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<title>You Still Here? Monday, August 12, 2024 | Cowboy State Daily</title>

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You Still Here? Monday, August 12, 2024

Lubnau head 2

Tom Lubnau

Opinion

CSD Columnists

Last week, I commented on the ABC ("Anyone But Chuck") approach to campaigning for U.S. Congress. I said Steve Friess's argument is "hold your nose and vote for me." That phrase was, perhaps, a little inflammatory.

Let me clarify.  What I meant was that if you stay wedded to your particular candidate, the vote will be spread out, and we will elect a U.S. Representative who receives less than 20% of the vote — likely Chuck Gray.

Chuck Gray's approach to politics is akin to a yapping Chihuahua, making lots of noise and getting headlines, but getting little done. 

Most concerning is Gray dumping all of Wyoming voters’ election data to an agency of the federal government whose use is unrestricted.  Being the first state to turn over the data is not a feather in our state’s cap, when 19 courts have ruled that the data does not have to be disclosed to the bureaucrats.  No court has ruled it has to be turned over.

Our privacy was sacrificed when it did not have to be.

We should be voting for a good candidate, not running away from a weak one.

I had a personal favorite, but things changed when many of my friends endorsed Steve Friess for U.S. House last week.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"}],"text":"So I arranged a conversation with Friess."}]

After that conversation, a lot of the misconceptions I had are gone.

First, he's not a billionaire. Steve can afford to live comfortably, but his candidate disclosures show he's worth $25 million. That's a lot of money, but he's not a billionaire by any stretch of the imagination. 

His father gave away $500 million to charity during his lifetime and believed his children should know the value of a dollar. 

He drives a 2020 Yukon to his campaign events. He ranches cattle, knows how to run a backhoe, and knows how to get his hands dirty.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"}],"text":"He raised four kids in Wyoming."}]

Understanding the need to build a future for your children is a skill only parenthood brings. Steve cares about Wyoming and its future. 

He could have chosen anywhere in the world to live. He chose Wyoming. 

I was pretty direct in my questioning of him. I told him what I heard was that he had ideas of his own and didn't much care what my friends and neighbors thought. 

Steve was genuinely hurt by that statement. He told me he wants nothing more than to listen to the people of Wyoming and represent them to the best of his ability. I believe him. 

We chatted about some pretty heavy issues. 

He was engaging, showed curiosity, and asked what I thought. And then he did something special: he listened. He asked insightful questions. And when he didn't know the answer to one of my questions, he told me the truth — that he'd have to think about it.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"}],"text":"The interaction was refreshing. "}]

That said, there are a few other candidates in the race who would serve well. People I know and like, who would make a great U.S. Representative.

So why, at this late date, am I endorsing Steve Friess? 

Wyoming has one representative in Congress — one out of 435. To make an impact as the lone representative from Wyoming, you have to punch above your weight. 

Friess, through his work with his father and others, has a lifetime of connections, friendships, and acquaintances that will open doors for him that rookie representatives spend years trying to crack. 

I don't think Wyoming has time for on-the-job training in Congress. We need someone who will hit the ground running. 

Friess has known Energy Secretary Chris Wright for many years, has had a number of conversations with Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum, and met briefly with EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin.

His contact list — I almost dated myself by writing "rolodex" — is a who's who of congressional leaders. He's almost embarrassed to mention all the names he knows, but I asked. 

I came away from the conversation confident that Steve Friess is the person for the job. Not because he's the one with the best chance to beat Chuck Gray, but because he's the one who will do the best job representing my family in Congress. 

I make this endorsement knowing there are other great candidates in the race — some of them friends — but at this time and in this place, Steve Friess deserves your serious consideration.

Tom Lubnau served in the Wyoming Legislature from 2004 to 2015 and is a former Speaker of the House. He can be reached at: 

<title>Tom Lubnau: Why You Should Consider Steve Friess For U.S. House | Cowboy State Daily</title>

Columnist Tom Lubnau writes, "Chuck Gray's approach to politics is akin to a yapping Chihuahua, making lots of noise and getting headlines, but getting little done.  Most concerning is Gray dumping all of Wyoming voters’ election data to an agency of the federal government whose use is unrestricted."

Tom Lubnau: Why You Should Consider Steve Friess For U.S. House

Headshot of Cowboy State Daily's general assignment reporter, Clair McFarland.

Clair McFarland

Government & Politics

Politics

 SHERIDAN — Secretary of State Chuck Gray bashed data centers repeatedly and clashed with the moderator 

during a U.S. House forum and debate Tuesday night in Sheridan, 

Casper businessman Reid Rasner criticized Gray multiple times. Both philanthropist Steve Friess and Army Col. Kevin Christensen asserted that they’re leading the race with Gray.   

And a few candidates derided the significant wealth streaming into this race.

Wyoming Public Television (PBS) hosted the forum at Sheridan Community College. Both PBS and Wyoming Public Media streamed it.

PBS public affairs producer Steve Peck moderated the forum, which also featured a short debate phase. He warned candidates they should be civil and avoid prolonged challenges or pointed attacks on their opponents, or they’d be interrupted.

Cowboy State Daily and Wyoming Public Media panelists asked questions about whether Congress should legislate rules around license-plate reader cameras, and who is responsible for implementing artificial intelligence protection framework.

Gray answered both questions with repeated references to data centers, which are computer server warehouses that store data – including for AI – and are a flashpoint issue this election cycle.

“Well, I’m the only candidate on stage that has been talking about these data AI data centers and expressed my opposition to these AI data centers,” said Gray, who also referenced mandated kill switches in vehicles and automated workforces.

Other candidates have spoken of data centers, but only Gray has indicated a desire to ban them at the federal level from Washington, D.C.

Senate President Bo Biteman said the states shouldn’t be cut out of the ability to ban or approve data centers, and communities should have the most control over their local permitting decisions for them.

That has been Friess’s stance, and former U.S. Army ranger David Giralt echoed that approach Tuesday night also.

Rasner agreed with the local-control stance Tuesday night, and used the topic as a chance to deride Gray.

“And I find it very suspicious even our own secretary of state signed off on an AI data center less than 1 mile away from our nuclear facilities and (FE) Warren Air Force base,” said Rasner.

Gray interjected: “That’s false. That’s false.”

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"}],"text":"'When It's Your Turn'"}]

Rasner continued the critique. Gray turned to Peck and said, “I need to respond to that.”

“When it’s your turn to respond,” said Peck, “take the time then, please.”

“I can’t respond to false …" began Gray.

“You can respond when it’s your turn to respond next,” answered Peck.

Former President Joe Biden in a 2024 executive order announced that MineOne, a data center company “majority owned by Chinese nationals”, had bought land within one mile of the base at 635 Logistics Drive, Cheyenne.

The order calls Terra Crypto Inc, which was incorporated under Gray’s office in 2023, a subsidiary or affiliate of MineOne.

The Committee on Foreign Investment in the U.S. investigated the business and identified national security risks, the order says. The Biden administration ordered the business to 

While Gray’s signature is on the business registration approval for Terra Crypto, he has repeatedly urged the Legislature to adopt stronger business-approval laws to restrict adversarial nations.

The Legislature reacted to the 2024 controversy by giving state law enforcement 

 potentially dangerous land transfers near critical infrastructure, and giving the secretary of state grounds to dissolve businesses owned or controlled by foreign adversaries.

Meanwhile, at the debate, Friess voiced fears of AI systems “going off the rails” and said the U.S. should also be aware of its tech race against China.

Former Superintendent of Public Instruction Jillian Balow said the technology industry seeks framework and guidance from government, and said she’d work to develop that “as your congresswoman.”

Christensen said the nation needs to develop framework for ethical AI, but individuals and families also need to engage, communicate with their kids and be wary of the new landscape.

Giralt said Congress should do “hard work” to put data privacy protections in the National Defense Authorization Act.

Next, Sheridan Press government reporter Weston Pope asked candidates which of President Donald Trump’s executive orders they’d codify or discard.

Gray’s turn came last in that round, and after he listed his favored executive orders on election security, immigration enforcement and “stopping Wall Street housing speculation that has driven up housing costs,” he responded to Rasner.

“But, 20 minutes later,” said Gray, “I’m finally going to respond to this false statement from one of my opponents, who’s been making false statements for six months about me.”

Gray touted himself as the “strongest secretary of state in the nation on stopping China and North Korea.”

This is at least the second time Gray has 

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"}],"text":"Biteman Remembers That One Differently"}]

Nikki Ouellet, managing editor of Wyoming Public Media, asked Gray and Biteman how they’d be effective in Congress.

That was during a debate phase that pitted two candidates against each other at a time.

“Well I have a track record of this,” said Gray, pointing to his sponsorship of a successful bill directing medical staffers performing abortions to inform patients “of the opportunity” to view an ultrasound of the child and hear a heartbeat. 

Gray pointed to other legislative efforts on coal and election reform.

“What I learned during that time is that people respond to legislators with conviction, legislators that are approachable, have a sense of humor and are also authentic,” said Gray. “And that’s certainly what I am.”

He said other legislators are drawn to that.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"}],"text":"Biteman voiced surprise."}]

“Well, that’s not the history I remember, serving with my good friend Chuck,” said Biteman, who’s on the final days of 10 years’ service in the Legislature.

“He developed a reputation of being a bully,” said Biteman of Gray. “He treated people roughly and he didn’t have the respect of his colleagues, because of the way he treated them.”

Gray responded, “Well, Biteman is wrong,” and said some lawmakers didn’t like that Gray would call for named, roll-call votes instead of voice majority.

In the next debate phase pitting Biteman against Rasner, Biteman answered a question about federal spending by saying the nation needs to start by finishing the “DOGE” mission of cutting waste, fraud and abuse.

Rasner responded by thanking Biteman for his service in the Legislature, and taking another dig at Gray.

Rasner said Gray in 2021 “voted to give tax breaks to big data centers right here in Wyoming, and usher them in.”

The vote was an attempt by then-Rep. Clark Stith to repeal Wyoming’s tax exemption for large data center projects. Gray had voted at the time to keep the tax exemption.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"}],"text":"Gray addressed Peck again."}]

“Am I going to get to respond to that per your rules?” asked Gray. “Am I going to get to respond? Are you ever going to follow your rules?”

Peck answered, “I am following the rules, sir.”

“OK,” said Gray. “So I can’t respond? You said that …"

Peck interjected, “You’ll have another chance to speak during this round.”

“You’re not following your rules,” objected Gray.

“I am following the rules, I invite you to check them,” said Peck.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"}],"text":"“You’re not,” said Gray."}]

“Do you want to continue, sir?” asked Peck.

Gray continued to lament that Peck was not following the rules.

Peck offered Biteman the chance to respond to Rasner’s remarks, as part of the two-man debate.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"}],"text":"“No, I’m good,” said Biteman."}]

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"}],"text":"The audience laughed. Some clapped."}]

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"}],"text":"Harriet Hageman"}]

Candidates diverged slightly at the two-word lightning round prompt of “Harriet Hageman.”

“She is terrible at responding to constituent letters,” said Dodson. The audience laughed.

Christensen said he disagrees with her on a number of things that Wyoming people didn’t support but finds her hard-working and dedicated to Wyoming.

Giralt said she’s doing an excellent job, and he’ll add his own priorities to the mix.

Biteman pivoted: “She’s a good cook and she makes a mean lasagna.”

Rasner called her a strong conservative and said he’s looking forward to working with her. Gray delivered similar praise.

Friess called her a friend and said she leaves “big shoes to fill.”

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"}],"text":"Abortion"}]

All candidates except Gray and Rasner indicated they’d leave the decision of whether to ban abortion in the hands of the states, with some echoing the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling in the famous Dobbs case declaring a nationwide abortion access right unconstitutional.

Gray said he favors considering a national pro-life policy. Rasner simply said he’s “100% pro-life.”

That was during the lightning round, where short answers were required. Friess in prior forums has called for codifying the “Mexico City Rule,” to ban use of federal aid funds on abortion globally.

Giralt in past forums has called for codifying the Hyde amendment, to ban the use of federal dollars for abortion.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"}],"text":"Closing Statements"}]

During closing statements, Friess asserted that the polling shows it’s a two-man race. Friess pivoted late last month to presenting himself as a candidate who can beat Gray, and whom anti-Gray Republicans should back in the election.

Balow shook her head when Friess reiterated the “two-man race” assertion Tuesday.

Balow and Rasner both pointed to their deep Wyoming roots as multi-generational residents of the Cowboy State. Giralt referenced his experience helping to craft laws as a congressional staffer.

Biteman pointed to his career in the Legislature.

“I’m a people person. I get along well with people. I build coalitions,” said Biteman. “Talk is cheap; you need to send someone to Washington, D.C., that’s actually done everything that’s being talked about on this stage.”

Biteman gestured with both index fingers pointed outward toward Gray and Rasner.

Gray asserted the race is actually a two-man race between him and Christensen, but that Christensen is “much too liberal.”

Christensen agreed with the claim that he’s a frontrunner but countered on the “liberal” allegation, calling himself a Reagan/Bush-era, traditional conservative.

“I’ve led people in combat. I’ve influenced … the Armed Services Committees,” said Christensen, also pointing to his work as a federal public-lands manager in Wyoming.

“You can see the stark differences between us: who can work with people, and who can’t,” said Christensen of himself and Gray.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"}],"text":"Dodson urged people to vote,"}]

“Anybody up here can win,” he said. “If you think your candidate has no chance you’re wrong.” 

[{"type":"text","text":"In Hindsight …"}]

On Wednesday, Gray and Rasner both asserted via Facebook post that they’d won the debate.

Giralt thanked the outlets for hosting. Biteman posted a link to the full debate Tuesday.

Christensen authored a post expounding one of his short, lightning-round answers.

[{"type":"text","text":"The primary election is Aug. 18. "}]

Debate grey biteman rasner best

<title>Chuck Gray Hammers Data Centers, Clashes With Host At U.S. House Forum | Cowboy State Daily</title>

Secretary of State Chuck Gray brought up data centers repeatedly and clashed with the moderator during a U.S. House forum Tuesday night in Sheridan. Reid Rasner criticized Gray, while multiple candidates claimed to be leading the race.

Chuck Gray Hammers Data Centers, Clashes With Host At U.S. House Forum

Headshot of Cowboy State Daily's managing editor, Greg Johnson.

Greg Johnson

Crime & Courts

Courts

Seven months after allegedly kidnapping her 11-month-old son, fleeing the state, then 

 during a brief standoff with law enforcement, a trial has been set for Madeline Daly.

It will be another six months before a Grant County, New Mexico, jury trial is scheduled to begin on Jan. 11, 2027, which was set during a July 21 pretrial hearing.

While the wheels of justice take time, there’s no amount of time that can make Jake Stoner feel much better since the death of his son, reportedly at the hands of his mother.

“There’s a special kind of evil at work here,” he told Cowboy State Daily on Tuesday as Daly, 35, sits in a southwest New Mexico jail cell facing charges of 

 and intentional abuse of a child resulting in death.

[{"type":"text","text":"Stoner said he’s still “pretty much” shellshocked."}]

He declined to discuss the legal and court process much ahead of the trial, but Stoner did say he would have preferred if she were facing a federal prosecution instead of state.

With a federal court, “she would face the death penalty,” Stoner said.

In New Mexico, there is no death penalty and life in prison also can mean a convicted felon could be up for parole after 30 years.

If convicted, Daly could face 30 years to life for first-degree murder and life for intentional abuse, according to New Mexico statutes.

“This is the most God-awful thing I’ve ever experienced,” Stoner said.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"‘She Would Do It Again’"}]

Already wanted on a Wyoming warrant for kidnapping her infant son Basil, Daly was located near Silver City, New Mexico, just before Christmas last year.

As Grant County Sheriff’s Office deputies moved in around an RV she was staying at, Daly, who lived at an RV park in Ten Sleep before leaving the state, realized they were closing in on her, according to an affidavit of probable cause filed in her case.

She allegedly shot her son, then tried to turn the gun on herself, but by then officers were able to subdue her, according to the affidavit written by Detective Lt. Jason Jordan.

She also reportedly told investigators afterward that she didn’t know why she shot and killed the boy, but that in her mind, she couldn’t let Stoner or his family have him.

“Even if the rest of life is worthless, she would do it again just so to make sure that the (family) didn’t touch him,” the affidavit says.

Daly told investigators that after officers stormed into the RV when she shot the boy, she “wasn’t fast enough killing herself after is all she can say about that,” the affidavit says.

Daly was wanted on a warrant out of Washakie County, Wyoming, after the boy’s father reported the infant missing Nov. 19.

Stoner, from Kilgore, Nebraska, shared custody of the boy with Daly and said she resisted him visiting their son. He last saw Basil on Sept. 28.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"},{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Lands In New Mexico"}]

Daly had disappeared until she applied for a job near Silver City, New Mexico, the affidavit says.

The Wyoming warrant for her arrest popped up during a background check, the affidavit says.

For her part, Daly told agents after her arrest that she was keeping Basil “safe,” and that she knew she was breaking the law, but felt it was worth it for the sake of her child.

She said that’s why she ran into a nearby RV with Basil when she realized the law was closing in on her, the affidavit says.

She also made unsubstantiated claims that Basil “would have been in danger and molested if she would have stepped out of that trailer” and that his father “never wanted anything to do with Basil, financially, physically, emotionally ever.”

When questioned about why she kidnapped her own son, Daly replied that “she was not going to allow her (then) 8-month-old baby go back and forth from Nebraska to Wyoming twice a month,” the affidavit says.

Daly said she wound up in New Mexico because she had worked in that area 10 years ago. She began working for some people there who “ended up ratting her out because they knew she was running from something,” Jordan wrote.

Daly apparently had been trying to blend into an unincorporated area near Silver City, Jordan writes in his affidavit.

She was living in a rented bunkhouse, and an officer who had a contact living near the bunkhouse was alerted and began “keeping an eye out for her return home,” Jordan wrote.

Coincidentally, another deputy saw Daly and her son earlier that day at a local restaurant, but at the time didn’t know she was wanted by the law.

“Madeline was last seen this morning by Cpl. Deputy (William) Mize at the Three Questions Café in Mimbres, but he was not aware of the kidnapping at the time,” the affidavit says.

The document goes on to recount that the deputy observed that “she was a bit evasive as she sat down with her son to have breakfast this morning.”

After getting the call from Washakie County, the Grant County Sheriff’s Office developed a plan to retrieve Basil, the affidavit says.

That included sending out five deputies to the bunkhouse. They had been tipped off that Daly had returned there.

“On arrival, Cpl. Deputy Mize saw a female subject running with a small child towards a motorized RV,” the affidavit says. “When deputies arrive to the motorized RV, they were confronted by a female subject later identified as (the owner of the RV).”

Daly later told investigators why she ran with Basil into the RV.

“I saw the sheriffs and I knew my time was up,” she said, according to the affidavit.

“When asked what went through her mind when she saw law enforcement walking up, she replied, ‘Jake can’t get Basil,’” the affidavit said.

Daly reportedly told investigators she assumed they had a felony warrant for kidnapping because she didn’t follow a judge’s custody order.

“So she said, ‘F*** it, it’s worth a shot,’” the affidavit says, adding that she considered her actions “worth it” if it meant keeping Basil away from his father and his family.

Deputies wanted to go into the RV and get the boy, but the owner “would not give deputies permission to enter her residence without a search warrant,” the affidavit says.

While authorities were telling Daly that she was surrounded and calling her out of the house, other agents were preparing to get a search warrant “just in case Madeline did not comply and come outside,” the affidavit says.

It was then at least one gunshot was heard from inside the RV.

One deputy then reported that the 11-month-old had been “shot in the chest by his mother, Madeline Daly,” the affidavit says, adding that she was in custody.

It’s not clear from the affidavit how many times the infant was shot.

The document references a gunshot to the chest, but then also reports that “medical staff worked on the child, but they were unable to save his life due to the gunshot wound to the face.”

It’s not clear from Daly’s public-facing court file if a mental evaluation has been asked for or ordered leading up to the trail. There are four documents that have been sealed from public view.

She remains in the Grant County Detention Center without bond.

Seven months after allegedly kidnapping her 11-month-old son, fleeing the state, then killing the infant during a standoff with law enforcement, a trial has been set for Madeline Daly. “There’s a special kind of evil at work here,” said the baby’s father.

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