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01-21-2016, 07:03 PM #1
FBI and Oregon standoff leaders begin negotiations to end refuge occupation
FBI and Oregon standoff leaders begin negotiations to end refuge occupation
The FBI opened negotiations with refuge occupier Ammon Bundy on Thursday, with Bundy standing at the local airport drive for nearly an hour, talking to an FBI negotiator by cell phone, Jan.21, 2016. Les Zaitz/Staff
Mike Zacchino | The Oregonian/OregonLive
By Les Zaitz | The Oregonian/OregonLive
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on January 21, 2016 at 1:27 PM, updated January 21, 2016 at 2:37 PM
SHOWDOWN IN BURNS
- FBI and Oregon standoff leaders begin negotiations to end refuge occupation
- Kate Brown presses top federal officials for 'swift' action against occupiers
- Oregon standoff Day 20: What you need to know Thursday
- Oregon standoff: One of protesters has murder conviction
- Malheur National Wildlife Refuge staff publishes open letter: 'We hope to be back soon'
All Stories
BURNS – The FBI opened negotiations Thursday with refuge occupier Ammon Bundy in a nearly hourlong cellphone conversation as Bundy stood in an improbable scene on the driveway to the local airport.
The FBI agent, who identified himself on the phone only as "Chris," listened to Bundy's well-practiced litany of complaints against the federal government and probed for what it would take to end his occupation of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge.
They ended the call with the promise to talk again Friday.
Bundy and Ryan Payne, another takeover organizer, said the FBI reached out by phone and by messenger starting two days ago.
Bundy said he had 14 voice messages Wednesday from the negotiator – the same day that Gov. Kate Brown publicly scolded federal officials for what she said was their slow approach to ending the Harney County standoff.
Ammon Bundy Talks To FBI Ammon Bundy talks by phone with an FBI negotiator on Thursday, Jan. 21, while standing outside the Burns airport.
Bundy showed up unannounced at the Burns Airport, which is serving as an operations base for the FBI. He said he was there to talk with Chris but was told the negotiator wasn't there though he could talk by phone.
Bundy stood on the pavement of the driveway to the airport as he talked, a bodyguard beside him, with two plainclothes FBI agents as well as armed FBI agents in tactical dress standing nearby.
He put the cellphone on speaker, allowing all to listen in on the first known conversation between the federal agents and Bundy since the occupation started Jan. 2.
"I'm a face-to-face kind of guy," Bundy told the negotiator.
"You reached out to me ... I'm not sure exactly what you wanted to talk about."
Statement from FBI
The FBI released this statement Thursday afternoon:
"The FBI recognizes that many in the community have questions about why we are here and our role in helping to end the occupation of the wildlife refuge. We are here to work closely with Sheriff Ward and our local, state and federal partners to protect the safety and welfare of this community. This occupation has caused tremendous disruption and hardship for the people of Harney County, and our response has been deliberate and measured as we seek a peaceful resolution."
The conversation sounded in some ways like acquaintances catching up, with the FBI negotiator asking about activities out at the refuge. Bundy told him about launching the effort to hand over federal land titles to local people, about cleaning up refuge buildings, about dealing with fire hazards in the refuge compound's fire house.
Bundy -- the son of Nevada rancher Cliven Bundy who defied federal authorities in 2014 in a dispute over grazing on public land -- covered concerns about how the U.S. Bureau of Land Management allegedly impedes efforts by local ranchers to help put out range fires. He said ranchers are "afraid of prosecution" if they help now.
Bundy has called for the release of Burns-area ranchers Dwight Hammond Jr. and his son, Steven, sent to prison on arson convictions for burning federal land. They reported back to prison this month to finish five-year prison sentences in the case after serving lighter sentences. Their lawyer is seeking executive clemency for the men.
The negotiator asked why Bundy picked Harney County.
"You're familiar with the Hammonds," Bundy said. The federal government for years has tried to buy the Hammond ranch to add to the refuge holdings, he claimed.
The negotiator pressed for what Bundy wanted to see done with the refuge. Bundy said it should be turned over to Harney County officials.
He said his group wouldn't leave until practical steps had been taken to get the refuge out of federal control and ensure the refuge buildings were never again used by the federal government.
How would that get done, the agent asked.
"I don't know," Bundy said. "We could put more thought to that."
Bundy, as he would several times through the conversation, said his group had no intention of resorting to violence to settle the issues.
"We're not going to escalate anything," he said. "You would be the only ones to escalate this."
But Bundy had questions of his own. He asked by what authority the FBI was involved in the refuge occupation.
"Are you here under authority of the sheriff?" Bundy asked.
When the negotiator said the sheriff had asked for federal help, Bundy responded, "You do not have the people's authority to be here."
In measured tones, the negotiator told him, "The sheriff has asked for our assistance."
Sheriff Dave Ward has repeatedly told the occupiers to go home and met with Bundy two weeks ago, promising him safe passage out of the county. But the sheriff said Bundy wouldn't take him up on the offer.
As the negotiator repeatedly cycled back to the issue of how to end the standoff, Bundy was equally insistent that action had to happen – not just talk.
One action was paramount to ending the standoff, he said: "You can bring the Hammonds back home to their families."
When the negotiator asked if he was referring to a presidential pardon, Bundy had quick response. "The president didn't put them" in prison, Bundy said. "You and I both know the president is not going to get them out."
Instead, he said the federal prosecutors who put the Hammonds in prison "need to work their magic" to free the ranchers.
Bundy brought the conversation to a close, saying he had other meetings and tasks to attend. A group of New Mexico state legislators was expected at the refuge, he said.
The negotiator asked how they could stay in touch, whether he could use a landline at the refuge to reach Bundy. Bundy demurred, saying the occupiers weren't using refuge phones.
"We want to work together with you," the negotiator said.
The two agreed to connect again in 24 hours.
With that, the negotiator hung up, Bundy handed the borrowed cellphone to an FBI agent and headed for a pickup truck for the 30-mile drive back to the refuge.
http://www.oregonlive.com/oregon-sta...ff_leader.html
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01-21-2016, 07:15 PM #2NO AMNESTY
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01-21-2016, 10:57 PM #3
JAN 21 2016, 9:27 PM ET
FBI Defends 'Measured' Response to Occupation of Oregon Wildlife Refuge
by PHIL HELSEL
The FBI on Thursday defended its response to an armed group that has occupied an Oregon wildlife refuge for weeks, calling it "deliberate and measured" as it seeks a peaceful solution.
The statement by the FBI came a day after Oregon Governor Kate Brown called the occupation of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge "absolutely intolerable."
"The FBI recognizes that many in the community have questions about why we are here and our role in helping to end the occupation of the wildlife refuge," the FBI said Thursday.
"This occupation has caused tremendous disruption and hardship for the people of Harney County, and our response has been deliberate and measured as we seek a peaceful resolution," the FBI said.
The armed group, led by Ammon Bundy, took over a building at the wildlife refuge near the town of Burns on Jan. 2, following a protest in Burns over the prison sentences handed down to a pair of local ranchers convicted of burning public land.
Related: Meet Ammon and Ryan Bundy, Activists Leading Oregon Occupation
The group's stated goal is the release of the ranchers, father and son Dwight and Steven Hammond, and that the federal government turn over public land to local control. An attorney for the Hammonds has said the group does not speak for the two ranchers.
On Wednesday, Brown said "federal authorities must move quickly to end the occupation and hold all of the wrongdoers accountable," Brown said.
Meanwhile, the Federal Fish and Wildlife Service said a new road reportedly built by the group may have damaged archaeological sites important to the Burns Paiute Tribe.
Oregon Public Broadcasting reported that a new road was built, but a member of the group claimed they only removed snow from a path.
"There are any range of cultural artifacts that might have been impacted by this illegal construction," service spokesperson Miel Corbett said.
Related: What Is The Oregon Occupation Really All About?
The federal agency has not been able to access the refuge to confirm that a road had been built, or whether any artifacts were damaged, Corbett said.
There are also Paiute artifacts kept at the building with the agreement of the tribe, the Fish and Wildlife Service said.
"These artifacts have been curated and stored under lock and key, until the illegal occupants violated the security of the refuge," the service said in a statement. "For the individuals who have broken into the secure facilities to portray themselves and their actions as anything other than the violation it is, is simply another fabrication."
http://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/...refuge-n501611
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01-22-2016, 03:36 PM #4
County commissioner candidate Gary Leif meets with protesters at Malheur National Wildlife Refuge
AP | APArizona rancher LaVoy Finicum, holding rifle, speaks to reporters at the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge, Tuesday, Jan. 5, 2016, near Burns, Ore. Ammon Bundy, the leader of a small, armed group that is occupying a remote national wildlife preserve in Oregon said Tuesday that they will go home when a plan is in place to turn over management of federal lands to locals. (AP Photo/Rebecca Boone)
Roseburg photographer Gary Leif is running for Douglas County commissioner. And it’s because of that, he said, that he wanted to find out what’s going on with the armed occupation of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge in Harney County. So he traveled to Burns on Saturday, where he met with the Bundy brothers, who are running the occupation, as well as town residents and law enforcement personnel.
“If I get to be a commissioner, I need to see what was going on in the county there and how they were handling it,” Leif said.
Leif said he was motivated by compassion for Dwight and Steven Hammond, a father and son ranching team who were recently sent to prison for setting fires that burned federal land.
Leif said he believed the protest at the refuge was all about the Hammonds, but he’s not so sure about that now. He thinks the Bundys latched onto that issue to make a different point.
The Bundys, along with about a dozen protesters, have occupied the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge for the past three weeks. They claim the federal government does not have the constitutional right to own the refuge, or any land outside Washington, D.C., and military bases, and have demanded the refuge be turned over to local government. Harney County residents and their sheriff have asked the group to leave.
Leif said his intention was to serve as a neutral party, to observe the situation.
“The very first thing we did is meet with the FBI. I wanted them to know, I had my Leif for Commissioner signs on my truck and I wanted to make sure that they knew that we were there, we were not a threat, and we were not endorsing anyone.
And it was funny, the guy said, ‘Yeah we already ran your plates. We already know. It’s a pretty easy leap.’ And I was like holy crap,” said Leif, who was accompanied by two friends.
“In a matter of just a few minutes there was a dozen different agencies around us. We had (Oregon State Police), the sheriff’s office, the undercover FBI all come,” he said.
Leif said all the officers were very nice.
He said he spoke with brothers Ammon and Ryan Bundy at the refuge, and felt they were nice also, and respectful.
While Leif said he sympathizes with the constitutional issues the Bundys have raised, he said the protesters have gone about things all wrong.
“I believe in their cause. I just don’t think they did it right,” he said.
“I asked them point blank, ‘What do you want out of this?’”
Leif said. “They said they never want this land to go back to the federal government. They want it to be the people’s land.
And I get that, I understand it. But you’ve got to have government on your side, local government on your side, before you enter into any of those discussions.”
Leif said he felt no fear of the Bundys, and he believes propaganda around the occupation has caused some in town to act fearfully. He said he was surprised the Burns schools closed for a week during the first part of the occupation, given the refuge is about a half hour away.
Guns were prevalent, and not just at the compound, where Leif said protesters mostly had small sidearms, not rifles.
Leif said when he entered a local bar, where Harney County residents, as well as independent protest groups like the Three Percenters and the Pacific Patriots were, virtually every one had a gun.
“It kind of reminded me of being in the movie ‘Deliverance,’ you know. I mean everybody in there, this was a bar restaurant, they were all armed,” he said. “You felt real comfortable in there because you know if anything was going to happen, you’re going to be OK.”
Leif said he brought gas cards donated by Douglas County residents to the Pacific Patriots, thinking they were a neutral group. He later realized they were not as neutral as he thought, he said.
“I took no sides. We just wanted to study things for ourselves.
And walked away from it and I feel for everybody. I feel for the townspeople. I feel for the refuge out there,” Leif said.
He said he feels for the protesters, but doesn’t think they’ve gone about their protest correctly.
“I certainly understand why they’re frustrated, but I just don’t think this was the right way to do it, I really don’t. I don’t want to see anybody get hurt in this thing. That’s my number one concern,” Leif said.
Leif said if a similar situation had happened in Douglas County, he hopes there would have been better community involvement, more people at the table. Certainly, he said, he would have reached out to the protesters, just as he did in Harney County despite it not being his home county.
http://www.nrtoday.com/news/20276992...ith-protesters
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01-22-2016, 06:13 PM #5
Ammon Bundy media demands nixed by FBI
Militia took over the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge on Jan. 2, 2016
Andrew Dymburt and KOIN 6 News Staff
Published: January 22, 2016, 11:38 am
Updated: January 22, 2016, 1:11 pm
Related Coverage
- Bundy seen leaving FBI headquarters near Malheur
- ‘God wants us here’: More militiamen arrive at Malheur
- Gov. Brown: Militia at Malheur ‘intolerable’
- Bundy to Harney County officials: ‘Get in line’
BURNS, Ore. (KOIN) — Militia leader Ammon Bundy met with the FBI for a second straight day, but the meeting lasted only 5 minutes before Bundy walked out.
Bundy, leading the group of occupiers at the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge since January 2, demanded the FBI allow media into their meetings. The FBI said no.
He said the FBI is overreaching their power and instead he said he would talk with local police about the issues. Bundy then headed to Harney County Sheriff Dave Ward’s office.
On Thursday, Bundy met with the FBI. With reporters watching, he spoke on the phone, apparently with an FBI negotiator. The conversation was streamed online by another member of Bundy’s group.
Bundy said his group is “not going to escalate” the situation, and he agreed to speak with authorities again Friday.
But that meeting was very short, and he drove directly to the sheriff’s office. But he did not meet with Sheriff Ward as he was stopped at the gate because he arrived unannounced.
Bundy is upset the FBI had set up what he calls “a standing army.” The sheriff’s deputies made it clear local authorities and federal officials are working together.
Deputies and law enforcement officials refused to argue, so he left.
At 4 p.m., two ranchers from other states are expected to rescind their land-grazing agreements with the federal government in a signing ceremony at in the Malheur Refuge conference center.
On Wednesday, LaVoy Finicum, the Arizona rancher who is the de facto spokesperson for the militia occupying the Malheur refuge, said he and Cliven Bundy — Ammon’s father — are the only 2 ranchers who so far have rescinded their land-use rights to the federal government.
This signing ceremony “will double the amount of ranchers” standing up for their rights, he said.
Malheur National Wildlife Refuge was established on August 18, 1908, by President Theodore Roosevelt as the Lake Malheur Reservation. Roosevelt set aside unclaimed government lands encompassed by Malheur, Mud and Harney Lakes “as a preserve and breeding ground for native birds.” The newly established “Lake Malheur Reservation” was the 19th of 51 wildlife refuges created by Roosevelt during his tenure as president. At the time, Malheur was the third refuge in Oregon and one of only six refuges west of the Mississippi.
http://koin.com/2016/01/22/ammon-bun...-nixed-by-fbi/NO AMNESTY
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01-26-2016, 10:39 PM #6NO AMNESTY
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