Last night, Glenn spoke privately with Calvin Bundy about his ongoing dispute with the Bureau of Land Management over his cattle grazing on public land. Then on radio, they talked again and Bundy made it clear that from his point of view this shouldn't be an issue that involves the federal government, and that the government needs to transfer the public land back to the states. The conflict has raised a lot of debate and passions, and a small number of people have even started to push for violent conflict.
On tonight's TV show, Glenn's opening monologue didn't focus on who was right or wrong in the Nevada debate, but on the need for peaceful protest modeled off of Gandhi, Martin Luther King, Jr., and Jesus Christ.
“We did some research online with PsyID today, and found that there’s about 10 or 15 percent of the people who are talking about this online that are truly frightening,” Glenn said. “They don’t care what the facts are. They just want a fight.”
Many peaceful protestors who believe in small government have expressed their support for Bundy, but so has the “the right’s version of Occupy Wall Street" - an anti-government fringe group that believes only violence can solve the problems.
It should come as no surprise to long-term listeners and viewers that Glenn takes a strong stance against violent protest. In fact, he has warned for years that violence will only undermine the efforts of any movement that seeks to spread freedom and liberty.
As far back as June 2009, Glenn was encouraging his viewers to follow the teachings of Gandhi and Martin Luther King. He told his audience, "This is your country. They work for you. Educate yourself. Educate others around you. Keep speaking out. Stand up. Read the history of Gandhi. Read the history of Martin Luther King. Anybody who stands up in any other sort of way is going to discredit everything you believe in." (emphasis added)
Glenn repeated that warning again tonight.
“We need to agree on, ‘we condemn those who use violence,’” Glenn said. “Inciting violence doesn’t solve anything. I vehemently denounce anyone who even hints at such tactics.”
“If we fail to turn to [God] now, and fail to follow the footsteps of the guy who said ‘shod your feet in peace,’ we will not succeed,” Glenn said. “I can’t make it any clearer.”