Ted Cruz appeals to armed rancher Bundy and his clan by promising no more federal land management

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One could forgive a viewer of Ted Cruz’s latest campaign video for thinking his target audience might share connections with a certain group of armed ranchers who have recently caused chaos and disorder in Burns, Oregon.

In the run-up to the Nevada and South Carolina primaries, presidential hopefuls have been focusing on specific races or groups of people in order to shore up support. Hillary Clinton has looked to Latino voters, Donald Trump targeted evangelicals and Bernie Sanders has spoken in support of African Americans - and now Ted Cruz has appealed to white men who own their own land.

Texan Senator Cruz said in the video that “85 per cent of Nevada is owned and regulated by the federal government”.

His video features a picture of a white rancher in a denim shirt and hat, leaning on a hay bale. The image might remind viewers of the rancher Bundy family, who traveled from Nevada to Oregon to protest against fellow ranchers' extended prison sentences for setting fire to federal land. The protest involved an armed occupation of a wildlife refuge in Burns which lasted weeks and prompted the FBI to get involved. One man was killed and leader Ammon Bundy was arrested.

“Donald Trump wants to keep big government in charge - that's ridiculous,” said Mr Cruz. ”You, the people of Nevada, not Washington bureaucrats, should be in charge of your own land. If you trust me with your vote, I will fight day and night to return full control of Nevada’s lands to its rightful owners, to its citizens. Count on it.”

Many rancher families, like the Bundys, and the Hammond family in Burns, Oregon have faced stand-offs with federal land management for decades and would likely be drawn to such a message of presidential support.

Mr Cruz is no stranger to controversy in his campaign videos. Past campaigns include unwittingly hiring adult film actress Amy Lindsay to call Marco Rubio “just a pretty face” and rallying anti-immigration sentiment by filming men and women dressed in business attire, jumping over sand dunes, to suggest Mexicans fleeing across the US border.

Ted Cruz has also created a recent history of lambasting the so-called Washington bureaucrats when he criticised a “culture of political correctness” and said military leaders should not have to provide gluten-free ready-made meals to members of the forces.

His attack on rival Donald Trump comes days after Mr Trump threatened to sue him for “lying” to Iowa citizens over their duty to go to the polls.