After the Senate parliamentarian blocked his plan to sell public lands last week, Utah Senator Mike Lee has officially withdrawn the entire controversial provision from the national budget reconciliation bill.
Lee had said he’d attempt to limit the rejected language in an attempt to resubmit for inclusion to the bill, but late on June 28, the Senate Energy and Natural Resources chair announced the removal of the entire provision.
The senator cited the inability to secure “clear, enforceable safeguards” to limit sales to “American families—not China, not BlackRock, and not any foreign interests,” but critics said the proposal did not have strong support in Congress.
Lee’s Republican colleagues from western states opposed the unpopular language—five Republican representatives had pledged to vote against the entire bill if it included the sale of public lands.
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