In the interviews that I've heard Bundy in, he matter of factly calls this area state land that has been usurped by the Feds over time. I'm late to this topic but the man's family has been ranching there for over a century and this BLM outfit has been in existence since ~1981. This land is what has been known as open/free range for a long time and it's clear that the Feds have been trying to put the squeeze on all ranchers in the area for years. And, part of the issue here is that it is in fact public land. If it was private then there would be no dispute. However, despite the fact that NV has allowed the Feds to take ~90% of the state over there should still have been a clause that allows for the random public to do whatever peaceful activities they want. Not to mention the grazing rights this family has earned through making use out of the land for all this time. Plus, initially the cover story was to protect the desert tortoise but that has turned out to be a joke as anyone knows that many military/bombing exercises have occurred in these arid areas w/ said allegedly endangered species for the last 60+ years. This whole scenario is a mess started by and for the betterment of big central government.