A new political action committee (PAC) has come out as the top spender -- at least on the state level -- in this year’s primary election cycle, outspending the last cycle’s top-spending groups Make Liberty Win and Americans for Prosperity.
Wyoming’s Turn PAC, which has targeted Sen. Eric Barlow with negative ads during his run for governor, has spent $1,448,385 in the state’s primary election, Wyoming Campaign Finance records show.
That’s nearly $1 million more than the $549,144 spent this year by the last cycle’s top spender Make Liberty Win.
Wyoming’s Turn PAC reports receiving $1,543,550 in contributions this year, meaning it has $95,165 remaining in the final week before Tuesday’s primary election.
Of that intake, 95.2% came from the federal-level Women For Responsible Government PAC, which federal campaign filings say is affiliated or connected with the Hageman Senate Fund supporting Rep. Harriet Hageman.
Joe Milczewski, who incorporated Wyoming’s Turn PAC in Wyoming, said the PAC has “donors big and small who rallied to support Megan Degenfelder because they know she will protect and promote Wyoming’s energy workers.”
Milczewski said that’s a contrast to the “outside Super PAC” which he said is linked to an agent of the Barlow campaign, “that is currently attacking Megan for her previous work in Wyoming’s energy industry.”
Keep Wyoming Working, a PAC that has been attacking Degenfelder, spent $228,534. Its lone contributor is a Washington DC-based Group, Government That Works PAC, which in turn lists a number of PACs as its own contributors. Its money has filtered to Democratic candidates as well, like Maine's Senate candidate Troy Jackson,
Both Degenfelder and Barlow deny involvement with the various PACs attacking the other. Links between Degenfelder and the PACs attacking Barlow – and links between Barlow and the PAC attacking Degenfelder – appear tangential at this juncture.
Hageman’s campaign spokesman declined to comment.
Hageman has been an outspoken proponent of Degenfelder’s campaign.
A PAC called Fight Wyoming Fight spent $326,397 altogether and gave 290,000 of that to Degenfelder’s campaign. It also donated to a number of other Republican candidates, all women, running for state government offices.
Now About All These Other PACs
Wyoming’s Turn, Keeping Wyoming Working and Fight Wyoming Fight differ from most high-profile, state-level PACs in that they do not appear to have a clear pro- or anti-Freedom Caucus direction.
The other high-profile PACs often coalesce around opposing or supporting the Freedom Caucus. That rivalry has churned millions of dollars into campaign advertising, events and messaging.
Make Liberty Win is a Virginia-based PAC supporting Wyoming Freedom Caucus-aligned candidates and attacking some of their enemies. Its top target was Sen. Cale Case, R-Lander, whom it spent $14,177 opposing.
Americans for Prosperity (AFP), also of Virginia, aligned itself against Freedom Caucus candidates this year but said that move was merely incidental to its support for business- and energy-friendly policies.
AFP spent $285,988, the filings show.
WY Freedom PAC, which is the Wyoming Freedom Caucus’ fundraising arm, spent $223,636.
The Prosperity and Commerce PAC, funded largely by Gov. Mark Gordon, appears to have stayed away from the governor’s race. Gordon gave the PAC $100,000 this year, which comprises 98.5% of its intake. But it also carried forward $216,668 from a prior report, and spent $210,272.
It gave donations ranging from $1,000 to $2,000 each to numerous hopeful and current legislators opposing Freedom Caucus-aligned candidates.
The Civil Leadership PAC out of Gillette spent $199,990, mostly on non-Freedom Caucus Republicans out of the Gillette area, such as Barlow, state Senate hopeful Dwayne Dillinger and County Commission incumbents Scott Clem and Jim Ford. The group also backed Rep. Steve Harshman for superintendent of public instruction, and Robert Short for secretary of state.
The Defeating Communism PAC shelled out $172,648 largely on printing and advertising.
Common Sense Republicans for Wyoming, which two Casper-area attorneys started this year to combat the Freedom Caucus, spent $95,360.
School Freedom Fund spent $609,529, but appears to have spent none of that in Wyoming. Its expenses list out-of-state or national TV and digital advertising buys. Many other federal PACS listed large spending amounts, with caveats saying nearly all that expense consisted of “non-WY disbursements.”
Clair McFarland can be reached at clair@cowboystatedaily.com.
