After four endlessly long years full of national silliness, the country will be returning to sanity in 2025. That is my main prediction in looking ahead to the rest of this new year.
With President-elect Donald Trump taking office, the country will become sane again. After four years of mind-bending craziness and goofy wokeness by the Joe Biden-Kamala Harris Regime, orchestrated by puppeteer Barack Obama, the country has a chance to literally return to normal.
Here in this new year, our local Wyoming politics, with the Freedom Caucus in charge, will take a steep turn to the right, which should be normal for a state that has always been considered conservative.
As I look into my crystal ball, that is a summary of what I see for state and national news in this new year.
I have been writing prediction columns like this each January for the past 21 years. Not sure I ever got it as wrong as I did back in 2021 when Biden took office on the national stage.
All we could see was the hopeful end of the worldwide pandemic. Who could have guessed we would head down a rabbit hole every bit as crazy as where Alice went in Wonderland.
The country had never seen such bizarre cultural ideas as put forth by the Biden administration.
With Wyoming’s 97,813 square miles of space being 48 percent federal, what happens nationally will have a big effect here. Elections have consequences as we have seen over the past four years.
Reporters Offer Predictions
Political reporter Leo Wolfson predicts: “We're going to see legislation, that wasn't given the time of day in the past, be given serious consideration or pass into law. There will be substantial cuts to property taxes and increased requirements on identification needed to vote.”
He concludes: “We'll start seeing candidates declaring for the 2026 governor's race this spring and summer, which will take up a significant portion of the local political coverage from then until the election.”
I was hoping for the delisting of the grizzly bear this year. It is crazy that thousands of these giant killers are still roaming around with a “protected” tag on them. There are probably three times as many bears there as are officially listed.
Outdoors Reporter Mark Heinz says “it is highly likely” that it will happen quickly. Big news when it does, he says, which could result in a grizzly hunting season occurring as early as this fall.
Thermopolis-based reporter Jackie Dorothy speculated that perhaps “Yellowstone might explode?” Now that would be some big news. Again, not likely.
Cody-based reporter Andrew Rossi says: “The first ones that come to mind are the re-emergence of Grizzly 399's cub, Spirit (if that happens), the 30th anniversary of the reintroduction of wolves in Yellowstone, and the eventual fate of the La Prele Dam.”
Columnist Sally Ann Shurmur suggested: “Definitely the glow of the Trump administration with pay off for Wyoming. Also, will the Freedom Caucus muck up local control of our schools? And no kidding, will University of Wyoming sports ever be relevant again?”
Some Other Predictions
Former long-time legislator Del McOmie, who is 89, predicts: “I believe Rep. Steve Harshman's idea of expanded sales tax will ring true to a lot of people's ears. They might offer a bunch of exemptions to offset some of that but I believe it's still not the best idea.”
McOmie says: “Property tax is a fair tax because it's based on the value of one's properties. Can you imagine what would it cost to license a new car with the prices they are now?”
Photographer and long-time businessman Dave Bell of Pinedale has some sobering predictions for what is going to happen in Washington D. C.: “Deportation Riots will occur, organized by Democrats and NGOs in key cities across the USA. All funded by Soros and that crowd. Border Czar Homan will be center stage in all this pushing for the deportations and battling liberal sanctuary city Mayors and Liberal Governors. It will be wild.”
Bell anticipates more chaos in Washington: “Chaos will be the name of the game in the capitol. The idea and process of beginning to dismantle the fed deep state will elicit incredible amounts of distress, misery, backstabbing, sky-is-falling cries among all the various constituencies who are beneficiaries of all the federal largesse. It will be chaos as the squishy Republicans wobble under the pressure of cuts and the democrats and press add gasoline to the fire. We were quite uncertain it can be accomplished, although it needs to be done. If DOGE cannot do it, it cannot be done.”
Bell also predicts that Prime Ministers Trudeau in Canada and Starmer in Great Britain will be history.
One of the smartest business people in Wyoming is Dave Crum of Casper. Here is his take: “I can't help feeling that with the political wars going on threatening coal, oil, gas plus others, it is so important the Wyoming Business Council continue to step up with its mission. It is so very important they continue to be successful at attracting highly quality businesses into the state. We need to continue to grow quality jobs so that our young graduates and general citizenry can remain in Wyoming and support a quality life.”
What Does AI Say:
I asked the Artificial Intelligence app Chat-GPT to predict and here is what it told me:
“The future of Wyoming in 2025 is shaped by its unique characteristics as a state and by broader trends impacting the nation. Wyoming, known for its wide-open spaces, natural beauty, and a small but resilient population, faces a mix of opportunities and challenges. From economic diversification to energy transitions, the state is poised for significant developments in various sectors.
“Wyoming's economy has historically been heavily reliant on energy, particularly coal, oil, and natural gas. However, the declining demand for coal and the global push for renewable energy have created urgency around diversifying the state’s economy. In 2025, Wyoming is likely to see increased investments in alternative industries such as technology, outdoor recreation, tourism, and agriculture.
“Efforts to attract tech companies and startups have been gaining momentum. Wyoming’s adoption of blockchain-friendly legislation in recent years positions it as a leader in financial technology. In 2025, Cheyenne and other cities could emerge as hubs for blockchain innovation, fostering new economic opportunities.”
I could not have predicted it any better myself. Happy New Year everyone!
Bill Sniffin can be reached at: Bill@CowboyStateDaily.com