VICE Does America (2016) s01e01 Episode Script
The President & The Mad Rancher
1 [Engine starts.]
That thing sounds pretty good.
[Engine revs, console buzzing.]
Smooth, huh? So we're about to drive across the country, and not just across, but zig-zagging up and down.
Oh, yeah.
You got no problem with this thing.
- Yeah? It'll make it? - Absolutely.
What's the furthest you've driven it from here? Uh, maybe 200 miles? Okay.
All right.
That's all I need to know.
Well, sir.
Looks like you got yourself an RV.
Fantastic.
[Horn honking.]
[Chuckles.]
We just picked up our brand-new 1989 Jamboree RV, and we're just about to arrive back at the Vice office, and I'm gonna grab my two co-workers, Will Cooper Cool.
It's recording, okay.
and Martina De Alba Yo, we're about to be Winnebago warriors.
[Laughter.]
and show them around our digs for the next month - Ohh.
- Oh 'cause we're about to go on a great American road trip.
Everyone packed light, which I'm psyched about, because we're gonna have lots of room.
- Look, there's a bed there.
- And another there.
- There's two beds up here.
- Oh, that's cool.
And this turns into a bed as well.
An election year is the time when Americans feel the strongest about whatever political beliefs that they have.
[People shouting indistinctly.]
- Dump Trump! - Dump Trump! [Shouting continues.]
These are strange times in America.
We're in the middle of the most polarized election in our lifetime, so we've decided to hit the road and talk to real people about the most important issues in our country.
We're gonna zig-zag from L.
A.
to D.
C.
until we hit the ultimate seat of power the White House.
Cooper: Have you ever vacationed like this? No.
Never done it, man.
Have you ever vacationed like this? - No, I never camping before.
- Mm-hmm.
I don't know how it works.
We have a rule, all right? Every time we see a hitchhiker, we have to pick him up.
That's cool.
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.
- That's really cool.
- No matter what.
Have you seen "Texas Chainsaw Massacre"? Like, that's how that starts.
Are you guys scared? Are either of you scared of anything in particular? Not scared at all.
Going into the south with two brown men, you know, one is a Muslim, one is a Black man, an immigrant, you know, that's some dangerous They're gonna be like, "How do you three even know each other?" [Laughter.]
- You guys ready to roll? - Yeah.
[Laughter.]
Why a Winnebago? Why this as opposed to something else? I've always wanted to do a cross-country road trip.
My mom and dad did it when my brother was a little kid, before I was born.
It was a time when they got to see all these amazing things in the country and there wasn't necessarily a prejudice against Muslims, so, like, they didn't feel as scared doing it.
- It's here.
- Oh, this is it.
Right.
Straight.
No, straight, straight, straight, sorry.
I'm very good at directions.
[Laughs.]
I'm gonna be concerned about my English, and concerned that people won't understand what I'm trying to say.
We don't have a perception, in Europe, of "what's the real America?" You know, we only know through movies, but we don't really know what's going on.
I think the real America is something else, that I would like to know.
Cooper: I'd like to walk away from this trip with a definite sense of what this country is.
And once I figure out, you know, "what is America," maybe I can figure out who I am within that whole sphere.
We're here in San Fernando Valley.
In a minute, we're about to head across the country.
This trip is huge for us, and we wanted to start it off really, really big.
Who better to kick it off with than President Obama? - How are you? - What's up, Mr.
President? Good to meet you.
How you doing? - I'm doing pretty good.
- Pleasure to meet you, too.
You know, uh, I'm glad that you came here.
- Uh, is she with you guys? - Oh, yeah.
All right.
How are you? - Nice to meet you.
- Very nice to meet you, too.
- Mr.
President - Yep.
thank you so much for chilling in our RV.
I know you probably don't hang out in a lot of RVs these days.
It's part of the job.
[Laughter.]
So we're traveling across the country, going all through the United States.
I wanted to know, from you, since you've traveled across the country and done this, tell me what's up with that.
Well, first, you know, there's a lot of great folks from sea to shining sea.
And, you know, get a gun.
[Laughter.]
So you obviously look a lot like Barack Obama, but there's certain details, like, for example, you know, your ears or the mole that you have to modify a little but, but as soon as you start talking, you just seem exactly like Obama to me.
Like, what are you doing exactly when you're talking? Well, coming from Chicago, you know, I have a lot of the same, I think, accent that the president does naturally, and people told me back home.
My brother Lawrence, when I was 21 years old, said, "You look like this guy Barack I saw playing basketball up at the gym," and that's when it all started.
And, as time went on, and he became more of a presence, I started to, you know, pick up, like, the little, like his hand gestures.
You know, he does a lot of things like this, this, and like that, so, you know, it's just picking up, watching him, words he uses.
Like, instead of people, he'll always say, like, "Folks," you know, and he has a little thing with his S's where he's like You know, and so he kind of whistles, and, uh, look, you know, before he says something.
Let me be clear, you know, kind of thing.
It definitely adds to putting all the little pieces together to create the puzzle, and then when I go and I do my, you know, half-hour comedy shows, people really believe that I'm the president.
Do you think that politics are basically entertainment? Like, is it just like a pony show? Or, like, a comedy show? Like Yeah, I mean, a lot of politicians, at least some of the ones that I've crossed paths with, are just out there saying what they think will get the most supporters, whether they believe it or not.
- They're impersonators.
- Oh, yeah.
They're impersonating.
It's one of those things that it's just dividing, or divisive technique to keep people arguing back and forth.
You know, and most times I can meet a Republican, even though I don't identify as a Republican, we can get along fine.
And then once it comes up, what we are, then immediately it's like, "You're an enemy," and I've been attacked a couple times.
I got death threats.
People do that all the time.
I was telling jokes and you're gonna try telling me you're gonna kill me? You know, like, what's wrong with people? But I just hope that we can be the America that everyone wants us to be.
And we still have a lot of work to do, but we still are, in my opinion, one of the greatest countries in the world, and I'm proud to be an American.
Can I take this makeup off? [Laughter.]
Saeed: In the last eight years, having a Black president has polarized, you know, the two halves of the country even more.
Part of the reason we're out here is to find some of the common ground that can actually bring people together in this atmosphere.
Hopefully we can take some of Reggie's optimism and pay it forward.
So the plan, now, is we're all gonna pile into the RV and head east and see what's out there.
So we're in Death Valley, and it's 99 degrees outside.
Is it hot back here? - Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.
- It's hot as fuck, right? All right, so I think it's 'cause this vent was open, so I'm gonna close that and the A/C is on.
- Jesus Christ.
- Oh, my God.
[Laughs.]
Nobody's driving like a maniac.
So are we actually on the ranch? - We're about to - Approaching their property? Saeed: Since Obama took office, there's been a rise in anti-government groups who feel threatened by the perceived infringement on their rights by the federal government.
And one of the biggest proponents of this sentiment is Cliven Bundy.
We drove all night to get here, the We The People camp in Southern Nevada.
And we're just a stone's throw from the Bundy Ranch.
In 2014, Cliven Bundy, a Nevada rancher, led an armed standoff against the feds as they came to arrest him and confiscate his cattle over illegally grazing on public land.
A makeshift army of states rights protesters formed around Bundy against the federal government set on exercising their second-amendment rights to the fullest.
Get her done, cowboys.
Let's go get her done.
[Cheers and applause.]
This played out in a dynamic standoff, in which the government actually backed down against an army of citizens.
We're about to meet with a guy named Booda, who's Cliven Bundy's chief of security.
He's gonna show us around the property, and then take us to meet the man himself.
- Hey, how you doing? - Hey, what's up, guys? - How you guys doing today? - Abdullah.
I'm Booda.
Pleasure to meet you.
Nice to meet you.
- Hey, Will.
- Booda.
- Nice to meet you.
- Nice to meet you.
- Hi, Martina.
- Hi, I'm Booda.
Pleasure to meet you guys.
Welcome to the Bundy ranch.
How you lived in Nevada? Uh, I came to Nevada about a week before the standoff occurred.
I'm not anti-government.
Let's get that clear real quick.
I'm not anti-government.
I'm for limited government, uh, letting states take care of themselves now.
State sovereignty.
I'm sure, like, a lot of people came down during that standoff, but you were, I mean, one of probably only a few who, like, became part of the family, right? Uh, yeah.
When I first came out here, I, uh, introduced myself to Mr.
and Mrs.
Bundy, and said, "You need security, and I'm here to help you with that and only that.
" So I was in charge of the internal ranch security property, and, uh, I've been since day one.
So you just, like, you saw it on the news and it struck a chord with you and you were like Well, what got me was, uh, an associate of mine called me up at work one day and said, "Booda, have you seen what's going on with this rancher down in Nevada?" And I'm like, "No, I really don't have time to take a look.
" I was busy that day.
I said, "I'll check it out on a lunch break.
" Sure enough, on my lunch break, I checked on it and saw what was going on with the dogs being sicked on them.
The family being tasered and everything else.
It was just ridiculous.
And at that point in time, I said, "These people need some help," and I packed up and headed out.
Protecting innocent life is what's important for me, and I'm willing to be the buffer and catch a bullet if I have to.
You know, I might be on a limb here, but, religiously speaking, I think maybe I was brought out here to be a protector of life.
Where we at? This is where the rallying point was for all the patriots that came down here.
People were fed here, given directions on how they could help, and on the hill right up behind you was where all the cowboys were lined up, probably 50-75 cowboys were up there on mounted horseback, and Cliven Bundy's youngest son, Arden Bundy, took it upon himself to charge up that hill on his horse and plant that American flag up there, and that's when the crowd erupted into cheer, and a great feeling of pride came over everybody, seeing our flag planted up there.
God gave us a right to defend and protect ourselves.
The government met a force of people that were willing to shed blood for this country and what we're trying to gain back.
And when you have firearms at your side, which is our second-amendment right, that takes you to step back.
"Well, maybe we picked on the wrong people.
" What do you think the legacy is gonna be of the standoff that happened here? The legacy I want to leave behind here for my children is that this is a spot where Dad and his friends stood up and said, "We're tired of what you guys are doing to us, and we're getting sick of it.
" Actually, the person you really want to talk to about this, it'll be Mr.
Bundy.
What do you guys think about Cliven Bundy? He's a racist who once said that black people were better as slaves than they are today as regular people.
Um, he was aligned with a bunch of some of America's most notorious right-wing militia-type folks.
You know, he's a super, super right wing, libertarian nut job.
If I had a standoff with the police or the government, or you had a standoff with the police or the government - Yeah.
- talking about your rights - Yeah.
- they would shoot your ass.
The only reason this man is alive today is 'cause he's white.
[Chicken clucking.]
Booda: Let's go over here this way, guys.
I'll just go ahead and knock on the door and go ahead and shake hands and talk to him.
- Hey, Mr.
Bundy.
- Hello.
- Hello.
- How are you, Mr.
Bundy? - These are your guests here.
- My name's Abdullah.
- Glad to meet you.
- Nice to meet you.
- My name is Martina.
- And how are you? Hey, how's it going? Will.
- Will? - Pleasure to meet you.
- How you doing? - Welcome to my house.
- And how many kids do you have? - 14.
Saeed: Wow.
14.
And how long you guys been married? Long enough to have that many kids.
[Laughter.]
Tell them about that flag there.
Can you hold it up? - Maybe they can - This flag here, this comes from our faith.
This is the flag that we waved along with the American flag as we stood.
When you were sort of confronted by the federal government, what exactly happened? You know, we've had cattle here for about 140 years or so, and in like 1993-'94, the government started to say, "We own this land.
" And then I finally get to the point, I say, "Hell no.
I'm not gonna allow you to manage me out of my business.
" So I quit paying the grazing fees.
And the government comes and gets a lawsuit against me, saying, "You're trespassing on our land.
" And so what am I gonna do? Am I gonna just gonna give up and say, "I'm done"? Is my heritage done? Is this ranch totally done? And so they were basically just surrounding you in some sense? Like, how many people did they send out and how did you first detect that the federal government had agents here? I estimate that there was over 200 of them with military-type armor and weapons.
On the Bundy's side, they were several hundred We The People.
They came from all parts of the United States and they never was aggressive, they were just there.
But the militia did have a threat, like, 'cause they had arms? Uh, you know, there were some protection, and I gave them a lot of credit.
If the local government came to you and asked you to do the same exact things that the federal government did, would you would you would you concede? Would you do that? So I believe in state sovereignty and I believe in local government.
If the county government wanted to come and tax me for the resources that I was using, yes, I would pay.
Once you guys are public figures, basically every move you made was documented in some way.
Is there anything that you would alter about the way that America perceives you based on that media coverage? You know, they said I was racist, and, you know, I don't feel like I'm racist.
So that's the one thing that I know about this ranch.
Obviously, I know the standoff, and then I know the statements that you made.
It would be really helpful for me, as a black man, to hear what you intended.
I guess, because of my ignorance, I say the word Negro.
Negro, to me, didn't mean nothing bad.
Well, I think that one of the things that was almost more offensive about it wasn't necessarily the use of the term Negro, but it was the way that the idea was structured.
I think you said something to the effect of, you know, Negros were better during slavery times than they are today because they worked harder then and they don't work hard now.
You know, I'm a young African American man.
I've got a college degree, master's degree, both my parents are police officers.
My whole family works, and, you know, slavery time is like one of the most horrific, awful it's like a genocide, in my mind.
It's like the Holocaust for a Jew.
So to be like, "Hey, the Jews were better back in the Holocaust" is sort of like it's a big punch in the gut.
What he was saying was that a lot of people have traded one form of slavery for another form of slavery.
When you're hooked on the welfare system, it is a form of slavery, because it's very hard to get off of it once you're on it.
There's actually more white women on welfare than there are black people at all.
Well, then, that could be true, and, you know, I probably, uh, the media tried to get me to apologize and I never would apologize, but let me tell you, I would apologize to you, because I made it too general.
I didn't take into consideration you and your family.
Thank you so much, Mr.
Bundy, for such a candid conversation.
- Thank you.
- Thank you so much for sharing and giving us a good conversation.
- Thank you.
- I really appreciate it.
As an individual person, Mr.
Bundy was super hospitable and nice, but I feel like some of, like, the larger policies that he supports are actually detrimental to people, especially people of color.
Now we're about to go hang out with Booda a little bit more and we're gonna shoot off some guns.
Cooper: It was sort of surreal.
I was talking to Cliven Bundy about race relations in America.
He tried to apologize for some of the things that he said in the past, but, like, it's sort of a backhanded apology, right? Like, to apologize to me, but not to all black people.
He's this soft-spoken, hospitable old man, but he's also the leader of a movement.
There are thousands of people who listen to what he says, and they all have guns.
[Gunshot.]
[Extreme Music's "Knife and Stone" plays.]
Booda: A gun can be intimidating to a lot of people.
You just get in there and shoot it.
[Gunfire.]
You know what I mean? Don't be afraid of it.
It's just a gun.
I'm from Spain, and in Spain, we're not allowed to have a gun.
Why do you think I should have a gun to defend myself? Booda: I don't think you should have a gun, I'm saying that it's your right to have one.
If you want to have one, that's your choice.
The second amendment guarantees us this liberty and this right unalienable right to have these firearms and to protect ourselves should harm come our way.
And it's important that that amendment stays intact.
It seems like, in America, there's so much support for gun ownership that any candidate, Democrat or Republican, if they came out and were like, "I want to take away all the guns," that would be campaign suicide, right? Uh, there are a lot of senators that have that agenda for disarming people, but, you know, it ain't gonna happen.
You ain't gonna come and get the guns.
And not without meeting resistance, and if you think you're smart, okay, yeah, you might come and get the one that's on my body, but I can guarantee, for every one you see, there's three that you don't.
Okay, when you get your gun, you're gonna hold it just like this top thumb up here, bottom in there, and you ride them along the rail just like that, see it? Mm-hmm.
When you see your target, pull the trigger.
Let's see how you would do it.
Now, remember, keep both hands on it.
There you go.
Will looks good with a gun, man.
I don't know if it was 'cause he was raised by cops, but it looks like it belongs in his hand.
Yeah! I guess I'm a cowboy.
[Laughs.]
- Wow.
- The kid's a natural.
- Yeah.
Very good.
- That was sick.
- [Sighs.]
Shit.
- All right.
It almost hit me in the face.
You did hit the melon.
Did you notice that? Oh, shit! [Laughter.]
No.
Go ahead and put your ear muffs on.
- Everyone ready to run? - That's okay.
Booda: You just keep it nice and straight down there and look down it good, okay? Saeed: Yeah! Finger off the trigger, finger off the trigger.
- There you go.
- All right.
[Laughter.]
[Gunshot.]
[Gunshots.]
It's fun, but I'm against it totally.
Yeah, it doesn't make any fucking sense.
Why the fuck do I need a gun? Saeed: That's gangster as shit, Booda.
Yo, you were a hell of an instructor, man.
Booda: Hey, it was a pleasure having you guys out.
Dude.
Thanks so much, man.
De Alba: It didn't change my mind.
They basically showed me how crazy is American people with guns.
I don't think people in this country respect that these are weapons that kill people.
I mean, it's somehow, it was fun, because it's a lot of power in your hand, so you feel kind of a rush while you're doing it, and then I hated the fact that I enjoyed that.
It's a contradiction.
It's a contradiction.
Saeed: A few months after our visit to the ranch, the Bundy family made headlines again as two of Bundy's sons led an armed occupation of a federal wildlife refuge in Oregon.
One protestor was killed, and 14 more were arrested, including Booda.
Bundy was also arrested on his way to the protest on conspiracy and weapons charges relating to the 2014 standoff.
This is why I need the wall! I'm gonna portray Donald Trump for the misogynist pig that he is.
Women in porn really have all of the power.
Saeed: Yes.
Now this is porn, right here.
Man: We're still the West.
even if people don't agree with cannabis being legal, they don't want to stop other people from consuming it.
That thing sounds pretty good.
[Engine revs, console buzzing.]
Smooth, huh? So we're about to drive across the country, and not just across, but zig-zagging up and down.
Oh, yeah.
You got no problem with this thing.
- Yeah? It'll make it? - Absolutely.
What's the furthest you've driven it from here? Uh, maybe 200 miles? Okay.
All right.
That's all I need to know.
Well, sir.
Looks like you got yourself an RV.
Fantastic.
[Horn honking.]
[Chuckles.]
We just picked up our brand-new 1989 Jamboree RV, and we're just about to arrive back at the Vice office, and I'm gonna grab my two co-workers, Will Cooper Cool.
It's recording, okay.
and Martina De Alba Yo, we're about to be Winnebago warriors.
[Laughter.]
and show them around our digs for the next month - Ohh.
- Oh 'cause we're about to go on a great American road trip.
Everyone packed light, which I'm psyched about, because we're gonna have lots of room.
- Look, there's a bed there.
- And another there.
- There's two beds up here.
- Oh, that's cool.
And this turns into a bed as well.
An election year is the time when Americans feel the strongest about whatever political beliefs that they have.
[People shouting indistinctly.]
- Dump Trump! - Dump Trump! [Shouting continues.]
These are strange times in America.
We're in the middle of the most polarized election in our lifetime, so we've decided to hit the road and talk to real people about the most important issues in our country.
We're gonna zig-zag from L.
A.
to D.
C.
until we hit the ultimate seat of power the White House.
Cooper: Have you ever vacationed like this? No.
Never done it, man.
Have you ever vacationed like this? - No, I never camping before.
- Mm-hmm.
I don't know how it works.
We have a rule, all right? Every time we see a hitchhiker, we have to pick him up.
That's cool.
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.
- That's really cool.
- No matter what.
Have you seen "Texas Chainsaw Massacre"? Like, that's how that starts.
Are you guys scared? Are either of you scared of anything in particular? Not scared at all.
Going into the south with two brown men, you know, one is a Muslim, one is a Black man, an immigrant, you know, that's some dangerous They're gonna be like, "How do you three even know each other?" [Laughter.]
- You guys ready to roll? - Yeah.
[Laughter.]
Why a Winnebago? Why this as opposed to something else? I've always wanted to do a cross-country road trip.
My mom and dad did it when my brother was a little kid, before I was born.
It was a time when they got to see all these amazing things in the country and there wasn't necessarily a prejudice against Muslims, so, like, they didn't feel as scared doing it.
- It's here.
- Oh, this is it.
Right.
Straight.
No, straight, straight, straight, sorry.
I'm very good at directions.
[Laughs.]
I'm gonna be concerned about my English, and concerned that people won't understand what I'm trying to say.
We don't have a perception, in Europe, of "what's the real America?" You know, we only know through movies, but we don't really know what's going on.
I think the real America is something else, that I would like to know.
Cooper: I'd like to walk away from this trip with a definite sense of what this country is.
And once I figure out, you know, "what is America," maybe I can figure out who I am within that whole sphere.
We're here in San Fernando Valley.
In a minute, we're about to head across the country.
This trip is huge for us, and we wanted to start it off really, really big.
Who better to kick it off with than President Obama? - How are you? - What's up, Mr.
President? Good to meet you.
How you doing? - I'm doing pretty good.
- Pleasure to meet you, too.
You know, uh, I'm glad that you came here.
- Uh, is she with you guys? - Oh, yeah.
All right.
How are you? - Nice to meet you.
- Very nice to meet you, too.
- Mr.
President - Yep.
thank you so much for chilling in our RV.
I know you probably don't hang out in a lot of RVs these days.
It's part of the job.
[Laughter.]
So we're traveling across the country, going all through the United States.
I wanted to know, from you, since you've traveled across the country and done this, tell me what's up with that.
Well, first, you know, there's a lot of great folks from sea to shining sea.
And, you know, get a gun.
[Laughter.]
So you obviously look a lot like Barack Obama, but there's certain details, like, for example, you know, your ears or the mole that you have to modify a little but, but as soon as you start talking, you just seem exactly like Obama to me.
Like, what are you doing exactly when you're talking? Well, coming from Chicago, you know, I have a lot of the same, I think, accent that the president does naturally, and people told me back home.
My brother Lawrence, when I was 21 years old, said, "You look like this guy Barack I saw playing basketball up at the gym," and that's when it all started.
And, as time went on, and he became more of a presence, I started to, you know, pick up, like, the little, like his hand gestures.
You know, he does a lot of things like this, this, and like that, so, you know, it's just picking up, watching him, words he uses.
Like, instead of people, he'll always say, like, "Folks," you know, and he has a little thing with his S's where he's like You know, and so he kind of whistles, and, uh, look, you know, before he says something.
Let me be clear, you know, kind of thing.
It definitely adds to putting all the little pieces together to create the puzzle, and then when I go and I do my, you know, half-hour comedy shows, people really believe that I'm the president.
Do you think that politics are basically entertainment? Like, is it just like a pony show? Or, like, a comedy show? Like Yeah, I mean, a lot of politicians, at least some of the ones that I've crossed paths with, are just out there saying what they think will get the most supporters, whether they believe it or not.
- They're impersonators.
- Oh, yeah.
They're impersonating.
It's one of those things that it's just dividing, or divisive technique to keep people arguing back and forth.
You know, and most times I can meet a Republican, even though I don't identify as a Republican, we can get along fine.
And then once it comes up, what we are, then immediately it's like, "You're an enemy," and I've been attacked a couple times.
I got death threats.
People do that all the time.
I was telling jokes and you're gonna try telling me you're gonna kill me? You know, like, what's wrong with people? But I just hope that we can be the America that everyone wants us to be.
And we still have a lot of work to do, but we still are, in my opinion, one of the greatest countries in the world, and I'm proud to be an American.
Can I take this makeup off? [Laughter.]
Saeed: In the last eight years, having a Black president has polarized, you know, the two halves of the country even more.
Part of the reason we're out here is to find some of the common ground that can actually bring people together in this atmosphere.
Hopefully we can take some of Reggie's optimism and pay it forward.
So the plan, now, is we're all gonna pile into the RV and head east and see what's out there.
So we're in Death Valley, and it's 99 degrees outside.
Is it hot back here? - Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.
- It's hot as fuck, right? All right, so I think it's 'cause this vent was open, so I'm gonna close that and the A/C is on.
- Jesus Christ.
- Oh, my God.
[Laughs.]
Nobody's driving like a maniac.
So are we actually on the ranch? - We're about to - Approaching their property? Saeed: Since Obama took office, there's been a rise in anti-government groups who feel threatened by the perceived infringement on their rights by the federal government.
And one of the biggest proponents of this sentiment is Cliven Bundy.
We drove all night to get here, the We The People camp in Southern Nevada.
And we're just a stone's throw from the Bundy Ranch.
In 2014, Cliven Bundy, a Nevada rancher, led an armed standoff against the feds as they came to arrest him and confiscate his cattle over illegally grazing on public land.
A makeshift army of states rights protesters formed around Bundy against the federal government set on exercising their second-amendment rights to the fullest.
Get her done, cowboys.
Let's go get her done.
[Cheers and applause.]
This played out in a dynamic standoff, in which the government actually backed down against an army of citizens.
We're about to meet with a guy named Booda, who's Cliven Bundy's chief of security.
He's gonna show us around the property, and then take us to meet the man himself.
- Hey, how you doing? - Hey, what's up, guys? - How you guys doing today? - Abdullah.
I'm Booda.
Pleasure to meet you.
Nice to meet you.
- Hey, Will.
- Booda.
- Nice to meet you.
- Nice to meet you.
- Hi, Martina.
- Hi, I'm Booda.
Pleasure to meet you guys.
Welcome to the Bundy ranch.
How you lived in Nevada? Uh, I came to Nevada about a week before the standoff occurred.
I'm not anti-government.
Let's get that clear real quick.
I'm not anti-government.
I'm for limited government, uh, letting states take care of themselves now.
State sovereignty.
I'm sure, like, a lot of people came down during that standoff, but you were, I mean, one of probably only a few who, like, became part of the family, right? Uh, yeah.
When I first came out here, I, uh, introduced myself to Mr.
and Mrs.
Bundy, and said, "You need security, and I'm here to help you with that and only that.
" So I was in charge of the internal ranch security property, and, uh, I've been since day one.
So you just, like, you saw it on the news and it struck a chord with you and you were like Well, what got me was, uh, an associate of mine called me up at work one day and said, "Booda, have you seen what's going on with this rancher down in Nevada?" And I'm like, "No, I really don't have time to take a look.
" I was busy that day.
I said, "I'll check it out on a lunch break.
" Sure enough, on my lunch break, I checked on it and saw what was going on with the dogs being sicked on them.
The family being tasered and everything else.
It was just ridiculous.
And at that point in time, I said, "These people need some help," and I packed up and headed out.
Protecting innocent life is what's important for me, and I'm willing to be the buffer and catch a bullet if I have to.
You know, I might be on a limb here, but, religiously speaking, I think maybe I was brought out here to be a protector of life.
Where we at? This is where the rallying point was for all the patriots that came down here.
People were fed here, given directions on how they could help, and on the hill right up behind you was where all the cowboys were lined up, probably 50-75 cowboys were up there on mounted horseback, and Cliven Bundy's youngest son, Arden Bundy, took it upon himself to charge up that hill on his horse and plant that American flag up there, and that's when the crowd erupted into cheer, and a great feeling of pride came over everybody, seeing our flag planted up there.
God gave us a right to defend and protect ourselves.
The government met a force of people that were willing to shed blood for this country and what we're trying to gain back.
And when you have firearms at your side, which is our second-amendment right, that takes you to step back.
"Well, maybe we picked on the wrong people.
" What do you think the legacy is gonna be of the standoff that happened here? The legacy I want to leave behind here for my children is that this is a spot where Dad and his friends stood up and said, "We're tired of what you guys are doing to us, and we're getting sick of it.
" Actually, the person you really want to talk to about this, it'll be Mr.
Bundy.
What do you guys think about Cliven Bundy? He's a racist who once said that black people were better as slaves than they are today as regular people.
Um, he was aligned with a bunch of some of America's most notorious right-wing militia-type folks.
You know, he's a super, super right wing, libertarian nut job.
If I had a standoff with the police or the government, or you had a standoff with the police or the government - Yeah.
- talking about your rights - Yeah.
- they would shoot your ass.
The only reason this man is alive today is 'cause he's white.
[Chicken clucking.]
Booda: Let's go over here this way, guys.
I'll just go ahead and knock on the door and go ahead and shake hands and talk to him.
- Hey, Mr.
Bundy.
- Hello.
- Hello.
- How are you, Mr.
Bundy? - These are your guests here.
- My name's Abdullah.
- Glad to meet you.
- Nice to meet you.
- My name is Martina.
- And how are you? Hey, how's it going? Will.
- Will? - Pleasure to meet you.
- How you doing? - Welcome to my house.
- And how many kids do you have? - 14.
Saeed: Wow.
14.
And how long you guys been married? Long enough to have that many kids.
[Laughter.]
Tell them about that flag there.
Can you hold it up? - Maybe they can - This flag here, this comes from our faith.
This is the flag that we waved along with the American flag as we stood.
When you were sort of confronted by the federal government, what exactly happened? You know, we've had cattle here for about 140 years or so, and in like 1993-'94, the government started to say, "We own this land.
" And then I finally get to the point, I say, "Hell no.
I'm not gonna allow you to manage me out of my business.
" So I quit paying the grazing fees.
And the government comes and gets a lawsuit against me, saying, "You're trespassing on our land.
" And so what am I gonna do? Am I gonna just gonna give up and say, "I'm done"? Is my heritage done? Is this ranch totally done? And so they were basically just surrounding you in some sense? Like, how many people did they send out and how did you first detect that the federal government had agents here? I estimate that there was over 200 of them with military-type armor and weapons.
On the Bundy's side, they were several hundred We The People.
They came from all parts of the United States and they never was aggressive, they were just there.
But the militia did have a threat, like, 'cause they had arms? Uh, you know, there were some protection, and I gave them a lot of credit.
If the local government came to you and asked you to do the same exact things that the federal government did, would you would you would you concede? Would you do that? So I believe in state sovereignty and I believe in local government.
If the county government wanted to come and tax me for the resources that I was using, yes, I would pay.
Once you guys are public figures, basically every move you made was documented in some way.
Is there anything that you would alter about the way that America perceives you based on that media coverage? You know, they said I was racist, and, you know, I don't feel like I'm racist.
So that's the one thing that I know about this ranch.
Obviously, I know the standoff, and then I know the statements that you made.
It would be really helpful for me, as a black man, to hear what you intended.
I guess, because of my ignorance, I say the word Negro.
Negro, to me, didn't mean nothing bad.
Well, I think that one of the things that was almost more offensive about it wasn't necessarily the use of the term Negro, but it was the way that the idea was structured.
I think you said something to the effect of, you know, Negros were better during slavery times than they are today because they worked harder then and they don't work hard now.
You know, I'm a young African American man.
I've got a college degree, master's degree, both my parents are police officers.
My whole family works, and, you know, slavery time is like one of the most horrific, awful it's like a genocide, in my mind.
It's like the Holocaust for a Jew.
So to be like, "Hey, the Jews were better back in the Holocaust" is sort of like it's a big punch in the gut.
What he was saying was that a lot of people have traded one form of slavery for another form of slavery.
When you're hooked on the welfare system, it is a form of slavery, because it's very hard to get off of it once you're on it.
There's actually more white women on welfare than there are black people at all.
Well, then, that could be true, and, you know, I probably, uh, the media tried to get me to apologize and I never would apologize, but let me tell you, I would apologize to you, because I made it too general.
I didn't take into consideration you and your family.
Thank you so much, Mr.
Bundy, for such a candid conversation.
- Thank you.
- Thank you so much for sharing and giving us a good conversation.
- Thank you.
- I really appreciate it.
As an individual person, Mr.
Bundy was super hospitable and nice, but I feel like some of, like, the larger policies that he supports are actually detrimental to people, especially people of color.
Now we're about to go hang out with Booda a little bit more and we're gonna shoot off some guns.
Cooper: It was sort of surreal.
I was talking to Cliven Bundy about race relations in America.
He tried to apologize for some of the things that he said in the past, but, like, it's sort of a backhanded apology, right? Like, to apologize to me, but not to all black people.
He's this soft-spoken, hospitable old man, but he's also the leader of a movement.
There are thousands of people who listen to what he says, and they all have guns.
[Gunshot.]
[Extreme Music's "Knife and Stone" plays.]
Booda: A gun can be intimidating to a lot of people.
You just get in there and shoot it.
[Gunfire.]
You know what I mean? Don't be afraid of it.
It's just a gun.
I'm from Spain, and in Spain, we're not allowed to have a gun.
Why do you think I should have a gun to defend myself? Booda: I don't think you should have a gun, I'm saying that it's your right to have one.
If you want to have one, that's your choice.
The second amendment guarantees us this liberty and this right unalienable right to have these firearms and to protect ourselves should harm come our way.
And it's important that that amendment stays intact.
It seems like, in America, there's so much support for gun ownership that any candidate, Democrat or Republican, if they came out and were like, "I want to take away all the guns," that would be campaign suicide, right? Uh, there are a lot of senators that have that agenda for disarming people, but, you know, it ain't gonna happen.
You ain't gonna come and get the guns.
And not without meeting resistance, and if you think you're smart, okay, yeah, you might come and get the one that's on my body, but I can guarantee, for every one you see, there's three that you don't.
Okay, when you get your gun, you're gonna hold it just like this top thumb up here, bottom in there, and you ride them along the rail just like that, see it? Mm-hmm.
When you see your target, pull the trigger.
Let's see how you would do it.
Now, remember, keep both hands on it.
There you go.
Will looks good with a gun, man.
I don't know if it was 'cause he was raised by cops, but it looks like it belongs in his hand.
Yeah! I guess I'm a cowboy.
[Laughs.]
- Wow.
- The kid's a natural.
- Yeah.
Very good.
- That was sick.
- [Sighs.]
Shit.
- All right.
It almost hit me in the face.
You did hit the melon.
Did you notice that? Oh, shit! [Laughter.]
No.
Go ahead and put your ear muffs on.
- Everyone ready to run? - That's okay.
Booda: You just keep it nice and straight down there and look down it good, okay? Saeed: Yeah! Finger off the trigger, finger off the trigger.
- There you go.
- All right.
[Laughter.]
[Gunshot.]
[Gunshots.]
It's fun, but I'm against it totally.
Yeah, it doesn't make any fucking sense.
Why the fuck do I need a gun? Saeed: That's gangster as shit, Booda.
Yo, you were a hell of an instructor, man.
Booda: Hey, it was a pleasure having you guys out.
Dude.
Thanks so much, man.
De Alba: It didn't change my mind.
They basically showed me how crazy is American people with guns.
I don't think people in this country respect that these are weapons that kill people.
I mean, it's somehow, it was fun, because it's a lot of power in your hand, so you feel kind of a rush while you're doing it, and then I hated the fact that I enjoyed that.
It's a contradiction.
It's a contradiction.
Saeed: A few months after our visit to the ranch, the Bundy family made headlines again as two of Bundy's sons led an armed occupation of a federal wildlife refuge in Oregon.
One protestor was killed, and 14 more were arrested, including Booda.
Bundy was also arrested on his way to the protest on conspiracy and weapons charges relating to the 2014 standoff.
This is why I need the wall! I'm gonna portray Donald Trump for the misogynist pig that he is.
Women in porn really have all of the power.
Saeed: Yes.
Now this is porn, right here.
Man: We're still the West.
even if people don't agree with cannabis being legal, they don't want to stop other people from consuming it.