Cowboy State Politics

Margaret Byfield and Rep Hageman were the keynote speakers at WYGOP meeting held in Torrington over the weekend.  The topic of conversation was private property rights--something that we too often told isn't a concern in our state.  Harriet briefly discusses the Maude case in South Dakota and a couple in Wyoming.

Not that long ago, Josh Dorrell President of the Wyoming Business Council joined me in the studio.  There are a ton of projects that they are involved in across Wyoming--all of which involve your tax dollars.  There's lots of questions we should be asking: is that the proper roll of government; do these projects actually make money; do Wyoming Citizens even want to be involved in these projects?  We got to some of those.   You see their logo all over the place in our state.  This is a great discussion with the guy behind them.

Replay of Cowboy State Politics Live November 13

The Democrats started the so called government shutdown.  Despite what they claimed, none of it was about subsidies for Obamacare.  That's clear now that the Senate has passed a continuing resolution.  Though, the continuing resolution only funds the government through January 30.  We may very well have another shutdown in a couple of months. Rep Harriet Hageman joins me to discuss the shutdown and to give her take on what actually happened.  Also, because I couldn't resist, I asked her opinion of Mamdani's election in NY.

Why is the Cowboy State Daily doing the exact same thing as progressive organizations in Wyoming?  A recent opinion piece by Jackson Walker in the Cow Pie tries to determine who is in the Freedom Caucus and who isn't.  That's exactly what a website created by progressive group 'Better Wyoming' attempts to do. Better Wyoming is a left wing group run by Nate Martin, the husband of Democrat Rep Karlee Provenza.  Pick a liberal cause and they've probably advocated for it. While they are doing the same thing, really they only have the same goal--to discredit those representatives who are part of the Freedom Caucus.  In doing so, they only discredit themselves.

Over the last year, there's been a lot of controversy at the University of Wyoming.  The legislature ordered UW to eliminate its DEI program.  A dean filed a lawsuit over what he claims is was an improper demotion.  And, UW President Dr Ed Seidel has resigned. Dr Seidel sat down with me for a wide ranging discussion about school funding, successes and controversies during his administration.  We talked about the gigantic amount of money Wyoming Citizens pour into the school--half a billion every two years--free speech and UW being one of the top research schools in America.

A few weeks ago, Mark Meckler and Rick Green gave a presentation in Sheridan about the Convention of States.  For two hours they gave their sales pitch.  It sounded great, except there's a whole bunch they left out--criticism that might dissuade support.  With a little reading, it's obvious an convention is the last thing we need to do as a country. Two of the supporters of Convention of States Action--the organization Mark Meckler helped found--who appear on promotional materials have written articles that are completely the opposite of what the crowd in Sheridan was told.  In the end, it's obvious, no one should support a convention.

A majority of Americans get their news from social media.  That's not such a bad thing if you understand what you are getting and you check the sources--if there are any sources.  In the State of Wyoming there are a lot of pundits and columnists who post things that appear to be news but really aren't. A perfect example of this showed up for the weekend.  Nearly every piece of the post was provably false and yet it appeared to be genuine.  Of course, it's from a well-known source who happens to have a column on the Cow Pie.

Rod Miller can hear the sucking sound government subsidies make just as well as I can.  But, he still thinks that some of them are okay.  I think that it's not the government's job to pick winners are losers.  It's always the small business person that gets hurt when politicians start monkeying around in the market.  We didn't solve any problems but we had a wide ranging discussion on a whole bunch of things government gives your money to. 

The Cowboy State Politics traditional Halloween Story.  This year, a re-telling the the Tell Tale Heart by Edgar Allen Poe.

Replay of Cowboy State Politics Live.  An article in the Free Press claims that it is conservatives who are the new snowflakes and not the left.  There is a difference between capitalism and cancelling; and when you are in a position of public trust some of the rules are different.  After all, parents have a right to know who is spending 8 hours a day with their children.  That, and a bunch more.

After the brutal assassination of Charlie Kirk, Wyoming GOP Vice Chairman Bob Ferguson knew that he needed to do something.  Having been in finance for his entire career, he decided to set up a scholarship fund for Wyoming Turning Point USA students.  One unique point of his scholarship is that it will not only reach university-bound students, tech school students would also qualify.  It's called the Wyoming Faith and Freedom Fund.  He sat down with me to discuss the idea behind it and how it's going to work.

Cowboy State Politics has uncovered Sheridan "teacher," Josh Hanson's Bluesky account.  It is replete with exactly what he thinks should be done with conservatives.  He calls them fascists, of course.  In one case, he comes very close to threatening Wyoming legislators.  This is the same Josh Hanson that I reported on back in September. In another case of social media posting by teachers, Marie Hamilton of the Southeast Wyoming Sentinel joins me to discuss a Goshen County teacher who is also the spouse of the school superintendent--Stacy Kramer.  Her posts clearly violate the school district's social media policy.   Hanson's social media posts are available at https://cowboystatepolitics.com/Show-Content.html  Marie Hamilton's report is available here: https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1JTjexHySE/  

Laramie County Commissioner Gunnar Malm thinks that government should give your tax dollars to his political allies.  He doesn't come out and say that but it's exactly what he means by government picking winners and losers.  He wants winners.  Not kidding, he actually wrote that. Really, government shouldn't be advantaging one business over another--they don't get to choose which business succeeds and which one fails.  That's called socialism, pure and simple.

Sheridan Democrat Hollis Hackman claims in the Sheridan Press that Rep Pendergraft is going to hack away the Wyoming Department of Health Budget.  Had he bothered to do any research at all, his op-ed wouldn't have been completely wrong.  Surprising though it may be, a piece in Wyofile directly contradicts what Hackman is claiming.  

There are hundreds of millions of dollars worth of privately owned buildings in Wyoming that pay next to nothing in property taxes.  It's worse than that though, you paid for most of them through the Wyoming Community Development Authority.  Rebecca Bextel joins me to explain that in almost every Wyoming county, a Montana company owns and operates so-called affordable housing buildings.  And, it's almost all on your dime.

There have been several GOP events this past week.  All of them honored Charlie Kirk and all of them were very patriotic.  But that's not what the Wyoming media is leading you to believe.  One of them went completely ignored by the media and the state GOP Chairman.  The other two were characterized only by division.  Anyone who paid attention would have seen what was really going on.  But that's not their agenda. Agent 29 sings BOTH verses of the Star Spangled Banner at the Sheridan event; and Gabe Saint and the Wyoming Freedom Caucus honor the legacy of Charlie Kirk at another.

Monday, Trump issued a Presidential Proclamation changing the name of Columbus Day back to Columbus Day.  The breadth and scope of everything Biden changed in four years, is really incredible.  But why is this significant?  Why change it back?  Easy.  If the left can convince you that Columbus slaughtered a whole bunch of people, it's pretty easy to say that's how our country started.  Also, I completely forgot to celebrate the 950th episode of Cowboy State Politics.

Admit it or not, in education, Wyoming has a lot in common with California.  We like to claim that we're different but when you look at policies, Wyoming does many of the same things as the left coast.  Leslie Sawyer is the California Legislative Chair for Moms for Liberty.  She has been right in the middle of some of the high profile education fights in California.  In education, we aren't becoming California, in many ways, we are already there.

Kylie Wall is the Natrona County High School senior who has been having a disagreement with school administration.  After her Turning Point USA Club America chapter was approved, high school staff started harassing her.  He club posters were torn down among other things.  When the press started asking questions, the principal told Kylie she couldn't talk to the press in her free time.  An outrageous infringement of her rights.  Kylie joined me to talk about the entire situation.

Replay of Cowboy State Politics Live from October 9.  There's a deal in the Hamas War, Spying on members of Congress and Senator Cheri Steinmetz called in to talk about her trip to Israel

Yesterday it was revealed that Jack Smith's investigation spied on U.S. Senators.  In talking with Rep Hageman, it turns out that it wasn't just Senators; there was at least one member of the House who was surveilled.  Rep Hageman has her own thoughts about this.  We discussed that breaking news, the government shutdown and a few other items.

A shock poll says that 2/3 of Democrats view socialism more favorably than capitalism.  My friend Ovie Muntean lived through real communism and socialism in Romania.  He's going to be in Sheridan this weekend to attend our Reagan Day dinner and to tell Wyoming young people what socialism really looks like.

Conservatives have a really hard time understanding why Democrats and their less honest counterparts in the Republican Party can lie so easily.  It doesn't really have anything to do with what they're telling you at the moment.  It's that they are trying to get you to believe ALL lies.  The government shutdown is a perfect example: several democrats will swear that this isn't about illegal immigrants.  Why, when it so obviously is?  It's part of a larger strategy.

Replay of Cowboy State Politics Live October 2

Weston County Clerk Becky Hadlock single-handedly messed up the 2024 election in Weston County.  She tried to cover it up; made multiple conflicting statements to the media and maintained that she didn't do anything wrong.  Since then, she's been subpoenaed by a legislative committee investigating her actions.  True to form, she blew that off.  Last November I published an extensive episode about the entire affair.  I even interviewed Hadlock herself.

Senator Lummis weighed in on the Jimmy Kimmel controversy.  While she was referring to FCC licenses, her comments about the First Amendment were in-artful at best.  Susan Stubson too full advantage by penning a piece in the Cow Pie conveniently leaving out the whole FCC part of the quotation to score political points.

Reps Karlee Provenza and Mike Yin, both Democrats, held an event in Sheridan this week.  Both of them dropped by the studio to discuss what they are doing as well as a whole bunch of other topics.  We didn't agree on much of anything, but we were able to have a civil discussion--something we seem to be lacking right now.

A Teacher in Sheridan was caught calling all of us who mourn the death of Charlie Kirk a name--a not so flattering one.  Also the school board in Natrona County is protecting a male custodian in an elementary school who dresses as a woman.  They're not too worried about the kids in the school, it's the janitor.  Rep Jaime Lien joins the program to discuss the school board meeting where this was brought up.

Peter Cozzens is the author of new book Deadwood: Gold Guns and Greed in the American West.  It's a fascinating look into a town with a lot of Wyoming connections.  Wild Bill Hickok wasn't quite the celebrity in Deadwood we all think and Calamity Jane wasn't really the person all her pictures make her out to be.  It's a fascinating history read that feels more like a novel than anything.

The Wyoming Democrats and the WY media are  working overtime to portray conservatives, and specifically Charlie Kirk, as racist.  State Sen Rothfuss said that MAGA is "racist at is core."  Their charge is based on claims that aren't true at all.  In the case of Kirk, that claim is based on things that he said about Martin Luther King--things that are true.

Replay of Cowboy State Politics Live from September 18.

Gabe Saint, the President of Turning Point USA in Casper spoke at an event hosted by Liberty's Place for You.  He spoke for about an hour and covered a wide range of issues.  Coming a few days after Charlie Kirk's assassination, what he had to say was enlightening and uplifting.  Also, a special announcement that I have been dying to tell you about!!

All of us are in a battle of free speech.  The best way to counter vile and hateful speech is with more speech.  It's worth remembering when the University of Wyoming rescinded an invitation to an admitted domestic terrorist.  It's a good example of what not to do.  The question is what should all of us do instead?  Call a spade a spade.

Happy Birthday to Me!!  The Wyoming Democrats wasted no time calling Charlie Kirk a racist.  Provenza, who shouldn't be talking about violent rhetoric decided to denounce it.  And, Rothfuss showed his expertise in taking Charlie Kirk entirely out of context.  And, of course, the Cow Pie went right along with all of it.

U.S. Senator Cynthia Lummis joins the program to reflect on the life of Charlie Kirk, the September 11th attack and to share what's going on in the United States Senate.

Harriet recently visited Grand Teton National Park for an onsite committee meeting.  Not surprisingly, the federal government has problems federal permitting for projects on land that it owns.  We also discussed the Clinton era "roadless rule."  It's not a law but a rule that was adopted by the the U.S. Forest Service.  According to Harriet that is the reason for many forest fires and beetle kills in the west.  It's a great discussion.

Josh Dorrell is the CEO of the Wyoming Business Council.  I've long been an opponent of this agency because it's not the proper role of government to be monkeying around in the free-market.  Over it's existence, Wyoming taxpayers have dumped over half-a-billion dollars into it.  All the while Wyoming's GDP actually went down.  And, yes, I asked him about that.  Josh was kind enough to sit down and have a frank discussion about his agency and its proper place.

There is no such thing as affordable housing.  It always turns into a scheme to take your tax dollars.  The most recent example is a housing project in Jackson.  Millions of your dollars were spent to build a big building that private companies are benefiting from.  Rebecca Bextel joins me to discuss the Ford Broncos and Mercedes Benz's in the parking lot of this thing.

Replay - Cowboy State Politics Live September 4

All but 1 Wyoming school district did not give their staff the 8.5% raise promised by the legislature.  Most gave a salary increase far below that.  HB316 specifically says that teachers and staff get 8.5%, that only happened in 1 county.

Happy Marxist, Communist, Radical Domestic Terrorist Day!!  There's a lot more to Labor Day than just barbeques, fishing and having fun.  The reason you aren't working is because of Marxists!  

This week I got the chance to attend a fundraiser in Jackson.  It turns out there are some conservatives in Wyoming's only Democrat county.  Rep Andy Biggs, Scott Perry, Andy Harris and Eric Burlison were there to raise money for conservatives in congress.  They gave the audience an inside view of what it's like to buck the establishment.

Replay of Cowboy State Politics Live August 28.  Reaction to the Gail Symons podcast.  Eric Barlow has to resign his chairmanship and a federal judge in Wyoming has dismissed the UW sorority lawsuit because he's not a biologist and can't define what a woman is.  You can't make this stuff up!

Last Thursday during the Cowboy State Daily Morning Show, Gail Symons claimed that a reprehensible comment made years prior by Rep Steve Harshman about now Secretary of State Chuck Gray was, "Not Inaccurate."  The only reason she brought it up is she thought no one would remember.  That wasn't the only insult she leveled at conservatives.  Predictably, Morning Show host Jake Nichols didn't correct her or push back in any way.  **This episode contains inappropriate language.**  

Tomorrow on the program I'm going to play for you the reprehensible things Gail Symons said about Secretary of State Chuck Gray.  I'd say that Jake in the Cow Pie agreed with her but, frankly, he doesn't know what she's talking about.  After tomorrow he will.

The Wyoming GOP held their quarterly meeting in Hulett over the weekend.  As usual, I was left to do the job the Wyoming media refuses to do.  There were several resolutions presented but the one concerning federal lands caught my attention.

Sheridan County Commissioner Nick Siddle wants to raise your taxes.  Nick and the Transportation Committee  considered a 10 CENT raise to the gas tax at their last meeting.  WYDOT claims that they have a $400 million shortfall.  If that's true an increase in the gas tax wouldn't come anywhere close to closing it.

Replay - Cowboy State Politics Live Aug 21

Eric Barlow claims to be a conservative but his voting record shows that he is the farthest thing from that.  In the past 10 years, Barlow voted 81.88% of the time with the DEMOCRATS--hardly the work of a conservative.  His record on guns and on pro-life bills isn't any better.

Gabe Saint is the President of Turning Point USA at the University of Wyoming.  He's helped to change a lot of things that irritate a lot of us at our land grant university.  We talked about free speech, why Trump is losing support among young people and the Wyoming he wants to see in the future.