It’s probably been awhile since you thought about Cliven Bundy and the armed standoff that occurred near his ranch in 2014, but the Bundies and their supporters are still battling the federal government over that incident. Now however, that battle is legal in nature, and it’s getting interesting.
During a recent trial for six Bundy supporters, the conversations that BLM agents were having during the standoff emerged. For instance, when faced with hundreds of protestors near the Bundy Ranch, a dashcam video showed one BLM agent saying “You come find me and you’re gonna have hell to pay” followed by another agent adding “Pretty much a shoot first, ask questions later kind of thing.”
However, things quickly went downhill from there. The footage shows how their attitudes changed from cocky to concerned after they started noticing firearms among the protestors. One of the officers is heard saying “If we get any more guns, we’re gonna be outgunned.”
Later in the trial, defense lawyers presented portions of the video that showed the officers mocking the protestors, in an attempt to reveal that the officers weren’t as scared as they claimed.
“There’s no gun there … He’s just holding his back, he’s standing like a sissy,” one agent said of a protester as authorities assessed the scene about 80 miles northeast of Las Vegas.
As one woman in the crowd screamed angrily, two law enforcement officers chuckled.
“She must not be married,” one said.
However, United States Park Police Officer Brandon Novotny stuck by his claim that the officers were terrified. “I took a moment to think about my family. I made my peace with God … I expected to die that day.”
Regardless of how you feel about the standoff at the Bundy Ranch, you have to admit that the government agents who showed up to counter the protest were probably scared that day. After all, they did eventually back down.