Sidney Longwell, a devoted family man and entrepreneur in the finest tradition of the American Frontier, passed away last month at age 81. A fighter to the last, he died after 38 years of waiting for justice in his lawsuit against the federal government.

It is hard to comprehend the brute force of the federal government until it has been turned against you personally, as it had been against Sidney. As an attorney for people like him, I see that force being used against good men and women every day.

Federal agencies have practically limitless resources to fight court battles, in both money and manpower. They have no competition, no shareholders to placate, and no one person who can be held personally responsible for their malfeasance. They also have the cruelest weapon of all — time.

Sidney purchased a Montana oil and gas lease from the federal government in 1982, passed a decade’s worth of rigorous environmental and archaeological reviews, and was all set to develop the land when government suspended his lease in 1993. He spent 38 years fighting a David-and-Goliath battle to use the leased mineral rights — a battle I’m still fighting as an attorney for his family.

Sidney’s passing reminds me that time really is the most devastating weapon the government has in its arsenal. We can give our clients resources, expertise, and a team of people to fight on their behalf, but sometimes they can’t outlast Uncle Sam. //

A favorable court ruling in 2016 seemed to promise a resolution. But, given 21 days to come up with a schedule to act, the government dug in its heels instead, abruptly cancelling the lease. Incredibly, the government’s lawyers justified the decision by inventing a procedural defect that contradicted what agency officials had told Sidney for 30 years.

Sidney’s case is just one of many examples of federal agencies weaponizing bureaucratic delay against American citizens. Rather than denying an application or permit that can be appealed, they simply refuse to finish processing the permit, leaving people like Sidney trapped. All the agency needs to do is wait for the person to run out of money or die. //

What happened to Sidney Longwell is a grave injustice, and one that is becoming too common. Another of my clients, Monte Ray — also in his 80s — is still awaiting a decision on mineral patents he applied for in 1991. Another client: small, family-owned, Colorado oil company WillSource Enterprise, has been fighting the federal government’s delay tactics in processing their permits since 1995.

More than ever, Americans are being governed, not by laws, but by regulations. These regulations are created and enforced by countless unelected and unaccountable officials who staff government agencies. //

em •

Do these unelected men and women who oversee federal agencies have too much power?

When Judge Brett Kavanaugh was a circuit court judge, he wrote;

"The independent agencies collectively constitute, in effect, a headless fourth branch of the U.S. Government. They exercise enormous power over the economic and social life of the United States."

Because of their massive power and the absence of Presidential supervision and direction, independent agencies pose a significant threat to individual liberty and to the constitutional system of separation of powers and checks and balances."

Vito em • 3 hours ago

Too much power. Too much staff. Too much money. Not enough meaningful work.

A poisonous combination.

While I'm Here... • 5 hours ago

Government bureaucracies are full of petty, amoral people who live for their sadistic games of Calvinball.
Other countries are far more open about their bribery culture, and I think that's an element which we often forget to include, when we talk about government harassment. I think they usually end up getting paid off.

1942Larry • 44 minutes ago

Every bill Congress passes grants the bureaucrats the authority to write regulations as necessary to implement it. In other words, Congress says bureaucrats can add to the bill as necessary to make up for anything we were too careless to include. That is truly crazy and lazy.