NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — A Tennessee lawmaker is voicing support for the cause of armed anti-government protesters who took over a remote national wildlife refuge in Oregon.
Republican state Rep. Andy Holt of Dresden took to Twitter on Monday to ask the protesters where he could send support for their effort. Holt later deleted the tweet but went on to debate the matter in subsequent posts.
Holt said in a phone interview with The Associated Press that while he doesn't agree with the protesters' tactics, he supports the goal of getting what he called the "onerous, tyrannical federal government" to turn over public land to the western states.
Holt has faced his own legal fight with the federal government over allegations of environmental violations at his northwestern Tennessee hog farm.