Glenn welcomes ‘The People’s Sheriff’ David Clarke to TheBlaze Radio Network!

TheBlaze Radio Network announced a new podcast entitled 'David Clarke: The People's Sheriff', today during Glenn's radio show. Host David Clarke is the current Sheriff of Milwaukee County, Wisconsin and is an outspoken defender of individual liberties.

The weekly, one-hour podcast will launch on Saturdays beginning June 6 and will focus on law enforcement issues, knowing your rights, commentary on current affairs, racial issues, 2nd Amendment matters, and the importance of empowering individuals rather than the state.

TheBlaze Radio Network's VP of Programming, Dom Theodore, said, "Sheriff Clarke calls it like it is - with an emphasis on common sense and individual responsibility. I'm thrilled to have him join our lineup of amazing talent at TheBlaze Radio Network, where we are committed to being a leader in digital spoken word content."

Sheriff Clarke said, "What an honor to be a part of TheBlaze Radio Network! This podcast is an opportunity to add to the conversation of well-thought-out reason on issues confronting America. I look forward to being a part of TheBlaze family, working to keep the public well informed."

Sheriff Clarke joined Glenn on radio this morning to discuss his new show, the militarization of police, and more.

GLENN: Today, I want to make a major announcement on something we're doing with Blaze Radio. Blaze Radio is -- is kind of an experiment that we've been working on and really kind of kept it pretty quiet. We don't really advertise it or anything else. And it is already the 19th largest stream in the world.

It is wildly successful and allows you to be informed where you want, when you want, how you want. And we have made some additions to Blaze Radio that have been really exciting lately. And we want to make an announcement that we're adding another voice to Blaze Radio. And it's Milwaukee County Sheriff David Clarke. He is a remarkable man and a voice that I think needs to be heard. Well-spoken, well-thought out. And we wanted to welcome him to the Mercury family now.

David, Sheriff, how are you?

DAVID: Good, Glenn. How are you doing? First of all, thank you for this opportunity. When I first came up, I said wow. I've had a lot to say recently over the last, you know, four, five, six, seven, eight years. But I've never had my own platform to do it. So it was always a situation where I had to be led by someone else's platform and whether they wanted to take a discussion. And I am so thrilled to be a part of the Blaze network, a brand that you have built, that you've grown and you've nurtured. And I simply want to add value to what you started. And participate in this larger conversation about America. You mentioned, it's not the country that I recognize anymore either.

But I think that it's important to provide pushback and a countermessage to this modern liberalism that's in full throttle, and that's what I want to do

GLENN: David, first of all, you'll add value. I've heard some of the test broadcasts that you've done. They're remarkable. My guy who used to be the head of CBS radio and Clear Channel radio, a truly remarkable man who is working with you on my behalf. He says that he believes you're one of the biggest talents he's ever heard. And that's only after the first show. You're a natural at this.

But more importantly, we're bringing you on, David, because you can speak with authority. And, you know, black lives matter. But white lives matter too. Young lives matter. Old lives matter. Blue lives matter. All life matters.

And we're getting into a place, David, that I don't -- I don't think this country has seen since the 1960s, and we're headed for real trouble with policing. With the militarization, with the disenfranchisement of the police, with the pitting of the police against the traditional supporters of the police, our cities are going to be in real trouble because I believe there's a real effort underfoot through people like the Nation of Islam and Al Sharpton and some of the friends of the president and the Black Panthers, to literally set our cities on fire. So we need a reasonable voice that can tell us and speak from a position of authority on what to do.

What do our policemen even do?

DAVID: That's kind of interesting. As you know -- many of your listeners may not -- I have 37 years of urban law enforcement experience. All my education -- my bachelor's degree is in Criminal Justice Management. My master's degree is in Security Studies, Homeland Security related to the United States Naval Academy Post Graduate School. It's been my life. It really has. I bleed blue. I tell people, if you cut me open, you won't find red. I bleed blue.

But, Glenn, I sat up and watched after the days of Ferguson, where this proud profession that I've been a part of just came under attack. And I've predicted -- and not because I'm in the prediction business. But I knew. I know cops. I know this profession. I know the importance -- cops matter. I know the importance that law enforcement and public safety has, especially in your urban centers. We have densely populated areas. You don't have all the social controls necessary for these things to work themselves out. So you need to have an intermediary. Especially in the American ghetto, that intermediary is the American police officer. White, black, Hispanic, Asian -- who else is going down into these areas? When we -- our police come under attack. It's, you know, the white cop who shoots the unarmed black guy. And our cops are racist.

You know, these are the smears that we hear. And I go, wait a minute. Who else is going down there? I don't see the politician down there. I don't see the loudmouth demagogue like Al Sharpton down there. It's the American police officer who puts his or her life on the line, is willing to sacrifice their life, if it means that, in service to who in the American ghetto? Other black people. So to hear them maligned like this really bothered me. So I decided to step up and start to fight back, like I said. Countermessage. Defend this proposition. Look, I've said -- and I know this, and everybody knows. But I'll say it anyway. Are cops perfect? Not by any stretch of the imagination. Are police departments perfect? Not even close.

However, these communities we're talking about, these are the finest they have. They go down there with the best of intentions to do right, to do it within the rules. And every once in a while, something goes horribly wrong. But then to come down and throw all the maladies and the pathologies of the urban ghetto on the back of the American police officer and say, you go down there and do something about it. Keep them from killing each other, raping, robbing, and pillaging, and, oh, by the way, if something goes horribly wrong, you know, like it did in Ferguson and in New York and in South Carolina and in other areas, including here in Milwaukee County, all of a sudden it's, oh, the cops are the bad guys now. Let's go attack the cops.

Glenn, we expect that. Because we've seen that before from cop haters. All my 37 years. I know people that just don't like the police. We expect that from that -- that cabal. What we did not expect this time around was to see it come from an unlikely source. And that unlikely source is the political class, who -- we know we need their backing. Not only for resources, but at times when, yeah, maybe we made a mistake or even if we didn't make a mistake, like in the case of Ferguson, there was no mistake made. We don't expect the political class to turn us upside down and to attack us and want us criminally indicted and so on and so forth. That's what's different this time around

GLENN: We're talking to David Clarke. He's the sheriff in Milwaukee County. And if the name sounds familiar and you can't quite place it, it's because he was the guy who was featured on radio ads in Milwaukee saying citizens should not rely on police for protection. They should arm themselves. And they should be -- they're the first responders. And we have talked to him several times. He is fearless. And speaks his -- speaks his mind. And, quite honestly, I think that's what we need.

David, you know, as -- as we're watching this -- I think the police are being set up, myself. We are now starting to see that they're not patrolling because they won't get the backup they deserve. You're also seeing the decay because of the militarization, you're seeing people like me who I'm a big supporter of the police. But I'm gravely concerned about the militarization of our police because of what this administration has stated its goals.

We have now Al Sharpton who is one of the czars with this administration coming out and saying that the Justice Department needs to take over local policing. When the president says he wants to cut back on the militarization, what he's saying is, he wants to -- he wants to just not sell them tanks. But in that executive order, and I don't know if you've read it, in that executive order, it talks about the Pentagon and the Justice Department partnering with the local police, all the way down to things like uniforms. And what their uniforms will look like. It's a very frightening thing.

How can you help bridge the gap on making sure that the cops know that the average citizen still has respect for them? But we are concerned about some of the things that they're now being required to do and some of the things this administration -- we're trying to speak out and warn and say, look, you're going to be left alone because you're being set up. Do you believe that? And how would you respond?

DAVID: First of all, let's unpack that a little bit because there's a lot there. Your concern. I share that concern. I'm not at war with my community here in Milwaukee County. And I don't think any agency -- I have said from the beginning that that 1033 Program needs better oversight. There's no doubt about that. But I don't think that the president should have thrown the baby out with the bathwater. He said some of this equipment belongs in a battlefield. And my first thought was, has he been down in the American ghetto recently? I know he lives life in a bubble.

When you hear, you know, 15 dead, 37 shot in Baltimore in a weekend -- on Memorial Day weekend. When you hear 40 people shot in a month. When you go to Chicago and you look at, in one weekend, Glenn, 15 dead, 37 injured, 40 injured, that sounds like a battlefield. That doesn't mean that we should do overkill in terms of some of the overplus equipment. I think it needs oversight. Each agency should have to make a stronger case as to why they need this equipment. Some of this equipment is missing. It's not even accounted for. So I think it needs more oversight.

However, I think the worse thing that we can do in the United States is federalize local policing. The Founding Fathers didn't want a federal police force. As far as I'm concerned, local policing is a state's rights issue. Each state is responsible for the -- securing the personal safety of their citizens in that city. There's a role for the federal government, and it's not running these agencies. It's not taking these agencies over. It's not telling these agencies, you know, one-size-fits-all. Training them. Setting up policies and standards.

And that's kind of what this whole 21st century task force that the president hastily threw together is trying to accomplish. You know, a one-size-fits-all. Every community is different. Every community's citizens -- and I think it's what you're speaking to, Glenn -- every community's citizens have different wants, needs, and standards. What they'll put up with, what they won't. So I think it needs to be left to the locals. I think it's a slap in the face of the state governments. Because if there's a problem in Ferguson with what was going on -- and there was. Okay. If there's a problem in one of these other cities as to what's going on, you have a state attorney general. You have other oversight. Each city has their own oversight board of civilians. And if they're not doing their job, well then, the state attorney general, I believe, should step in and maybe be that intermediary, not the United States attorney general and especially not the president of the United States.

GLENN: We're talking to Milwaukee County Sheriff David Clarke who is joining us now on Blaze Radio, Saturdays. It will be posted at noon Eastern at the Blaze.com/radio. A very outspoken guy. A guy who has been with us several times. And I want to take a quick break and come back and ask you one question. You're there in Milwaukee. I'd love to hear your impression of Scott Walker.

[BREAK]

GLENN: Milwaukee County Sheriff David Clarke joins us. He is the latest to join the Blaze Radio. You can find that at the Blaze.com/radio. And it will air on Saturdays. Or it will be posted on Saturdays. So you can hear him. He's fearless. He's the guy that Michael Bloomberg threw money hand over fist during his last campaign and he still won huge. He is a plainspoken guy who can speak with authority and tell you what's really going on from the police perspective. And we're proud to have him a part of Blaze Radio now because we're huge supporters of the police departments and they are coming under fire, big time.

Tell me about Scott Walker. Because we haven't -- we haven't quite made up our mind on him, David. From a distance, he seems to be good. But then there are times, wait a minute. He just kind of flip-flopped here. Is that who he is? Can you give us insight on him?

DAVID: First of all, I want to thank you again for the complimentary comments. I hope people do tune in on the Saturday podcasts. Give me a chance. I think they'll like it. As you know, I give people information unvarnished and no sugarcoating.

Full disclosure, first of all, I'm a friend of Scott Walker. We became friends because we both worked in Milwaukee government. I'm the Milwaukee County sheriff. Came in the same year that he did as County Executive, so we worked closely together. He's a strong supporter of law enforcement. Always made sure that we were properly funded.

But what I've learned about Scott Walker is he listens to people. He would come to me and say, Sheriff, I have this deal here or some funding situation. I want to know how this affects public safety. I would tell them. He's like, I don't know that I want to do that. He's very decisive, but he listens to his advisers. You can bet that he'll listen to his military commanders. You can bet that he'll listen to his economic advisers. But he will make the decision. He will not vacillate.

But the one thing I'm looking for. And I'm telling people now -- and I do have a bias about Scott Walker. But I say, vet everybody. Okay, they'll all do what you just mentioned. Every once in a while, you get a candidate, you say, hey, this guy is looking good. This woman is looking good. Then all of a sudden, boom. Oh, jeez. You know, flip-flop there. I'm not sure now.

That's what this process is supposed to do is weed all of that out. So I'm telling people. And I'll talk about this on some of my shows leading up into the 2016 election. But vet them all. They all have weaknesses. There's no perfect candidate. What I'm looking for is the person that will bring this country back to its founding principles. That's what we need right now. Leadership in that area. And I think that this process will allow us to identify that individual. I like Carly Fiorina. I like Marco Rubio. He has his issues. I like Ted Cruz. I'm not going to say I like all of them. I'm not a big fan of Rand Paul. Because he did some things that kind of insults me in meeting with Al Sharpton.

GLENN: Hang on. Okay. David, I'm out of time. But I'm hoping you'll give that story on one of your first podcasts. Thank you very much. Sheriff David Clarke new to the Blaze Radio.

EXCLUSIVE: Tech Ethicist reveals 5 ways to control AI NOW

MANAURE QUINTERO / Contributor | Getty Images

By now, many of us are familiar with AI and its potential benefits and threats. However, unless you're a tech tycoon, it can feel like you have little influence over the future of artificial intelligence.

For years, Glenn has warned about the dangers of rapidly developing AI technologies that have taken the world by storm.

He acknowledges their significant benefits but emphasizes the need to establish proper boundaries and ethics now, while we still have control. But since most people aren’t Silicon Valley tech leaders making the decisions, how can they help keep AI in check?

Recently, Glenn interviewed Tristan Harris, a tech ethicist deeply concerned about the potential harm of unchecked AI, to discuss its societal implications. Harris highlighted a concerning new piece of legislation proposed by Texas Senator Ted Cruz. This legislation proposes a state-level moratorium on AI regulation, meaning only the federal government could regulate AI. Harris noted that there’s currently no Federal plan for regulating AI. Until the federal government establishes a plan, tech companies would have nearly free rein with their AI. And we all know how slowly the federal government moves.

This is where you come in. Tristan Harris shared with Glenn the top five actions you should urge your representatives to take regarding AI, including opposing the moratorium until a concrete plan is in place. Now is your chance to influence the future of AI. Contact your senator and congressman today and share these five crucial steps they must take to keep AI in check:

Ban engagement-optimized AI companions for kids

Create legislation that will prevent AI from being designed to maximize addiction, sexualization, flattery, and attachment disorders, and to protect young people’s mental health and ability to form real-life friendships.

Establish basic liability laws

Companies need to be held accountable when their products cause real-world harm.

Pass increased whistleblower protections

Protect concerned technologists working inside the AI labs from facing untenable pressures and threats that prevent them from warning the public when the AI rollout is unsafe or crosses dangerous red lines.

Prevent AI from having legal rights

Enact laws so AIs don’t have protected speech or have their own bank accounts, making sure our legal system works for human interests over AI interests.

Oppose the state moratorium on AI 

Call your congressman or Senator Cruz’s office, and demand they oppose the state moratorium on AI without a plan for how we will set guardrails for this technology.

Glenn: Only Trump dared to deliver on decades of empty promises

Tasos Katopodis / Stringer | Getty Images

The Islamic regime has been killing Americans since 1979. Now Trump’s response proves we’re no longer playing defense — we’re finally hitting back.

The United States has taken direct military action against Iran’s nuclear program. Whatever you think of the strike, it’s over. It’s happened. And now, we have to predict what happens next. I want to help you understand the gravity of this situation: what happened, what it means, and what might come next. To that end, we need to begin with a little history.

Since 1979, Iran has been at war with us — even if we refused to call it that.

We are either on the verge of a remarkable strategic victory or a devastating global escalation. Time will tell.

It began with the hostage crisis, when 66 Americans were seized and 52 were held for over a year by the radical Islamic regime. Four years later, 17 more Americans were murdered in the U.S. Embassy bombing in Beirut, followed by 241 Marines in the Beirut barracks bombing.

Then came the Khobar Towers bombing in 1996, which killed 19 more U.S. airmen. Iran had its fingerprints all over it.

In Iraq and Afghanistan, Iranian-backed proxies killed hundreds of American soldiers. From 2001 to 2020 in Afghanistan and 2003 to 2011 in Iraq, Iran supplied IEDs and tactical support.

The Iranians have plotted assassinations and kidnappings on U.S. soil — in 2011, 2021, and again in 2024 — and yet we’ve never really responded.

The precedent for U.S. retaliation has always been present, but no president has chosen to pull the trigger until this past weekend. President Donald Trump struck decisively. And what our military pulled off this weekend was nothing short of extraordinary.

Operation Midnight Hammer

The strike was reportedly called Operation Midnight Hammer. It involved as many as 175 U.S. aircraft, including 12 B-2 stealth bombers — out of just 19 in our entire arsenal. Those bombers are among the most complex machines in the world, and they were kept mission-ready by some of the finest mechanics on the planet.

USAF / Handout | Getty Images

To throw off Iranian radar and intelligence, some bombers flew west toward Guam — classic misdirection. The rest flew east, toward the real targets.

As the B-2s approached Iranian airspace, U.S. submarines launched dozens of Tomahawk missiles at Iran’s fortified nuclear facilities. Minutes later, the bombers dropped 14 MOPs — massive ordnance penetrators — each designed to drill deep into the earth and destroy underground bunkers. These bombs are the size of an F-16 and cost millions of dollars apiece. They are so accurate, I’ve been told they can hit the top of a soda can from 15,000 feet.

They were built for this mission — and we’ve been rehearsing this run for 15 years.

If the satellite imagery is accurate — and if what my sources tell me is true — the targeted nuclear sites were utterly destroyed. We’ll likely rely on the Israelis to confirm that on the ground.

This was a master class in strategy, execution, and deterrence. And it proved that only the United States could carry out a strike like this. I am very proud of our military, what we are capable of doing, and what we can accomplish.

What comes next

We don’t yet know how Iran will respond, but many of the possibilities are troubling. The Iranians could target U.S. forces across the Middle East. On Monday, Tehran launched 20 missiles at U.S. bases in Qatar, Syria, and Kuwait, to no effect. God forbid, they could also unleash Hezbollah or other terrorist proxies to strike here at home — and they just might.

Iran has also threatened to shut down the Strait of Hormuz — the artery through which nearly a fifth of the world’s oil flows. On Sunday, Iran’s parliament voted to begin the process. If the Supreme Council and the ayatollah give the go-ahead, we could see oil prices spike to $150 or even $200 a barrel.

That would be catastrophic.

The 2008 financial collapse was pushed over the edge when oil hit $130. Western economies — including ours — simply cannot sustain oil above $120 for long. If this conflict escalates and the Strait is closed, the global economy could unravel.

The strike also raises questions about regime stability. Will it spark an uprising, or will the Islamic regime respond with a brutal crackdown on dissidents?

Early signs aren’t hopeful. Reports suggest hundreds of arrests over the weekend and at least one dissident executed on charges of spying for Israel. The regime’s infamous morality police, the Gasht-e Ershad, are back on the streets. Every phone, every vehicle — monitored. The U.S. embassy in Qatar issued a shelter-in-place warning for Americans.

Russia and China both condemned the strike. On Monday, a senior Iranian official flew to Moscow to meet with Vladimir Putin. That meeting should alarm anyone paying attention. Their alliance continues to deepen — and that’s a serious concern.

Now we pray

We are either on the verge of a remarkable strategic victory or a devastating global escalation. Time will tell. But either way, President Trump didn’t start this. He inherited it — and he took decisive action.

The difference is, he did what they all said they would do. He didn’t send pallets of cash in the dead of night. He didn’t sign another failed treaty.

He acted. Now, we pray. For peace, for wisdom, and for the strength to meet whatever comes next.


This article originally appeared on TheBlaze.com.

Globalize the Intifada? Why Mamdani’s plan spells DOOM for America

Bloomberg / Contributor | Getty Images

If New Yorkers hand City Hall to Zohran Mamdani, they’re not voting for change. They’re opening the door to an alliance of socialism, Islamism, and chaos.

It only took 25 years for New York City to go from the resilient, flag-waving pride following the 9/11 attacks to a political fever dream. To quote Michael Malice, “I'm old enough to remember when New Yorkers endured 9/11 instead of voting for it.”

Malice is talking about Zohran Mamdani, a Democratic Socialist assemblyman from Queens now eyeing the mayor’s office. Mamdani, a 33-year-old state representative emerging from relative political obscurity, is now receiving substantial funding for his mayoral campaign from the Council on American-Islamic Relations.

CAIR has a long and concerning history, including being born out of the Muslim Brotherhood and named an unindicted co-conspirator in the Holy Land Foundation terror funding case. Why would the group have dropped $100,000 into a PAC backing Mamdani’s campaign?

Mamdani blends political Islam with Marxist economics — two ideologies that have left tens of millions dead in the 20th century alone.

Perhaps CAIR has a vested interest in Mamdani’s call to “globalize the intifada.” That’s not a call for peaceful protest. Intifada refers to historic uprisings of Muslims against what they call the “Israeli occupation of Palestine.” Suicide bombings and street violence are part of the playbook. So when Mamdani says he wants to “globalize” that, who exactly is the enemy in this global scenario? Because it sure sounds like he's saying America is the new Israel, and anyone who supports Western democracy is the new Zionist.

Mamdani tried to clean up his language by citing the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum, which once used “intifada” in an Arabic-language article to describe the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising. So now he’s comparing Palestinians to Jewish victims of the Nazis? If that doesn’t twist your stomach into knots, you’re not paying attention.

If you’re “globalizing” an intifada, and positioning Israel — and now America — as the Nazis, that’s not a cry for human rights. That’s a call for chaos and violence.

Rising Islamism

But hey, this is New York. Faculty members at Columbia University — where Mamdani’s own father once worked — signed a letter defending students who supported Hamas after October 7. They also contributed to Mamdani’s mayoral campaign. And his father? He blamed Ronald Reagan and the religious right for inspiring Islamic terrorism, as if the roots of 9/11 grew in Washington, not the caves of Tora Bora.

Bloomberg / Contributor | Getty Images

This isn’t about Islam as a faith. We should distinguish between Islam and Islamism. Islam is a religion followed peacefully by millions. Islamism is something entirely different — an ideology that seeks to merge mosque and state, impose Sharia law, and destroy secular liberal democracies from within. Islamism isn’t about prayer and fasting. It’s about power.

Criticizing Islamism is not Islamophobia. It is not an attack on peaceful Muslims. In fact, Muslims are often its first victims.

Islamism is misogynistic, theocratic, violent, and supremacist. It’s hostile to free speech, religious pluralism, gay rights, secularism — even to moderate Muslims. Yet somehow, the progressive left — the same left that claims to fight for feminism, LGBTQ rights, and free expression — finds itself defending candidates like Mamdani. You can’t make this stuff up.

Blending the worst ideologies

And if that weren’t enough, Mamdani also identifies as a Democratic Socialist. He blends political Islam with Marxist economics — two ideologies that have left tens of millions dead in the 20th century alone. But don’t worry, New York. I’m sure this time socialism will totally work. Just like it always didn’t.

If you’re a business owner, a parent, a person who’s saved anything, or just someone who values sanity: Get out. I’m serious. If Mamdani becomes mayor, as seems likely, then New York City will become a case study in what happens when you marry ideological extremism with political power. And it won’t be pretty.

This is about more than one mayoral race. It’s about the future of Western liberalism. It’s about drawing a bright line between faith and fanaticism, between healthy pluralism and authoritarian dogma.

Call out radicalism

We must call out political Islam the same way we call out white nationalism or any other supremacist ideology. When someone chants “globalize the intifada,” that should send a chill down your spine — whether you’re Jewish, Christian, Muslim, atheist, or anything in between.

The left may try to shame you into silence with words like “Islamophobia,” but the record is worn out. The grooves are shallow. The American people see what’s happening. And we’re not buying it.

This article originally appeared on TheBlaze.com.

How private stewardship could REVIVE America’s wild

Jonathan Newton / Contributor | Getty Images

The left’s idea of stewardship involves bulldozing bison and barring access. Lee’s vision puts conservation back in the hands of the people.

The media wants you to believe that Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah) is trying to bulldoze Yellowstone and turn national parks into strip malls — that he’s calling for a reckless fire sale of America’s natural beauty to line developers’ pockets. That narrative is dishonest. It’s fearmongering, and, by the way, it’s wrong.

Here’s what’s really happening.

Private stewardship works. It’s local. It’s accountable. It’s incentivized.

The federal government currently owns 640 million acres of land — nearly 28% of all land in the United States. To put that into perspective, that’s more territory than France, Germany, Poland, and the United Kingdom combined.

Most of this land is west of the Mississippi River. That’s not a coincidence. In the American West, federal ownership isn’t just a bureaucratic technicality — it’s a stranglehold. States are suffocated. Locals are treated as tenants. Opportunities are choked off.

Meanwhile, people living east of the Mississippi — in places like Kentucky, Georgia, or Pennsylvania — might not even realize how little land their own states truly control. But the same policies that are plaguing the West could come for them next.

Lee isn’t proposing to auction off Yellowstone or pave over Yosemite. He’s talking about 3 million acres — that’s less than half of 1% of the federal estate. And this land isn’t your family’s favorite hiking trail. It’s remote, hard to access, and often mismanaged.

Failed management

Why was it mismanaged in the first place? Because the federal government is a terrible landlord.

Consider Yellowstone again. It’s home to the last remaining herd of genetically pure American bison — animals that haven’t been crossbred with cattle. Ranchers, myself included, would love the chance to help restore these majestic creatures on private land. But the federal government won’t allow it.

So what do they do when the herd gets too big?

They kill them. Bulldoze them into mass graves. That’s not conservation. That’s bureaucratic malpractice.

And don’t even get me started on bald eagles — majestic symbols of American freedom and a federally protected endangered species, now regularly slaughtered by wind turbines. I have pictures of piles of dead bald eagles. Where’s the outrage?

Biden’s federal land-grab

Some argue that states can’t afford to manage this land themselves. But if the states can’t afford it, how can Washington? We’re $35 trillion in debt. Entitlements are strained, infrastructure is crumbling, and the Bureau of Land Management, Forest Service, and National Park Service are billions of dollars behind in basic maintenance. Roads, firebreaks, and trails are falling apart.

The Biden administration quietly embraced something called the “30 by 30” initiative, a plan to lock up 30% of all U.S. land and water under federal “conservation” by 2030. The real goal is 50% by 2050.

That entails half of the country being taken away from you, controlled not by the people who live there but by technocrats in D.C.

You think that won’t affect your ability to hunt, fish, graze cattle, or cut timber? Think again. It won’t be conservatives who stop you from building a cabin, raising cattle, or teaching your grandkids how to shoot a rifle. It’ll be the same radical environmentalists who treat land as sacred — unless it’s your truck, your deer stand, or your back yard.

Land as collateral

Moreover, the U.S. Treasury is considering putting federally owned land on the national balance sheet, listing your parks, forests, and hunting grounds as collateral.

What happens if America defaults on its debt?

David McNew / Stringer | Getty Images

Do you think our creditors won’t come calling? Imagine explaining to your kids that the lake you used to fish in is now under foreign ownership, that the forest you hunted in belongs to China.

This is not hypothetical. This is the logical conclusion of treating land like a piggy bank.

The American way

There’s a better way — and it’s the American way.

Let the people who live near the land steward it. Let ranchers, farmers, sportsmen, and local conservationists do what they’ve done for generations.

Did you know that 75% of America’s wetlands are on private land? Or that the most successful wildlife recoveries — whitetail deer, ducks, wild turkeys — didn’t come from Washington but from partnerships between private landowners and groups like Ducks Unlimited?

Private stewardship works. It’s local. It’s accountable. It’s incentivized. When you break it, you fix it. When you profit from the land, you protect it.

This is not about selling out. It’s about buying in — to freedom, to responsibility, to the principle of constitutional self-governance.

So when you hear the pundits cry foul over 3 million acres of federal land, remember: We don’t need Washington to protect our land. We need Washington to get out of the way.

Because this isn’t just about land. It’s about liberty. And once liberty is lost, it doesn’t come back easily.

This article originally appeared on TheBlaze.com.