Blog Mirror: WYOMING: IT’S TIME TO TAKE OUR GOVERNMENT BACK

This was an item on Facebook.  I'm cross posting it here as it contains good information, some of which I heard recently from other sources as well. 

 WYOMING: IT’S TIME TO TAKE OUR GOVERNMENT BACK

I used to view the Wyoming Freedom Caucus as a gang of right-wing extremists hell-bent on destroying the lives of anyone who had an opinion, stood up for themselves, or rejected the invitation to indoctrination extended by the WFC.  However, it’s far more disgusting than that, and the truth is even more insulting to Wyomingites.  Once I started doing my own research, it became clear to me that these aren’t local patriots standing up for us; they are out-of-state interests wearing a ‘conservative’ mask to infiltrate our government and prey on the weak minds of those who ‘fall in line.’ 

For a group that never misses an opportunity to wrap itself in the Wyoming flag, the WFC is looking more like a subsidiary of a national corporation than a homegrown movement.  If they really believe in ‘Wyoming First,’ they’ve got a funny way of showing it – starting with the fact that their leadership, their strategy, and their bank accounts are all heavily imported from states that couldn’t be further from Wyoming values.

The WFC’s primary political tool is the word “RINO.”  It’s the ultimate intellectual shortcut.  In their world, a “RINO” isn’t someone who isn’t Republican; it’s any Republican who remembers they represent a district in Wyoming rather than a donor in Virginia.  They use the term exactly like the far left uses accusations of “racism”: as a weapon to shut down debate.  Strip away the party labels, and you’ll find that the Wyoming Freedom Caucus and the radical left actually operate from a surprisingly similar playbook.  When they can’t win an argument on its merits, they pivot to name-calling.  What I really want to know is: who the hell do they think they are to act as the gatekeepers of our party?  We don’t need out-of-state interests defining what a Wyoming Republican looks like.

The irony of the WFC’s “local control” rhetoric is staggering when you look at the biographies of its loudest voices.  Roughly 35% of their key associates weren’t even raised in Wyoming.  We are being lectured on “Wyoming values” by people who grew up in the exact urban centers they now claim to despise.  Want examples?

John Bear (Past Chair): Raised in Missouri, educated in Colorado.

Rachel Rodriguez-Williams (Chair): A native of Northern California who lived and worked in Marin County before moving to Cody.

Darin McCann: Raised in Upstate New York and lived in Florida several years.

Ann Lucas: Raise in Chicago, Illinois.

There’s a word for people who move to a place and immediately try to tear down its institutions to match their own imported grievances: colonizers.  Wyoming has always been a “Live and Let Live” state, but the WFC brings “Live My Way or You’re a Traitor” attitude that belongs in a DC boardroom, not a Wyoming ranch.

When it comes to out-of-state money in Wyoming politics, the “grassroots” narrative starts to look a bit like a corporate franchise.  While many candidates on both sides take small out-of-state individual donations, the real story of the 2024 election cycle was the coordinated spending by national organizations specifically targeting Wyoming House seats to install Wyoming Freedom Caucus members.

The following candidates were the primary beneficiaries of this out-of-state “investing,” particularly from the Virginia-based Make Liberty Win PAC and the State Freedom Caucus Network.  Make Liberty Win spent over $426,000 in Wyoming – largely on aggressive attack mailers against local, traditional Republicans.  

Ann Lucas (Cheyenne): Benefited from a massive spending campaign to unseat long-time Rep. Dan Zwonitzer.

Darin McCann (Rock Springs): Supported by out-of-state funds to defeat Speaker Pro Tempore Clark Stith.

Joel Guggenmos (Riverton): Heavily backed by national groups to unseat incumbent Ember Oakley.

Jayme Lien (Casper): Out-of-state money helped fuel her upset victory over House Appropriations member Tom Walters.

Gary Brown (Cheyenne): Received significant support from national PACs to defeat incumbent Bill Henderson.

Steve Johnson (Cheyenne): A Freedom Caucus newcomer who won his seat with the help of national ideological group backing.

Joe Webb (Lyman): Won his primary with the assistance of coordinated out-of-state messaging.

Paul Hoeft (Cody): Benefited from the national network’s effort to unseat traditionalist David Northrop.

Robert Wharff (Evanston): Reclaimed a seat with the help of PACs focusing on unseating more moderate incumbents. 

According to 2024 campaign finance filings, the following candidates also received Make Liberty Win support: Abby Angelos, John Bear, Chip Neiman, Chris Knapp, Ken Pendergraft, Scott Smith, Tomi Strock, Jeremy Haroldson.

I’ll say it again; the sheer volume of this money is what makes the WFC’s “local control” rhetoric so ironic.  For example, in the 2024 primary, out-of-state PACs often outspent the actual candidates’ own local fundraising.  Virginia-based Make Liberty Win spent more in a single Wyoming primary cycle than most of these candidates could raise from their actual neighbors in a decade.  Let that sink in!

It’s a strategic takeover: national groups realize that for the price of a single mid-tier Congressional race, they can buy an entire State House in Wyoming.  Do you think they really care about local issues?  Neither do I.

We cannot allow our state’s identity to be sold to the highest bidder in Virginia.  When you sell your soul to the devil, there is no turning back.  It is time to take our government back from the importers and return it to the people who actually call Wyoming home.