A Laramie-based clothing store that makes fun of meandering Coloradans has entered the Wyoming political arena.
Wyoming Border Patrol “endorsed” Republican nominee Daron Wyatt for Albany County Sheriff on Tuesday, via a video speech by its star border patrol agent, Buford.
Usually the clothing company’s artificial intelligence generated videos mock Patagonia-wearing, green-food-eating, campsite-squatting Coloradans as interlopers into Wyoming’s rugged territory. And the company itself sells T-shirts, hoodies and other clothes bearing catchy and acerbic jokes.
But on Tuesday, an exasperated Buford took a break from rehabilitating helpless Coloradans to tout Wyatt’s campaign.
“I put his campaign priorities through the official Buford test,” said Buford, the AI avatar.
Buford asserted that Wyatt is pushing public safety over politics.
“Fair enough,” said Buford. “We don’t ask how you vote, at the checkpoint. We ask why you’ve got six paddleboards on a Tuesday.”
Buford ran through Wyatt’s other platform points, like fiscal care, a safe and secure detention center, recruiting and keeping personnel, and “better response to mental health crises.”
Buford adds, “Daron, when you say you won’t California my Wyoming, are you applying for my job?”
The ad concludes with the message that Wyatt paid for it.
‘Truth In There’
Wyoming Border Patrol CEO Rowdy Yeatts told Cowboy State Daily that, while the company has given “endorsements” to some Colorado candidates, this is its first play in the Wyoming political arena.
Yeatts said the company considers itself nonpartisan, and will look over a candidate’s message before lending its characters to it.
“In Daron’s case, he was being pretty broad. Nothing too concerning,” said Yeatts. “For the most part, if people are trying to get elected, they’re probably not asking us to say anything too stupid.”
There’s a fine line between being straight-up parody and making an earnest campaign ad, Yeatts conceded.
“But there’s always like some truth in our other ads too,” he said. “That’s one of the things that makes the other videos funny, is there’s truth in there.”
Wyoming Border Patrol took off in Colorado’s politics before Wyoming’s because many Coloradans feel the same comedic weariness toward Californians, he said.
Now Reach
Wyatt told Cowboy State Daily his ad buy is about exposure.
Wyoming Border Patrol’s Facebook page has around 17,000 followers.
Wyatt’s campaign page has 760.
“I’ve been watching their satire, and it’s kind of funny,” said Wyatt.
Without solicitation, Wyoming Border Patrol had already congratulated Wyatt when he won his uncontested primary race Aug. 18 – and that brought “some good reactions,” he said.
The Transplant
Albany County Sheriff Aaron Appelhans, who won the Democratic nomination and opposes Wyatt heading into the Nov. 3 general election, told Cowboy State Daily he found the ad buy interesting – because Wyatt himself is a transplant from California.
“I think it’s pretty interesting that a transplant from California is paying a Wyoming company to endorse him, since he’s not from the state – and one that makes fun of transplants,” said Appelhans. “But you know … I really just remain focused on the actual job of being sheriff, and not getting distracted by paying AI companies to kind of fake-endorse my campaign.”
Appelhans has been serving as sheriff since appointed to fill a vacancy in 2020, and he was elected to the post in 2022.
As for Wyatt, he said he meant to turn the joke onto his own transplant status.
He moved to Wyoming from California seven years ago, and has been in law enforcement 38 years, he said.
“I (told Wyoming Border Patrol) I’d love for it to cover the fact that … I passed Buford’s ex-Californian background test,” Wyatt said.
“I’ve never used AI in my life,” he added. “But I think they’re using it in a way that, it’s making them money, and it’s funny, and people laugh at it.”
Wyatt said this race has been grueling, and he thought humor would be a nice break for everyone.
Clair McFarland can be reached at clair@cowboystatedaily.com.
