On Wednesday, President Trump is expected to order a review of national monuments designated under the controversial 1906 Antiquities Act. Many state politicians, especially in the West where the federal government already owns large tracts of land, have complained that national monuments hurt development opportunities and wrest control away from local decision-makers.
“A senior White House official, who was not authorized to speak publicly, told The Salt Lake Tribune on Sunday that the review will stretch back a couple of decades — including President Bill Clinton’s 1996 naming of the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument — but mainly was prompted by President Barack Obama’s last-minute naming of Bears Ears National Monument (in southeast Utah) in December,” says the Tribune. Bears Ears is a key source of foraged foods and medicine for several southwest Native American tribes, including the Navajo Nation.
Sen. Orrin Hatch and other Republican politicians in Utah have pushed President Trump to reverse Bears Ears. “For years, I have fought every step of the way to ensure that our lands are managed by the Utahns [who] know them best and cherish them deeply,” Hatch said in a statement. “That’s why I’m committed to rolling back the egregious abuse of the Antiquities Act to serve far-left special interests. As part of this commitment, I have leveraged all of my influence — from private meetings in the Oval Office in the president’s first week in office to my latest trip to Bears Ears this week — to ensure that this issue is a priority on the president’s agenda.”