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Anti-Government Militia Leader Ammon Bundy Pushes Back on Trump’s Anti-Immigrant Rhetoric

“It’s all fear-based, and frankly it’s based upon selfishness.”

Ammon Bundy, an anti-government militia leader, issued a surprise critique of President Trump’s rhetoric regarding immigrants. In a video posted on Facebook, Bundy pushed back on the president for his comments portraying members of the migrant caravan as “criminals” and “gang members.” “It seems that there’s been this group stereotype,” Bundy says in the 17-minute video. “But what about those who have come here for reasons of need? . . . What about the fathers, the mothers, the children, who have come here and are willing to go through the process to apply for asylum so they can come into this country?” The video now has over 5,000 views.

Bundy first became well-known for his family’s publicized legal battles with the federal government over land rights. A long-standing dispute with federal authorities led to an armed standoff at the family ranch in Nevada in 2014. The Bundy’s pushback against alleged government overreach is a sentiment shared by many Trump supporters. With this video, Bundy appears to be deviating from the Trump message. “They come to the border, and they have a right—a legal right—to apply to come into this country,” he argued. “Each one of them should be considered individually.”

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