Cliven Bundy: ‘We Would Be Dead’ Without Media And Militia

Rancher Cliven Bundy speaks at a news conference near Bunkerville, Nev., Thursday, April 24, 2014. Bundy, a Nevada rancher who became a conservative folk hero for standing up to the government in a fight over grazing... Rancher Cliven Bundy speaks at a news conference near Bunkerville, Nev., Thursday, April 24, 2014. Bundy, a Nevada rancher who became a conservative folk hero for standing up to the government in a fight over grazing rights, lost some of his staunch defenders Thursday after wondering aloud whether blacks might have had it better under slavery. (AP Photo/Las Vegas Review-Journal, John Locher) MORE LESS
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Without extensive media coverage and the armed militia, Nevada rancher Cliven Bundy told a GQ reporter for an article in the magazine’s July issue that he and his supporters “would be dead” at the hands of federal authorities.

GQ’s Zach Baron spent time at the ranch in April, which is when the Bundy Ranch standoff was at its peak. And at one point, Baron reported, Bundy thanked him, the rest of the media and the estimated 1,000-plus armed militia members who showed up at the ranch for saving his life.

“Without the militia and without the media, we would be dead. Literally,” Bundy said. “We would be dead. Those people up there on that front line that faced those bullets would be dead without the media there. And they would be dead without the militia.”

Baron noted that the standoffs at Ruby Ridge and Waco, where some on the other end of a standoff with federal authorities were killed, were a frequent topic at Bundy Ranch.

In addition to the armed anti-government protesters who stood alongside him, Bundy was a mainstay on Fox News and received extensive coverage at news outlets including the New York Times and TPM.

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Notable Replies

  1. The Drama Queen of Nevada…

  2. Without the BLM land, you wouldn’t have a ranch, Cive.

  3. This article is a good example of why the print media is struggling to stay afloat. Its July 2 and GQ magazine is reporting on an event that took place in April.

  4. “Those people up there on that front line that faced those bullets would be dead without the media there. And they would be dead without the militia.”

    Brain dead and walking dead.

  5. Cliven lives in the action movie of his imagination, in which an evil cabal inside the BLM has made him a high-level target for assassination. But thanks to a courageous contingent of rugged, well-trained militia stalwarts and media publicity, he’s still alive to fight for freedom another day.

Continue the discussion at forums.talkingpointsmemo.com

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