Let’s list things that are exasperating about Congress. The lack of bipartisanship. The years it can take to do anything. And more.

This month Oregon Congressman Cliff Bentz, R-Ontario, reminded people on X, formerly Twitter, about a move he made to block certain protections for the Owyhee Canyonlands.

Some will find that exasperating. It’s not, though, completely different from what Oregon Democratic Sens. Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley have been advocating. There is room for bipartisanship. But we bet you can guess how this story ends.

Bentz had brought forward in the House an amendment aimed at blocking the president from using the Antiquities Act to designate a national monument in Malheur County. What the amendment does is prohibit the Department of the Interior from using money to work on it.

The Owyhee Canyonlands is a spectacularly beautiful area in Eastern Oregon. It’s millions of acres of a relatively undisturbed wild place. Some call it Oregon’s Grand Canyon, though the Owyhee’s majesty is all its own. In the allotment of days you have left, go see it.

Just before President Obama left office, there was a push for him to use the Antiquities Act to designate the area as a national monument. He did not. There’s been a push for President Biden to do it.

Bentz laid out his arguments on the House floor about why he didn’t think that was a good idea.

“Back in 2015, a small group of mostly urban activists funded by recreational sportswear companies tried to convince the Obama administration that it should use the Antiquities Act to abruptly impose a national monument designation on 2.5 million acres of the 6.3 million acres making up Malheur County,” he said.

Of course, there’s nothing wrong with being an urban activist or a recreational sportswear company and making the case for a national monument. It’s allowed.

Bentz pointed out stretches of the Owyhee River are already protected with a wild and scenic river designation. “We don’t need a monument stacked on top of those previous designations,” he said.

Wyden and Merkley have been working for years on a bill to enhance protections for the Owyhee Canyonlands. The discussions have included ranchers, conservationists, county commissioners, business owners, the Burns Paiute Tribe and more. As Bentz pointed out, Wyden and Merkley have their bill. It’s ready to go.

The bill would put about 1.1 million acres in the Owyhee Canyonlands under the protection of wilderness and do a similar thing for about 15 miles of the Owyhee River. It has built in protections for ranchers and lands for the Burns Paiute tribe.

Wyden and Merkley have told us they believe the best path forward is not for a national monument designation. Instead, they would like their bill to pass Congress and get signed by the president. A national monument designation doesn’t accomplish everything the bill does.

Bentz does want modifications to Wyden’s and Merkley’s bill. He has said in the past he has “25” problems with the bill and was working on his own version. We reached out to his staff on Thursday for more details and they weren’t able to respond by our deadline.

What’s exasperating is the Owyhee Canyonlands deserve more protection. There seems to be room for agreement. And it sure seems like it is going to be more years before Congress anything gets done about it.