Trump orders expansion of federal lands open to hunters and anglers

By Sandra Rhodes (/journals/sandra-rhodes)

Public lands should be available to the public.

That’s the sentiment of President Donald Trump who announced executive orders to make these lands more available for hunting and fishing restrictions.

“We believe that public lands belong to the American people and to the public, and hunters, fishers, and outdoorsmen should be able to access them,” Trump told more than 100 hunters, anglers and outdoor industry officials for a dinner in the Rose Garden Thursday.

One order states Interior Secretary Doug Burgum expand the amount of federal land available to hunters and fishers, which builds on the administration’s order August that opened up more than 92 million acres of federal land across 32 states.

Trump also spoke of how he rolled back prohibiting the use of traditional lead ammunition and tackle that happened during former President Joe Biden’s era.

“Lead ammunition was a problem, huh? Is it better than other ammunition? I assume, huh? That’s pretty good,” Trump said. “I don’t know what the hell that means, but I know one thing: you wanted it. You wanted it, and I’m here for you.”

Modernizing federal fishery management was part of the second order. This eases restrictions on American boaters and anglers as well as expands fishing seasons and quotas.

The president talked of his 2020 Great American Outdoors Act, which funded billions of dollars to relieve a maintenance backlog at national parks and provided millions for the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF).

He said a “2.0” of that legislation would be coming in the “very near future.”