STATEMENT: CAP’s Matt Lee-Ashley on the Designation of the Organ Mountains-Desert Peaks as a National Monument

Washington, D.C. – Today, Matt Lee-Ashley, Senior Fellow at the Center for American Progress, released the following statement regarding President Barack Obama’s decision to protect the Organ Mountains-Desert Peaks in New Mexico as a new national monument:

President Obama is right to stand up for the New Mexico communities who have been working for more than a decade to conserve the history, heritage, and beauty of the Organ Mountains. With a handful of opponents of parks and public lands blocking nearly all land conservation bills in Congress, the president’s leadership is needed to ensure that this iconic landscape can be enjoyed by American families for generations to come. The Organ Mountains-Desert Peaks National Monument is a deserving addition to America’s proud system of parks and protected lands, and will provide another boost to our nation’s growing outdoor economy.

Related resources:

• RELEASE: Report Provides New Data on Congress’ Dismal Land Conservation Record
• Bundy’s Buddies: The Politicians and Pundits Who Share Cliven Bundy’s Radical Anti-Government Views and Want to Seize Federal Lands (CAP Action)
• Opinion: America Needs More National Parks (originally published in Politico)
• A Blueprint for Balance: Protecting America’s Public Lands for Future Generations Amid the Energy Boom

To speak with an expert on this topic, contact Anne Shoup at ashoup@americanprogress.org or 202.481.7146.

###