Liz Cheney wore a strained smile in the unfortunate photo op as she received the Presidential Citizens Medal from President Joe Biden for her alleged witness tampering, I mean alleged heroism. Meant to provide her a cloak of credibility, the award did nothing more than shine a spotlight on the trash mentality of Washington DC.
U.S. Sen. John Barrasso later said, “President Biden was either going to pardon Liz Cheney or give her an award. She doesn’t deserve either. She represents partisanship and divisiveness — not Wyoming.”
I have to agree with the sentiment.
But will Wyoming’s conservative swath continue in the next governor’s race? Wyoming hates a long campaign season, so I was nervous for Brent Bien when he announced he was running for governor so early.
But now I understand why. He’s operating much like President Trump did when he was campaigning. He is already at work, taking the meetings, hearing the issues and impacting issuesalready.
Only a few months ago, Brent Bien announced he’d run for governor this year. This is not his first time running. But this time is different. This time the conservatives have taken over the House. Conservative Chuck Gray is in the Secretary of State’s office. Conservative leadership has replaced much of the old-guard establishment.
This majority electorate swing toward the Freedom Caucus and those who are like-mindedly conservative, is shown in the electorate population as well. The first ballot initiative since 1996 just passed with 30,251 people signing to say Wyomingites should have their property taxed at 50% of its assessed value.
Brent Bien led it.
Property tax was a major priority even before Gov. Mark Gordon vetoed a similar idea for a 25% decrease in 2024. Brent Bien has already done more for the property tax problem than Gordon, and he’s not even in office, yet.
Certain pieces of government should not be cut, and in fact should be expanded. The public defender’s office, EMT services, police and roads to name a few.
Some items in government represent overregulation and bloat, and should be eliminated, starting with the statutes prescribing the government action and trickling down to the people holding positions.
To that end, in addition to the Freedom Caucus’ “Five and Dime” plan, lawmakers in Wyoming should go on a regulatory rampage.
They should engage with law-repealing with as aggressive force as they approach lawmaking.
A vigorous repeal process to eliminate the most amount of regulation and business barriers possible for our state’s business owners big and small is essential.
The same applies for constitutional and health infringements. Remember what happened during COVID? That should never be possible again.
Advisory committees should be appointed to delve into the details of what that means, and we should act swiftly to give people a change, to thrive under an upcoming Trump administration.
The Freedom Caucus’ “Five and Dime” plan deserves a high five. The plan is designed to take the boot of government off the people’s neck.
Only Wyoming citizens should vote in Wyoming. We need protection from illegal immigration policies that are reckless. Our jobs and our core industries should be protected from woke agendas.
Our daughters shouldn’t have to compete against males in sports. You worked hard for your money, and you should be able to keep more of it. Universal school choice, Second Amendment rights, private property law, mask and vaccine independence all matter to the new majority.
“We met you at your doorsteps. We heard you,” said Rep. John Bear, R-Gillette. The Five and Dime is a “conservative response to your mandate.”
I don’t think many people disagree with this mandate. In fact, it is the exact reason new faces sit before us in the Legislature now.
Cassie Craven can be reached at: ccraven.law@gmail.com
