Obama seeks bigger wilderness designation in Alaska refuge

JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) — President Barack Obama is proposing to designate the vast majority of Alaska's Arctic National Wildlife Refuge as a wilderness area, including its potentially oil-rich coastal plain, drawing an angry response from top state elected officials who see it as a land grab by the federal government.

"They've decided that today was the day that they were going to declare war on Alaska. Well, we are ready to engage," said U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, and chair of the Senate energy committee.

Source

The designation would set aside an additional nearly 12.3 million acres as wilderness, including the coastal plain near Alaska's northeast corner, giving it the highest degree of federal protection available to public lands. More than 7 million acres of the refuge currently are managed as wilderness.

That is almost 20 million acres.

Hell yeah that is a land grab that our president has no authority over.

Check this out:

The issue of federal lands extends beyond Utah's borders, however. According to a 2012 Congressional Research Service report, the federal government owns roughly 635 million acres of the 2.27 billion acres in the U.S

Source

635 MILLION acres.

More than half the West is federally owned. Now some states want that land

The current administration needs to be told NO.

And to return to the states what is rightfully theirs to begin with.

Up to Alaska to decide on what to do.

The sheer amount of land 'owned' by the US government would pay off the national debt.

If it ever paid for it.

He's just securing it for Agenda 21. No development, no treading.

S + F

Obamas chief of staff interviewed on news program at nearly same time spouting off how the administration takes credit for lower prices and reduced importation of oil and happy days for middle class was here - they lie all the time and worst is they believe it themselves.

Despicable is the mildest word for them.

Typical .................Theres a host of resources tied up in Federal hands if this passes.....They'll be selling it all off to China next no doubt.....
I wouldn't trust Washington as far as I could throw the bums out.....

This is the worst thingI've read all day. This has completely filled me with rage.

Agenda 21 is getting more real every day. And this should make it crystal clear that presidents don't do this kind of crap just for themselves. Obama won't even be in office much longer. They're all on the same team and we are on the visitors side.

In a White House video released Sunday, Obama said he is seeking the designation "so that we can make sure that this amazing wonder is preserved for future generations."

Anything Obama says is suspicious.

He often talks one thing and means something else.

I wonder what this is *Really* about?

a reply to: xuenchen

I wonder what this is *Really* about?

I bet it starts with an O and ends with an L. It's genius really. Anyone who disagrees must hate the earth.

If they get away with this we are screwed. Even if they don't get it this time, this is just a preview of what's to come.

The nation needs to stand with Alaska. Anyone who condones this is anti-freedom.
Anyone who ignores this has already given up on their own rights.

Even if it doesn't pass this needs to be taken seriously. The fact they're trying to do this right out in broad daylight for all of to see is ominous, not to mention insulting.

President Obama might as well get on tv right now, take a break from his TelePrompTer for once, and tell us we're all a bunch of bumbling idiots.

It could be a sneaky plan.

"Force" lobbyists to lobby Democrats with money.

This is like a drug addicted mother convincing her child to let her hang onto his birthday money for "safe keeping".

Beyond disgusting and oh so transparent.

My first ever post on ATS, and it's only a one-word reply: OIL.

Blistering IRONY !!!

Obama Films Anti-Oil Drilling Video–From a Jet

On Sunday, President Barack Obama released an anti-oil drilling environmental video shot aboard Air Force One–an aircraft that has a 53,611 gallon fuel capacity.

I wonder how many people think he's really doing this to protect environment.

So everyone is just jumping onto the Agenda 21 train here? No one wants to think about this rationally in that Obama is trying to save our wild lifes from deforestation and other environmentally destructive behaviors of modern society? It's not like this land would be used for housing or farmland, it's going to be raised to the ground and oil rigs setup. Does no one here even care about the environment anymore? Nah, let's just complain about Obama grabbing up land. What do you guys think our federal parks are exactly?

a reply to: JessicaRabbitTx

I do. Agenda 21 is bullcrap.

a reply to: Krazysh0t

Shouldn't the state be allowed to decide what to do with their own land?

a reply to: JessicaRabbitTx

Well seeing as how there is precedent for this thanks to the creation of our national parks, no, states don't have the right to decide what to do on their land if the federal government disagrees. Do you think our national parks are a bad thing and we should just instead bulldoze them down so we can build a shopping mall?

originally posted by: JessicaRabbitTx
I wonder how many people think he's really doing this to protect environment.

Millions do.

a reply to: neo96 That's because he's Muslim!

a reply to: Krazysh0t

So everyone is just jumping onto the Agenda 21 train here? No one wants to think about this rationally in that Obama is trying to save our wild lifes from deforestation and other environmentally destructive behaviors of modern society?

Too funny.

Coming from the same guy who bombed the hell out of other countries ? Like Libya, and others.

Oh yeah he really 'cares' about the environment.

a reply to: Krazysh0t

I don't think Obama has any feeling for anything.

He is a city slicker lawyer and is a Psychopathic Narcissist.

This deal is 100% political.