Bundy family has grazing rights with the state. The state of Nevada has a governor that should be pushing back against the feds. Some congressional reps are getting behind Bundy.
Land was always open for hundreds of years and only recently came under federal ‘administration’. The state of Nevada has granted grazing rights to ranchers for much longer and has sovereignty.
My first impression when I heard about this was that the Bundy family were encroaching on federal land but that’s not the case.
It is the case. Nevada cannot grant grazing access to public land that it doesn't own. The U.S. owns that land and has since 1848, which was 16 years before Nevada became a state. Nevada disclaimed all right and title to that land when it became a state.
There is a valid argument to be made that Nevada's disclaim was unconstitutional, but that is a separate discussion. Under the supreme law of the land right now, Nevada doesn't own the land.
I did read several places that Nevada Gov outspokenly opposed BLM attack on Bundy Ranch, stating ‘the Feds were over reaching and violating Constitutional rights’...
Here's the opposing argument. The federal government obtained title to the land in 1848, under the Treaty of Hidalgo Guadalupe, before the State of Nevada existed. As one of the conditions of Nevada Statehood, Nevada's constitution convention ceded all rights in public lands to the United States.
The U.S. allowed free grazing on federal public open range until 1934 and the passage of the Taylor Grazing Act. ("federal public")
Nevada has never been a sovereign entity. It was created out of federal property and never existed as a sovereign nation. The State of Nevada specifically recognizes federal Taylor Grazing Act allotments, agreements, and grazing fees under Nev. Rev. Stat. Ch. 568.