Republican Congresswoman Marilyn Musgrave visited the other side of the political fence Sunday to voice her opposition to the Army’s planned expansion of the Piñon Canyon Maneuver Site.
It was the first time the conservative representative from Fort Morgan had stepped inside the state Democratic Party’s headquarters, but she was resolute in defending the private property rights of residents in southeastern Colorado.
“When we stand up for folks in southeastern Colorado, we are really standing up for private property rights,” Musgrave told the 30 or so people attending the forum put on by the Progressive Democrats of Colorado. “I will use everything at my disposal to fight this, and I’m glad that we’re in this fight together.”
Musgrave joined Rep. John Salazar, D-Colo., to pen an amendment to a military construction appropriations bill that prohibits spending money to expand the 235,000-acre Army training site north of Trinidad.
The Army has said it wants to expand the site by 414,000 acres to train an additional 10,000 troops coming to Fort Carson and for future needs.
Musgrave expressed her concern that the expansion would not be the economic boon to the region that the Army has promised, and that it would damage the environment and the area’s historical treasures.
She also joined with other opponents of the expansion in fearing that the Army wants much more land, in the neighborhood of 2.5 million acres.
A version of the bill is expected to reach the Senate this year, and Colorado’s senators have not come out strongly against the expansion.
The partisan group Sunday was particularly disappointed with Sen. Ken Salazar, D-Colo., for his lack of urgency in opposing the Army move, although Salazar has said he would not support the Army using eminent domain to take the land.
Rancher Jack Dishong thanked Musgrave.
“She’s up against a lot of political opposition, and she should get credit for picking up a cause like that, even if it only wins her the hearts of a lot of ranchers,” he said.
Democratic state Rep. Wes Mc Kinley, a rancher from Walsh, also attended and discussed the state law he sponsored that revoked the Army’s right to take the land through eminent domain. But he said more needs to be done to ensure Piñon Canyon is protected.
“We need to fight for our laws,” he said. “For example, what good is a speed limit law without speeding enforcement?”
Adrienne Anderson with the Rocky Mountain Peace and Justice Center also praised Musgrave.
“I give her a tremendous amount of credit for being here for this,” Anderson said.
Staff writer Manny Gonzales can be reached at 303-954-1537 or mgonzales@denverpost.com.
