The BLM manages about 460 million acres of the 2.27 billion acres of land in the United States.

How do you feel about the BLM oversight of federal owned public lands and the statements made by Ted Cruz?

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