Ted Nugent Reveals His Decision on a Michigan Governor Run — and Unloads on the DNR

The rock legend shares his thoughts on politics, leadership, and Michigan’s future.

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TED NUGENT INTERVIEW:

Rock legend and outspoken conservative activist Ted Nugent says Michigan’s Department of Natural Resources (DNR) has lost touch with science and common sense, accusing state officials of targeting everyday hunters and “acting as enemies of the people.”

In a wide-ranging interview, Nugent — a Michigan native whose career spans more than five decades in music, television, and outdoor advocacy — didn’t hold back. He said the state’s natural resources officials are pushing policies that contradict the very principles of wildlife conservation.

“The Department of Natural Resources and the Natural Resource Commission in Michigan are the enemies of wildlife and they’re the enemies of We the People,” Nugent said. “We the people have perfected the science of sustained yield. We manage our property better than bureaucrats ever will.”

Nugent, 77, said his perspective comes from a lifetime of experience in the outdoors. Born and raised in Detroit, he began hunting with his family before his first birthday and has carried that passion through a career that’s combined music and conservation.

“I started hunting with my mom and dad and my brother Jeff in 1949,” Nugent said. “I was only ten months old. I didn’t get a deer that year,” he added with a laugh. “But I live with my radar on. I’ve been clean and sober for 77 years. I cherish the spirit of the wild — it’s who I am.”

For decades, Nugent has used his platform to promote hunting, land stewardship, and individual responsibility. His long-running television series Spirit of the Wild and his syndicated Ted Nugent Spirit Campfire show on Real America’s Voice have made him one of the nation’s most recognizable voices in outdoor culture.

But he says government agencies — including Michigan’s DNR — are undermining those very traditions.

“They’re ruining people’s lives with bad policies that are not based on science,” Nugent said. “People are quitting fishing because a grandpa got a ticket for helping his granddaughter cast a line on Grandparents’ Day. That’s happening nationwide.”

He said many of the state’s conservation decisions are made by bureaucrats “sitting behind computer screens” rather than by people who truly understand the land.

“The ultimate independent lifestyle is self-sufficiency — farming, ranching, hunting, fishing, and trapping,” Nugent said. “Those of us who walk the sacred ground know the balance of wildlife. The people in the DNR who sign off on computer screens don’t know anything, and they’re dictating policy to real hands-on conservationists.”

Nugent also criticized Michigan’s refusal to allow hunting of sandhill cranes — which he referred to as “ribeye in the sky.”

“The sandhill crane is a federal migratory game bird known as a ribeye in the sky,” he said. “To not be allowed to eat one in Michigan is immoral. The DNR that supports such a policy — they are immoral. My name is Ted Nugent. I kill sandhill cranes and I eat them. Arrest me, I dare you.”

He said the moral obligation of hunters is to manage and respect wildlife, not exploit it, and that government policies are undermining that principle.

“We have more deer, more bear, more mountain lions, more waterfowl than ever in recorded history because of private stewardship, not because of government control,” Nugent said. “We the people, not King George DNR, manage our land for the healthiest biodiversity in American history.”

The musician also claimed that federal agencies like the USDA and FDA are contributing to what he called “chemical warfare” on Americans through food policy — contrasting that with what he views as the purity of a hunter’s diet.

“The only real healthy diet is wild game,” he said. “With the FDA and USDA poisoning our food system, bureaucrats don’t like independent, self-sufficient people. That’s at the core of it — they want control.”

Asked about Michigan’s shrinking number of hunters and proposals to raise hunting license fees, Nugent said the state is moving in the wrong direction.

“We need to be encouraging people to get outdoors, not pricing them out,” he said. “There’s a runaway policy by the bureaucrats in game departments all across the country. They’ve forgotten what conservation means.”

Throughout the conversation, Nugent repeatedly returned to the theme of independence — a belief he says is under attack by government overreach.

“The only meaningful American is a whistleblower,” he said. “The worst American is blindly obedient. The best American is suspicious of all authority and demanding accountability.”

Despite decades of political speculation, Nugent confirmed he will not be running for governor of Michigan. But he said he is channeling his energy into supporting others who share his values.

“I’ve been prodded and beseeched to run,” Nugent said. “But I’m 77. I’m a Christian, constitutional, conservative conservationist. I’ll keep working with real Republicans like Tom Leonard, who’s running for governor of Michigan, and Winsome Sears in Virginia. We’ve got some real patriots, and that’s where I’m putting my energy.”

Still, he said he’s alarmed by Michigan’s political direction.

“Right now, politically, Michigan is like a suburb of San Francisco,” Nugent said. “And it’s embarrassing.”

For Nugent, the fight is not just about hunting or politics — it’s about preserving what he calls “the American spirit of self-reliance.”

“Quality air, soil, and water don’t come from the mall or Disneyland,” he said. “They come from people who walk the land, who manage wildlife, and who understand that the public ground is our ground.”

As he wrapped up, Nugent thanked his fans for staying engaged online and for “raising hell” on issues that matter to them.

“I’m a farmer, a rancher, a hunter, a fisherman, a trapper. I live down to earth,” Nugent said. “God gave us this precious life. If you’re not raising hell, you’re not a good American.”

Nugent’s show, Ted Nugent Spirit Campfire, airs on Real America’s Voice Saturdays at 3 p.m. Eastern and Sundays at 10 a.m. Eastern. He continues to tour and record music while living on his southern Michigan property, where he says the fight for freedom — and for wildlife — continues.

“I celebrate this American dream with all the piss and vinegar I possibly can every day,” Nugent said. “And I’m proud to share that with people like you who still dare to ask real questions.”