Rancher Cliven Bundy makes racist comments, wonders if black people were 'better off as slaves'

Cliven Bundy, a Nevada rancher, has been drawing a lot of attention to himself recently. First, he refused to pay grazing fees, and now he’s gone and made some very racist comments in a recent interview.

Bundy, 67, was in a dispute with federal rangers over grazing rights. Huffington Post reports that The Bureau of Land Management claims that Bundy let his cattle graze on federal land without paying a dime. He had been doing this since 1993, and now owes more than $1 million in grazing fees. Federal agents tried to confront him, but since he drew the support of an armed militia, they were met by them instead. During a conference on Saturday, Bundy shared more than he should have in an interview with The New York Times.

Bundy believes America is in a troubled state, and he wanted to share his views on this. He thinks the federal government harasses Western ranchers, but what was the most shocking about what he said in the interview were his views on slavery.

“I want to tell you one more thing I know about the Negro,” Bundy said as he recalled driving past a public-housing project in Vegas. “They abort their young children, they put their young men in jail, because they never learned how to pick cotton. And I’ve often wondered, are they better off as slaves, picking cotton and having a family life and doing things, or are they better off under government subsidy? They didn’t get no more freedom. They got less freedom.”

These comments were published on Wednesday, and it led Republican lawmakers, who previously supported Bundy’s cause, to back down. Senator Dean Heller previously hailed Bundy and his supporters as “patriots.” Now, a spokesman for Heller, has rebuked the rancher’s racist remarks. He says that the senator, “completely disagrees with Mr. Bundy’s appalling and racist statements, and condemns them in the most strenuous way.”

Lawmakers who had supported Bundy are now condemning his remarks. What he said is causing a huge controversy because of how racist and offensive it was. Those who previously supported him are now completely disagreeing with him.