Sheriff urged to clamp down on armed militiamen around Bundy ranch

[struggle4progress]

By Kyle Roerink
Monday, April 28, 2014 | 4:16 p.m.

A growing number of Bunkerville residents want to see the armed militiamen guarding rancher Cliven Bundy leave Nevada, according to a letter from Rep. Steven Horsford, D-Nev., to Clark County Sheriff Doug Gillespie.

Horsford, whose congressional district includes Bunkerville, wrote that his constituents are concerned about Bundy supporters carrying weapons near local churches, schools and elsewhere ...

“I urge you to investigate these reports and to work with local leaders to ensure that their concerns are addressed in a manner that allows the community to move forward without incident,” Horsford wrote to Gillespie.

The letter also says militiamen have a presence on state and local roads as well as federal highways. In some areas, according to the letter, militiamen have set up checkpoints where drivers are stopped and asked to provide a proof of residency ...

http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2014/apr/28/sheriff-urged-clamp-down-armed-militiamen-around-b/

[struggle4progress]

1. Elkhart County Sheriff Brad Rogers defends trip to Cliven Bundy ranch

And in a video of a news conference with rancher Cliven Bundy, he reiterates his skeptical views of federal authority.

By Tim Vandenack
Posted at 10:43 a.m.

... Rogers is a defender of state and local rights and an advocate of the power of elected sheriffs to assert their authority in the face of federal government overreach. As such, he traveled to Bunkerville, Nev., from April 18-20 to prod the local sheriff there to intercede in the showdown between Bundy and U.S. Bureau of Land Management officials, worried the situation could lead to bloodshed and violence ...

Rogers — a Republican who's up for election this year, though unopposed — appeared with Bundy at an April 19 news conference, shortly after the Nevada rancher made controversial racial remarks, wondering whether black people would be better off as slaves. In fact, the Elkhart County sheriff shows up on the video about 15 minutes after the racial remarks. (Rogers didn't hear the comments, wasn't present the moment Bundy made them, he says.) He shakes hands with Bundy and then offers his thoughts, standing side-by-side with the Nevada rancher ...

In an e-mail last week, Rogers said there's no ethical issue with wearing his Elkhart County Sheriff's Department uniform on the Nevada trip ...

http://www.elkharttruth.com/news/politics/Indiana-Buzz/2014/04/29/Elkhart-County-Sheriff-Brad-Rogers-defends-trip-to-Cliven-Bundy-ranch.html