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He was prepared to strip down, as narrated by MMA announcer Steve Inman......

Inman 2 28 25

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<title>Steve Inman: Friday, February 28, 2025 | Cowboy State Daily</title>

Steve Inman: Friday, February 28, 2025

 He was prepared to strip down, as narrated by MMA announcer Steve Inman......

Lange at chic fil a

Jonathan Lange

Opinion

CSD Columnists

There are a lot of downsides to campaign season - unsightly yard signs, attack ads, and the deforestation due to truckloads of glossy mailers - to name a few. But it also has its upside.

The thing that I love the most about campaign season is that everybody suddenly loves conservative principles. For a few short months, the fringe left goes silent lest they torpedo their favored politicians.

Librarians who shill for the American Library Association’s insistence on smut in the children’s section are making no endorsements. The Wyoming Education Association - one of the most moneyed and liberal PACs in Wyoming- is sitting out of the governor’s race. (Or, at least Chat GTP doesn’t know about it.) Towering male athletes are not out on the campaign trail stumping for the politicians who support their domination of girls.

In fact, it’s exactly the opposite. After University of Wyoming volleyball star Macey Boggs appeared on a 

 to tout their support for women athletes.

And it wasn’t only candidates for the U.S. House. Candidates for governor and state legislature were just as eager to strike a conservative pose.

Before getting embroiled in the argument over who is more authentic in their pro-woman stance, take a moment to savor the victory. It wasn’t very long ago when people who thought it common sense to keep men from bashing in the heads of women and ogling them in the locker room were considered 

Even now, the press covering the WNBA is putting a full-court press on Sophie Cunningham merely for uttering that common sense. And a high-school girl was 

 - by a team owner of the Seattle Storm no less! - for holding a sign that said, “Thank you, Sophie, for speaking up for girls.”

That is not happening in Wyoming anymore. Enough people have endured angry denunciations and being labeled as “haters” that the tide has turned. Now, even the timid can stand with Sophie, without political blowback. That’s an accomplishment worth celebrating. And I don’t care who gets the credit.

While the conservative position on men in women’s sports has taken the spotlight, there are many other examples. At the June 18 

, everybody was for health freedom, everybody was for energy development, everybody was for private property rights, and everybody was for limited government.

At the same debate, everyone was against federal overreach, dictatorial health mandates, and porn in public libraries. What is not to love about that?

The Overton Window has shifted. It shifted because of a few brave public figures who were willing to endure the slings and arrows of the Progressive war machine. They led the charge to retake positions that had been left undefended for fear of the cancel-culture mob.

Now those same positions are crowded with flag-waving politicians. We can appreciate that fact without knowing which of those politicians cowered in the heat of battle - or even turned their guns on friendlies. History will tell that tale.

A grateful nation honors its warriors. In the same way, appreciative voters should elevate those who sacrificed the most in the charge to retake the high ground.

I am thankful that health freedom, energy development, private property rights, and limited government are back in vogue. And I rejoice that health diktats have fallen into disfavor along with porn in public libraries and men in women’s sports. I acknowledge and appreciate that practically everybody is currently united on these principles.

But I am especially grateful for the men and women who stood up to speak for these principles during the legislative dogfights years before they became fashionable. I give honor to those who championed these causes when they were blocked by committee chairman, died in the drawer of the House Speaker or Senate President, or were denied a vote by the Majority Floor Leader.

These champions are often vilified as impolite, combative, feisty, or otherwise deplorable. But when the principles that we value most are under attack, it is precisely the warriors who are needed the most.

That’s why clean and pressed uniforms do not impress me. I will be voting for the soldiers whose uniforms are bloody and torn. They may be too gruff for D.C. dinner parties. But they are most responsible for making Wyoming safe for conservatives.

 is a Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod pastor in Evanston and Kemmerer and serves the Wyoming Pastors Network. Follow his blog at https://jonathanlange.substack.com/. Email: JLange64@protonmail.com

<title>Jonathan Lange: Everybody’s A Conservative Now | Cowboy State Daily</title>

Columnist Jonathan Lange writes, “The thing that I love the most about campaign season is that everybody suddenly loves conservative principles. For a few short months, the fringe left goes silent lest they torpedo their favored politicians.''

Jonathan Lange: Everybody’s A Conservative Now

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

Clair McFarland

Crime & Courts

Courts

Wyoming, 14 other states, a handful of gun advocacy groups, and individuals beat the Trump administration in court this week when a Texas-based federal judge called significant portions of the 1934 National Firearms Act unconstitutional.

U.S. District Court Judge James Wesley Hendrix ruled Wednesday that major portions of the act are unconstitutional and can’t be enforced on Wyoming’s government and a number of other plaintiffs. 

Those provisions restrict suppressors, short-barreled rifles, short-barreled shotguns, and firearms classified as “any other weapons.”

[{"type":"text","text":"Gov. Mark Gordon called the ruling a win."}]

“This is a great win for gun owners across the country, including here in Wyoming where our gun rights are an important part of our heritage,” said Gordon in a Friday email statement. “It is absolutely essential that the 2nd Amendment be respected and protected. I am delighted to see a judge recognize overreach when it is this clear.”

Gordon congratulated Wyoming Attorney General Keith Kautz and Kautz’s team “for their solid work and wish them the best as this case continues moving forward.”

Hendrix stayed his order until at least Aug. 12, in case the federal government wants to appeal. It hadn’t appealed as of Friday morning.

The judge also did not overturn the NFA’s restrictions on machine guns and destructive devices.

Mark Jones, Wyoming resident and national director of Gun Owners of America, told Cowboy State Daily the ruling represents a big win — but not an invitation to go make short-barreled rifles, at least until the dust settles.

“We’re advising people to be very careful about looking at a headline and running out and engaging in practices related to this until we get more information and there’s some decision on this appeal,” said Jones. 

He also said that though Wyoming is a plaintiff, he doesn’t believe the injunction extends to every Wyoming citizen.

But, added Jones, “I still think it’s the biggest win against the NFA in the NFA’s history, and we'll see what happens.”

[{"type":"text","text":"Trump Stance ‘Frustrating’"}]

Gun Owners of America is one of the plaintiffs.

Hendrix’s order bars the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (ATF) and the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) from enforcing the enjoined parts of the National Firearms Act against plaintiffs and the plaintiffs’ “agencies, political subdivisions, members, and customers — both current and future.”

Jones said that leaves protections for Wyoming residents in doubt because “residents” aren’t listed under the people the order protects. But, he said, a Wyomingite who is a member of the Gun Owners of America will be protected if the order is upheld.

It’s been frustrating that the Trump administration has been defending the National Firearms Act, said Jones.

“Very frustrating,” he said. “Because the president ran, obviously, as a strong 2nd Amendment supporter.”

Jones said GOA has been “openly concerned about that: why his administration is defending the National Firearms Act.”

[{"type":"text","text":"Gun Control Act Remains"}]

David Kopel, a senior fellow at the University of Wyoming College of Law Firearms Research Center, emphasized that though the NFA will be diminished if the injunction is upheld or remains in place, the Gun Control Act of 1968 is still law.

“Even if the National Firearms Act of 1934 had never been passed, if you wanted to go into a store and buy a short-barreled rifle or short-barreled shotgun or even a suppressor, you’d have to go through the same process as to buy any other gun,” said Kopel. 

[{"type":"text","text":"That includes background checks and federal paperwork."}]

But this ruling removes a noteworthy layer of federal paperwork, requirements and delays, added Jones.

Congress passed the NFA in 1934 to tax and regulate Prohibition-era “gangster weapons,” including short-barreled shotguns and rifles, silencers, and “any other weapons” – a term the government has treated flexibly over the years.

[{"type":"text","text":"The law also covers machineguns and destructive devices."}]

It imposes taxes, but also recordkeeping and registration requirements geared toward enforcing the tax.

A person who violates the law by owning or transferring one of the covered firearms without fulfilling the requirements can face up to 10 years in federal prison and $10,000 in fines, plus the loss of gun rights for life.

The U.S. Supreme Court in 1937 upheld the act because the U.S. Constitution gives Congress the power to tax.

The Trump-backed One Big Beautiful Bill Act of 2025 lifted the taxes from the short-barreled rifles and shotguns, silencers and “any other weapons.”

Hendrix ruled Wednesday that removing the taxes also removes constitutional justifications for law’s other paperwork, registration and recordkeeping requirements, which were ostensibly in place to enforce the tax.

He also wrote that in 1934 the commerce clause — the portion of the Constitution giving Congress authority over interstate commerce — would not have been seen as justifying the NFA in 1934.

But the Gun Control Act of 1968, regulating gun commerce, remains in place. It’s based on the commerce clause.

[{"type":"text","text":"Wyoming’s Defiant Little Law"}]

Wyoming law says a personal firearm, accessory or ammunition manufactured in the state, that stays in the borders of the state is not subject to federal law, taxation or regulation, “under the authority of the United States congress to regulate interstate commerce.”

Kopel had opined, however, that a person who makes a short-barreled rifle in Wyoming still cannot sell it to his next-door neighbor, because intrastate commerce affects interstate commerce.

[{"type":"text","text":"Jones said Kopel is probably right."}]

Gordon Trump 8 7 26

<title>Wyoming Scores 'Win' In Landmark Gun Rights Case Against Trump Administration | Cowboy State Daily</title>

A federal judge overturned parts of the National Firearms Act this week after Wyoming and other plaintiffs sued the Trump administration, which had defended the act. Gov. Mark Gordon on Friday called it a "great win for gun owners across the country."

Wyoming Scores 'Win' In Landmark Gun Rights Case Against Trump Administration

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

Greg Johnson

A Douglas man facing 72 charges relating to child sex abuse and pornography will spend at least the next month in a San Francisco jail after he was arrested there on a fugitive warrant just hours after skipping out on a Wyoming court hearing.

John Charles Smallbone, 38, indicated Thursday that he intends to fight extradition to Wyoming to continue facing his charges in Converse County District Court.

During his first hearing in San Francisco Superior Court since his July 28 arrest by San Francisco police officers on a Wyoming felony fugitive warrant, Smallbone declined to waive extradition back to Douglas.

That’s despite signing a document June 24 when he was released from the Converse County Detention Center after someone posted a $250,000 cash bond to get him out of jail in the first place.

Signing a waiver of extradition was a condition of Smallbone being released on bond, court documents indicate. That waiver means he voluntarily gives up his right to fight extradition and agrees to be transported back to Douglas if he’s caught elsewhere.

“I hereby willingly agree and consent to place myself in the custody of any authorized Wyoming law enforcement officer and to freely return, without contest, to Converse County, Wyoming, from any jurisdiction where I may be found … to answer the charge(s) against me,” reads the waiver, which has Smallbone’s signature on it.

While Smallbone signed a waiver, that doesn’t necessarily mean he can’t fight being sent back to Wyoming anyway, said Steven Titus, a Gillette-based defense attorney.

It all depends on the other state a fugitive is being held. Some states and courts honor those waivers, while others don’t.

In Colorado last month, a Fort Collins magistrate didn’t when she allowed Smallbone out of jail on his own recognizance when picked up on another fugitive warrant.

That set the stage for him to miss his July 28 arraignment and arrest in San Francisco four hours after that hearing ended.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"‘That Was Crazy’"}]

, where he follows developments of Wyoming cases involving alleged child abuse and exploitation crimes.

He’s followed Smallbone’s case since his arrest, and said it’s so far been unlike any case he’s followed.

“You can call him the gift that keeps on giving,” he said. “It just keeps going.”

That includes after posting a $250,000 cash bond June 24 to get out of the Converse County Detention Center and being caught last month on a fugitive warrant in Colorado. Gallaway said he was watching a livestream of that hearing and was shocked he was allowed to go free.

“That was crazy,” he said, adding that he hopes the San Francisco court “does the right thing.”

Unable to attend in person and without a video or audio option available, Gallaway found a volunteer in San Francisco to attend Smallbone’s hearing on Thursday.

The San Francisco Superior Court said Thursday that Smallbone admitted that he’s the person named in the Wyoming fugitive warrant, and he declined to wave extradition back to the Cowboy State.

A hearing on the extradition was set for Sept. 3, and Smallbone will remain in the San Francisco jail without bond until then, the court said.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Feared For His Life"}]

 on 72 child sex and pornography charges in a Wyoming district court on July 28, Smallbone was arrested on a fugitive warrant in San Francisco.

The 38-year-old Douglas man told Judge F. Scott Peasley through his public defender that he feared for his life if he were to show up for his plea hearing.

In the meantime, it seems he was on his way to San Francisco, and was arrested by police officers there about four hours after his 3:30 p.m. hearing ended in a Douglas courtroom, according to the Converse County Sheriff’s Office.

That Smallbone had been caught twice in less than a week fleeing Wyoming and the dozens of felony charges he faces here, Converse County Sheriff Clint Becker said he hopes there isn’t a repeat of what happened in Colorado.

“That was my comment when I got called to let us know he was in custody,” the sheriff told Cowboy State Daily at the time. “Hopefully …”

After Smallbone was released in Colorado, officials in that state and Wyoming who worked to track him expressed frustration with that situation.

Kylie Masserman, a spokesperson with the Larimer County District Attorney’s Office in Colorado, told Cowboy State Daily via an emailed statement that the court had the proper documentation to hold Smallbone.

“The District Attorney’s Office strongly believes that this bond setting is dangerous and has put the communities in both Colorado and Wyoming at risk,” she said. “Giving a free pass to dangerous out-of-state offenders fleeing to Colorado sets a terrible precedent and risks further harm to the victims in the Wyoming case.”

Now that he’s been caught again, Becker said he’s confident Smallbone will be returned to Wyoming to face his charges.

And there will be more of those to face, Converse County Deputy Attorney Nate Shumway said during the July 28 hearing.

He told the judge that his office has filed amended charges against Smallbone that include the 72 he already had been hit with, plus more that he’s since picked up.

Those amended charges have so far not shown up in Smallbone’s public-facing court file.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"},{"type":"bold"}],"text":"The Charges"}]

The list of charges against Smallbone is long, including:

• 1 count of first-degree sexual abuse of a minor.

• 36 counts of possessing child pornography.

• 16 counts of using a video camera to record intimate areas of another person without consent.

• 18 counts of knowingly manufacturing, generating, or creating child pornography.

• 1 count of possessing more than 3 ounces of marijuana (1.3 pounds).

He landed on the radar of the Converse County Sheriff’s Office after the mother of an underage girl reported concerning interactions her daughter had with Smallbone on May 9.

The girl was in a vehicle with Smallbone and others when he allegedly typed “if you suck me, I’ll lick you” on his phone and showed it to the girl, according to an affidavit of probable cause written by Peech.

“He also mouthed the words, ‘I want to see you naked,’” the affidavit says.

Smallbone later denied mouthing anything or showing the girl any messages.

That, along with other alleged disturbing interactions with the girl at Smallbone’s home that evening, started an investigation that revealed a trove of photos, videos and other child sexual abuse material (CSAM) on his electronic devices, the affidavit says.

The investigation also showed Smallbone had been convicted in 2002 of sexual assault on a child by a person in a position of trust in Douglas County, Colorado.

He also had registered as a sex offender in Wyoming in 2014, but it was “later determined not to be required to register in Wyoming due to him being a juvenile at the time of his adjudication in Colorado,” according to the affidavit.

That was in reference to a 2001 case when Smallbone was 12 and was accused of sexually assaulting a 5-year-old girl, the affidavit says.

While in treatment for that incident, he disclosed he also had sexual contact with at least seven other children, and five were younger than him at the time of the sexual contact.

Smallbone and san francisco 8 7 26

<title>Wyoming Man Facing 72 Child Sex-Related Charges To Stay In San Francisco Jail | Cowboy State Daily</title>

A Douglas man facing 72 charges relating to child sex abuse and pornography will spend at least the next month in a San Francisco jail after a court hearing there Thursday. John Smallbone indicated he intends to fight being sent back to Wyoming.

Wyoming Man Facing 72 Child Sex-Related Charges To Stay In San Francisco Jail

Daily Smile

[{"type":"text","text":"Could watch this all day. Just put it on auto loop....."}]

Smile no play 8 7 26

<title>Daily Smile: Friday, August 7, 2026 | Cowboy State Daily</title>

Could watch this all day. Just put it on auto loop.....

Daily Smile: Friday, August 7, 2026

Employee kate meadows cropped

Kate Meadows

Energy

A $500 million solar project expected to generate an estimated $157 million in property tax revenue for Converse County is seeking to spin off 409 acres of its planned site for a natural gas power plant.

The request marks a significant shift for the Dutchman Solar and Storage Project north of Glenrock, which prompted Converse County commissioners this week to ask the Wyoming Industrial Siting Council to take another look at the project before construction moves forward.

A hearing is scheduled for Sept. 2 in Cheyenne, Converse County Commissioner Trent Kaufman told Cowboy State Daily.

The Dutchman project would be Wyoming's second-largest solar development, behind the giant $1.2 Enbridge 

to produce more than 770 megawatts of power when it reaches full build-out.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Market Opportunity"}]

According to Scott Bolton, a spokesperson for Florida-based BrightNight LLC, the company behind the Dutchman Solar Project, the proposed gas-fired facility would be developed by a BrightNight subsidiary if it receives the required state and local approvals.

"The project came about because of a market opportunity for gas generation identified by BrightNight, and we are excited about the opportunity for investment and new jobs in Wyoming," Bolton told Cowboy State Daily in an email.

The proposed Deer Creek Natural Gas Generation Project would produce an estimated 255 megawatts of electricity.

BrightNight spokesman Donald Millar told county commissioners that the solar project and gas plant are separate developments.

"If the 409 acres are released, it will allow BrightNight to study the development and permitting of a natural gas generating facility while at the same time maintain the construction and operation of the Dutchman Solar and Storage project," Bolton said.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"New Proposal Raises New Questions"}]

While the request would reduce the footprint of the solar project, county officials say it remains unclear whether it would also reduce the amount of electricity the solar facility is expected to produce.

"The question we asked, and they weren't certain of, is if the power generation will decrease," Kaufman said.

Bolton also did not answer Cowboy State Daily's question about whether the smaller project would generate less electricity.

Kaufman said his biggest question centers on the proposed natural gas plant's water needs.

"My big concern is if the power generation facility would use water," he said. "And if so, where is that water going to come from?"

He emphasized that the gas plant remains in the earliest stages of planning and that a lot that has to happen before those questions can be answered.

[{"type":"text","text":"\"It's extremely preliminary,\" Kaufman said. "}]

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Delayed Construction"}]

The Dutchman Solar Project calls for a 500-megawatt solar facility on approximately 4,738 acres of private ranchland owned by sheep producer Casey Tillard along the North Platte River north of Glenrock. BrightNight has promoted the project as an example of "agrivoltaics," with solar panels installed high enough to allow sheep to continue grazing.

Tillard did not respond to Cowboy State Daily's requests for comment before publication.

Construction had been expected to begin this summer. However, Converse County Commissioner Rick Grant said the timeline has been delayed because BrightNight has not yet finalized how the project will connect to the electrical grid or identified the ultimate purchaser for its power.

Bolton said construction is now expected to begin in the third quarter of 2027, with completion anticipated in 2029.

He did not respond to questions about whether the company has secured a power purchaser or finalized its transmission plans.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Clearing Up Rumors"}]

Kaufman said he took to social media before the county's public hearing this week to counter speculation about what was being proposed.

Rumors had circulated that the county was considering a data center or a wind energy project, he said.

Public hearings are already listed on the county's online meeting agendas, but Kaufman said he wanted to make sure residents had accurate information before misinformation spread further.

"I wanted to make a special effort so the rumor mill would stop and facts would fill in the void," he said.

The hearing drew a strong turnout, he added, with many residents still trying to understand what the proposal could mean for the area.

Sheep under solar panels

<title>Huge 500-MW Solar Project Wants To Build Natural Gas Power Plant Near Glenrock | Cowboy State Daily</title>

At 500 megawatts, the Dutchman Solar Project under development in Converse County would be Wyoming’s second largest. Now the Florida-based company behind it also wants to build a natural gas power plant near Glenrock.

Huge 500-MW Solar Project Wants To Build Natural Gas Power Plant Near Glenrock

Headshot of Cowboy State Daily's business and tourism reporter, Renée Jean

Renée Jean

Around Wyoming

The wave of legacy ranches for sale in Wyoming is continuing with yet another historic ranch hitting the market for the first time.

This time, it is the 1,542-acre Quarter Circle Lazy B, owned for four generations by the Wallop family, which has ties to British nobility, as well as historic prominence in both Wyoming and American politics. 

The Quarter Circle Lazy B, listed for $24.5 million and on the market for the first time in 135 years, is tucked just under the Bighorn Mountains at the mouth of Little Goose Canyon. Its sale will mark the end of an era for one of Wyoming’s best-known legacy ranches.

Owner Paul Wallop told Cowboy State Daily he and his wife, Sandra, have decided this is the right time to start a search for the ranch’s next steward because none of the children have an interest in taking over the ranch. 

“We’re not ancient,” Paul Wallop said. “But we’re in our mid-60s, and we could easily do another 10-plus years. But in that 10 years, one health event and you’re not keeping up with it.”

Sandra Wallop told Cowboy State Daily she fears it will be more difficult to be “picky” about a successor if they wait. Now is the right time so they can be selective.

“It’s important,” she said. “We want them to have good Wyoming values, be good neighbors. I hate to say it in this fashion, but we want to kind of interview them before we sell to them.”

That doesn’t mean the couple will be “hovering” over their new neighbors, she added. 

“We’re not going to be that kind of neighbor,” Sandra said. “We deeply and passionately love this place … So we’re hoping the next family has the same attitude and perspective that we do.”

The Wallop family first began assembling its ranch in 1889, when English-born Oliver Henry Wallop bought the first piece of what would become the Quarter Circle Lazy B. 

Oliver was the third and youngest son of a titled line in Britain. He took a shine to the American West after graduating from an English university, and decided that would be how he would make his way in the world.

As the youngest son of Isaac Newton Wallop, the fifth Earl of Portsmouth in Great Britain’s Victorian era, Oliver never expected he would inherit land or title. Such young men were, at the time, known as “remittance” men, because they typically left home to make their way in the world and were given a remittance from their family. 

His father’s name, Isaac Newton, does have an indirect tie to the famous physicist of the same name. A relative of Newton’s married into the Wallop family, and many of its sons were subsequently given names to honor that heritage.

Oliver came to America soon after graduating from Oxford in 1883, first buying a ranch in Montana, where he introduced the region’s first thoroughbred horses. He then migrated south to Wyoming in 1889, establishing the Canyon Ranch, which included the Quarter Circle Lazy B.

Oliver was ultimately wrong about his chances for succession. He returned to England after his second brother died, becoming the Earl of Portsmouth in 1925. 

“He had to renounce his U.S. citizenship, and then he served in the House of Lords,” Paul Wallop said. “And I don’t know if there’s any other member of the House of Lords what has ever served in a foreign government — it’s a very unique thing.”

Polo has a long history in Sheridan County, and the Wallops are integral to that story, along with the Scottish brothers William and Malcom Moncrieffe. 

“Malcom Moncrieffe had what was called the Polo Ranch, and then William had the Quarter Circle A Ranch, which is the Brinton Museum now,” Paul Wallop said. “Quarter Circle Lazy B is the neighboring ranch to the Quarter Circle Lazy A.” 

Together, these ranches got a contract with the British cavalry for horses, shipping 20,000 to South Africa for the Boer War.

The Wallop family's legacy Quarter Circle Lazy B Ranch in Sheridan County is for sale for the first time in 135 years, listing for $24.5 million. It hosted Queen Elizabeth II, supplied cavalry horses to Britain and helped build Wyoming's polo scene.

Steve Inman: Friday, February 28, 2025

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