Leader of armed group says he’s speaking to FBI

The occupiers, who have said they are willing to use force but want a peaceful solution, are protesting federal use of land and the imprisonment of two OR ranchers for arson. The occupiers patrol the refuge perimeter for signs of law enforcement and undesirables, such as a drug user that Ehmer said was trying to gain entrance Thursday.

“That loss of a sense of safety”, the refuge employee said, “we don’t realize how core and how important that is until that’s been compromised and it definitely has in this situation”.

Residents of rural Harney County have been “overlooked and underserved” by federal officials who will be billed for local costs associated with the armed standoff at the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge, Gov. Kate Brown said.

On Tuesday, the Arizona businessman and son of Nevada rancher Cliven Bundy attended a community meeting at Burns High School and was accompanied by militants who carried weapons into the gymnasium, Grasty said.

Later, the letter states, “Harney County isn’t afraid of tough talk”, adding, “We can have effective disagreements and either find resolution, find compromise, or simply agree to disagree”.

Ammon Bundy and his older brother, Ryan Bundy, say the declaration will reject what they consider the unconstitutional ownership of land by the federal government and put an end to public land restrictions and grazing fees. He said they have broken rules laid out in the Constitution and that the buildings in the headquarters will never again be federal.

While Leif said he sympathizes with the constitutional issues the Bundys have raised, he said the protesters have gone about things all wrong. And they reject all federal laws and court rulings that offer a contrary view of public lands.

Among other steps, Harney County Sheriff Dave Ward should notify the occupants when utilities will be shut off and when they will be forced to endure Harney’s frigid winter temperatures, The Oregonian said. Bundy, though, maintains that “the majority of people are in support of us”. “I’d like to see them isolated from all comforts of life”.

Bundy had questions of his own.

Foerster and the current refuge employee expressed concern about the damage that could happen to the refuge and the relationship with surrounding ranchers if the occupation continues.

“We came here to work”, he said.

For the federal employees who have stuck around, law enforcement said recently that the threats from militants have continued.

Wednesday at the refuge was a busy day for the Bundys, with itineraries full of meetings, conference calls and some media interviews. The man on the other line of the phone said he was not.

Exasperated by a tense situation that has caused fear among local residents since it began January 2, Brown said federal officials “must move quickly to end the occupation and hold all of the wrongdoers accountable”. The U.S. Justice Department and the White House did not respond to requests Thursday for comment. She didn’t say what those costs entailed.