"Bundy no doubt is pining for the days, which he never actually experienced, when cattlemen could let their herds roam at will on public lands. That changed in 1934 when federal control of grazing was formalized under a law designed to prevent overuse and degradation of the range. The legislation was backed by ranchers – it was drafted by a rancher turned congressman – in part because it made it that much harder for newcomers to get into the business.

The law, the Taylor Grazing Act, gave existing ranchers permits allowing them to run their herds on federal land. In turn, ranchers paid user fees, which were lower than what most private landowners would have charged. Because those fees capture only a bit of the costs of the grazing program, it amounts to a taxpayer subsidy to ranchers of as much as $1 billion a year. Subsequent court rulings clearly established that the law didn’t grant ownership rights to ranchers who used federal land."

http://www.sacbee.com/2014/04/18/6335430/viewpoints-welfare-queen-in-a.html

Reid got it right. Its domestic terrorism. The same sort of brownshirt goon squad Putin is using in Eastern Ukraine.

Of course, the economic, legal and constitutional arguments are a smokescreen, what is really disturbing here is that we have national media outlets like Fox pandering to their followers by trying to paint this as some grand patriotic gesture, and glorifying the heavily armed militias as some kind of heroic Minuteman stand, and worse, egging them on to violence and sedition. Its just businessmen trying to get something for nothing and wrapping themselves in God and the flag to justify their theft.

Some people will do anything for a tax cut, and they'll crawl into bed with any criminal in order to sell their program.

Can you imagine if Bundy had been a black guy trying to keep the bank from repossessing his house, and if the local Black Panthers had shown up to back him up? Fox would have been calling for air strikes.