Headshot of Cowboy State Daily reporter, Jackie Dorothy.

Jackie Dorothy

David Madison

Headshot of Cowboy State Daily reporter, Dale Killingbeck

Dale Killingbeck

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

Renée Jean

Headshot of Cowboy State Daily political columnist, Rod Miller.

Rod Miller

Opinion

CSD Columnists

Alexis de Toqueville, a French observer during the formative years of our republic, called us “The great experiment in democracy.” 

He saw that our Founders didn’t create a stagnant system, but rather a dynamic nation that is always growing and changing as we try new ideas. 

Picking up on de Toqueville’s metaphor, Supreme Court Justice Louis Brandeis called America a “great laboratory” in which different experiments in self-government are tested, to see what succeeds and what doesn’t. 

Seen in that light, we are a nation of experimenters driven by a curiosity to find out what works best for us, and our history is record of the results of those experiments.

And I think it was Sigmund Freud, I’ll paraphrase, who offered the sage political advice that the definition of insanity is repeating the same experiment over and over, expecting a different result. 

While we’re on the subject of political experiments, imagine that we’re back in chemistry class and a mad scientist, dressed in a red blazer instead of a lab coat, is lecturing the class. 

He says, “Class, today we’re gonna do the Freedom Caucus experiment.”

He looks at his phone for instructions, then grabs a Wyoming-shaped test tube and starts tossing in ingredients from weird little vials and bottles. 

The mad scientist in the red coat tells us, “For this experiment, we’ll need a mixture of caustic populism, fake grassroots, some tincture of fear-mongering and a big dose of centralized control mixed with faux religious zeal. 

Then we’ll add some forced patriotism, political opportunism, and stir in some scorn for small communities and a whole bottle of distilled self-righteousness. 

To give it bite, we’ll add some acidic divisiveness, concentrated hubris and a dash of tribalism.

The rest of the ingredients are secret and available only from national Freedom Caucus bigwigs in Washington, D.C., and I’m sworn never to reveal what they are. Now, let’s see what happens when we heat if up!”

The redcoated mad scientist reads his texted instructions, stirs the mixture and cooks it over a bunsen burner. 

[{"type":"text","text":"The concoction begins to bubble and fizz. "}]

Finally it blows up with a loud plop, like an exploding skunk, and the lab is filled with a miasma of sulfurous yellow smoke that burns the eyes and smells like brimstone and buzzard puke.

The lab walls are dripping with a toxic goo that will take years to clean up. 

The mad scientist stands in front of the class, all his hair singed off and a look of shocked surprise coupled with glee on his bald face.

Evidence of the failed experiment litters the lab floor, still fizzing and bubbling – a scorched campaign check from the Checkgate scandal here, a pool of chemtrail paranoia there. 

Under the desk is a smoldering pile of UFO panic, still wearing a crumpled tinfoil Stetson. 

[{"type":"text","text":"Smoke rises from a proposal to sell state land for a dollar an acre."}]

The ashes of of the hopes of schools, small towns and counties coat the windowsills. 

[{"type":"text","text":"Books are blasted off the library shelves. "}]

[{"type":"text","text":"Shards of shattered civil liberties are scattered hither and yon. "}]

The carcass of a dead legislative agenda twitches in a dark corner of the lab. 

Election certificates of Freedom Caucus legislators are smeared with hilarious DUI bodycam videos, concealed felony convictions in Colorado and political flip-flops worthy of a contortionist in a snake oil show. 

The right-wing "media outlets" that serve as the pep squads for the Freedom Caucus carry the stench of the failed experiment, and their microscopic audience shrinks with every new scandal. 

Windows and doors are thrown open to air out the lab. Just then the bell rings, announcing a new election, and we want nothing more than to go home and shower off the residue of this experiment gone hideously awry. 

But before we can step carefully across the slippery floor toward the door, the mad scientist in the red blazer whines, “Hey, the people voted for this! Who wants to try this same experiment again on 8/18/26? Maybe we’ll get a different result.”

Rod Miller can be reached at: RodsMillerWyo@yahoo.com

Rod miller headshot scaled

Cowboy State Daily is Wyoming’s largest newspaper with Wyoming’s most experienced journalists. 

<title>Rod Miller: The Wyoming Freedom Caucus – Our Failed Experiment | Cowboy State Daily</title>

Columnist Rod Miller writes, "Imagine that we’re back in chemistry class and a mad scientist, dressed in a red blazer instead of a lab coat, is lecturing the class. He says, 'Class, today we’re gonna do the Freedom Caucus experiment.'"

Rod Miller: The Wyoming Freedom Caucus – Our Failed Experiment

Guest Column

Guest Columnists

When the Wyoming Freedom Caucus took control of the House, its leaders promised big changes. Speaker Chip Neiman famously declared to Politico: “We have 42 of 62 votes. We’re going to do big things.”

Wyoming voters deserve to ask a simple question:

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"}],"text":"What were those big things?"}]

Leadership should be measured by results — not press releases, social media posts, or political rhetoric.

After two years of Freedom Caucus control, the record raises serious concerns.

The House budget proposed deep reductions to state government, including eliminating the Wyoming Business Council, cutting funding for the University of Wyoming, reducing support for Native American health care programs, denying market-based raises for state employees, killing fire relief funds and shifting costs to local communities. 

Many of these proposals were rejected or significantly changed by the Senate because legislators from both chambers believed they would do more harm than good.  

Speaker Neiman’s leadership team had to suspend the rules and add an extra day to cram 200 plus amendments ti the budget down house members throats. 

Pressure from the public forced them into the public’s will.  The Neiman led Confrence committee folded to the Senate position in less than 30 minutes.. 

The Freedom Caucus also opposed putting significant surplus revenue into Wyoming’s Permanent Mineral Trust Fund and other long-term savings. 

Wyoming has built its financial strength by saving during prosperous years to protect future generations during downturns. Choosing not to save when revenues are strong is a major departure from decades of conservative fiscal policy.

This Legislature also failed to pass a supplemental budget—the first time in decades Wyoming went without one. Instead of resolving issues collaboratively, legislative leaders allowed political gridlock to replace practical governance.

Education became another battleground. The recalibration process, led by Freedom Caucus leadership, drew criticism from school districts across Wyoming. 

Local officials warned about unintended consequences, reduced local flexibility, and funding formulas that ignored real operating costs. Rather than listening to those concerns, the Freedom Caucus led recalibration committee doubled down.  

Their actions significantly took local control away and consolidated the power in Cheyenne  

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"}],"text":"Economic development also suffered. "}]

Proposals to eliminate the Wyoming Business Council would have jeopardized programs that help recruit employers, expand existing businesses, and create jobs in rural Wyoming. Conservatives should always demand accountability, but eliminating an agency without a transition plan is not reform—it’s abandonment.

Throughout the session, the focus often seemed to be on ideological fights instead of solving Wyoming’s most pressing challenges: keeping communities strong, supporting local governments, maintaining infrastructure, improving health care access, diversifying the economy, and preparing for the next energy transition.

Conservatism has traditionally meant careful stewardship of taxpayer dollars, planning for the future, supporting private enterprise, and making government work efficiently. It has never meant governing through constant conflict or measuring success by the number of headlines generated.

Wyoming deserves leaders who ask not, “How much can we cut?” but “What produces the best value for taxpayers?” There is a difference.

The real measure of legislative leadership is whether Wyoming is stronger when you leave than when you arrived.

They also brought in one of the biggest scandals in Wyoming history — "Check Gate" — tarnishing the entire legislature — forcing even more rules.  

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"}],"text":"So the question remains:"}]

If the Freedom Caucus promised to do “big things,” are Wyoming families better off today? Are local governments stronger? Are schools better prepared? Is the economy more diversified? Have permanent savings increased? Has the Legislature become more productive?

Those are questions every voter should answer based on the record—not the rhetoric.

Because in Wyoming, results still matter more than slogans.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"}],"text":"Sen. Ogden Driskill"}]

Driskill represents Senate District 1 in Wyoming and lives in Devils Tower

Ogden driskill headshot 7 30 26

<title>Guest Column: What Has Wyoming’s Freedom Caucus Actually Accomplished? | Cowboy State Daily</title>

Sen. Ogden Driskill writes, "When the Wyoming Freedom Caucus took control of the House, its leaders promised big changes. Speaker Chip Neiman famously declared to Politico: 'We have 42 of 62 votes. We’re going to do big things.' What were those big things?

Guest Column: What Has Wyoming’s Freedom Caucus Actually Accomplished?

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

Greg Johnson

Crime & Courts

Courts

Just because a Douglas man facing 72 child sex and pornography-related charges was a 

 on Tuesday doesn’t necessarily mean whoever put up $250,000 cash to bond him out of jail will lose all that money.

The Converse County Attorney’s Office could file a motion to revoke or forfeit all, some or none of Smallbone’s bond, said Steven Titus, a Gillette defense attorney.

Smallbone also could be ordered to pay for the costs of the Converse County Sheriff’s Office to go get him from San Francisco, where he was 

, four hours after he missed his court hearing.

And those costs could likely be pulled from that $250,000 bond, said Titus, adding that he’s referencing general options and not specifics about Smallbone’s case.

That said, he thinks Smallbone missing that hearing “was stupid,” and that it’s “very rare” for someone to not show up for court when a large amount of money or their home is on the line.

“I can’t remember the last time someone willingly missed court, knowingly missed court, with that kind of money on the line,” Titus said. “It’s really rare for something like this to happen.”

As of Thursday afternoon, Smallbone was still being held at the San Francisco County Jail on a fugitive warrant out of Wyoming.

He hasn’t yet been seen by a judge there and a hearing on his extradition to Wyoming hasn’t been set, according to the Superior Court of San Francisco.

When he does get back, Titus said he would be “shocked” if the judge in his case doesn’t revoke his bond altogether or raise it significantly.

“My guess is the judge will increase the bond, because if he wasn’t a flight risk before, he’s shown he is now,” Titus said.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Who Gets The Money?"}]

The Converse County Attorney’s Office so far hasn’t filed a motion to revoke or forfeit Smallbone’s bond, according to the public-facing court file in the case.

While he won’t comment on Smallbone’s case or circumstances, Converse County Deputy Prosecutor Nathan Shumway echoed Titus’ assessment that there are many things that can determine just how much — or little — bond is forfeited in a criminal case.

That process could include holding an evidentiary hearing to show someone “willfully violated a condition of their bond,” Shumway said in an email to Cowboy State Daily.

“In the instance of a failure to appear, what usually must be proven is that the failure to appear was willful, and not because of something outside the defendant’s control,” he said.

“If the State meets its burden, the Defendant’s bond is revoked and the process continues as if the person had admitted to violating their bond,” he added.

[{"type":"text","text":"If not, the bond is reinstated."}]

The $250,000 question some are asking now that Smallbone has been picked up for the second time within a week on a fugitive warrant in another state is: Where does that money go?

[{"type":"text","text":"It can be a variety of places, both Titus and Shumway said."}]

Some of the money can be used to repay costs associated with finding and apprehending someone on the run, and the court can implement penalties, Titus added.

[{"type":"text","text":"Whatever is left goes to local schools."}]

“When a bond is ordered forfeited by the court, the money is paid into the county treasury to the credit of the county’s public school fund, in accordance with Wyoming Statute 7-10-105,” Shumway said.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"How We Got Here"}]

Smallbone was released from jail June 24, when someone walked into the Converse County Detention Center with $250,000 cash.

He was arrested July 22 on a fugitive warrant in Fort Collins, Colorado, after investigators learned he may have been trying to flee Wyoming.

 on a personal recognizance bond before Converse County officials could bring him back to Wyoming.

Smallbone then was a no-show for his Tuesday arraignment hearing in Douglas, then about four hours later was arrested again in San Francisco, Sheriff Clint Becker reported.

Siegel hadn’t responded by Thursday afternoon to an offer to explain what happened in her courtroom with Smallbone.

The result was frustrating for law enforcement in two states, with Converse County Undersheriff Chris Walsh calling the release “a surprising twist” that left him “shocked.”

The Larimer County District Attorney’s Office in Colorado also has questioned how an accused child sex abuser was released.

“Mr. Smallbone was taken into custody on a valid and active warrant out of Wyoming, which included dozens of allegations of sexual crimes against children,” agency spokesperson Kylie Masserman said in a Monday email to Cowboy State Daily. 

She said her office asked Magistrate Siegel to also issue a $250,000 cash-only bond for Smallbone. 

That’s because the objective was “to keep him in custody until he could be transferred back to Wyoming to face his charges,” she said in the statement. “This request was consistent with what the Wyoming authorities requested and consistent with our practices on cases of this severity.”

Masserman said that instead, the personal recognizance bond was issued “contrary to our request.”

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

Meanwhile, Converse County officials were ready and waiting in case Smallbone did show up for his Tuesday hearing, or for any trouble that might ensue because of the nature of the allegations against him.

Sheriff Becker was leaning on a rail outside the justice center ahead of the scheduled hearing, flanked by five deputies. 

Three more deputies manned the security station just inside the front doors, and two Douglas cops were hanging out inside the courtroom.

While there were no emotional fireworks, Becker said he and his deputies were ready “just in case.”

It was the same inside the courtroom, which looked a bit like a shotgun wedding, with the 30 or so people watching from the gallery choosing to sit behind the prosecutor’s table.

[{"type":"text","text":"The hearing, scheduled to start at 3:30 p.m., was over by 3:35."}]

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

Smallbone’s charges relate to a trove of videos and child sexual abuse material (CSAM) allegedly found on his phone and electronic devices while Converse County investigators were looking into a report that he propositioned a young girl, according to a court affidavit.

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 Lt. Benjamin K.P. Peech of the Converse County Sheriff’s Office.

“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.

On those devices, investigators report that they found dozens of images and videos depicting prepubescent girls and boys performing a wide range of sex acts, the affidavit says. Many of the videos appear to have been created by Smallbone in rooms and spaces that are identifiable enough to connect them to alleged potential victims.

The most disturbing allegations stem from a series of at least seven videos that the affidavit reports allegedly show a young girl having her pants pulled down and being subjected to sex with a dog.

Along with the CSAM, investigators say they found “records indicating (his phone) had been used to connect to the Tor Browser, which is commonly used by subjects accessing CSAM to communicate within the Dark Web anonymously,” the affidavit says.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"}],"text":"He’s charged with:"}]

• 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).

At Tuesday’s hearing, Shumway said his office intends to file new, expanded charges against Smallbone. Those weren’t available in the public court files as of Thursday afternoon.

If convicted with maximum concurrent sentences, Smallbone could face up to 791 years in prison and fines of up to $710,000.

The most serious is the sexual abuse of a minor charge, which calls for a sentence of between 25 and 50 years.

Smallbone and courthouse 2 7 30 26

<title>What Happens To $250,000 Bond For Accused Sex Abuser Who No-Showed At Court | Cowboy State Daily</title>

Just because a Douglas man facing 72 child sex and pornography-related charges was a no-show for his arraignment hearing on Tuesday doesn’t necessarily mean whoever put up $250,000 cash to bond him out of jail will lose all that money.

What Happens To $250,000 Bond For Accused Sex Abuser Who No-Showed At Court

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

Clair McFarland

Government & Politics

Politics

Nineteen Republican state leaders, including a former Wyoming governor, have endorsed Steve Friess for U.S. House, the candidate’s team told Cowboy State Daily on Thursday.

Friess is in the final three weeks of a fiery race for the Republican nomination to the House seat Rep. Harriet Hageman is leaving to run for U.S. Senate.

Of the 14 endorsers Cowboy State Daily was able to reach Thursday for interviews, all touted Friess’s merits. A minority of four specifically voiced a desire to see someone beat Secretary of State Chuck Gray, who is one of Friess’s eight GOP opponents.

Former Gov. Jim Geringer said he’s endorsing Friess “because he’s the right guy.”

Geringer also pointed to Gray’s upbringing in California and said, “I don’t see him as being connected and aware enough of national issues to be able to handle what Steve Friess has already done.”

Friess has said that he organized a group of top Washington, D.C., attorneys to craft ready-made executive order proposals for President Donald Trump ahead of his first inauguration in 2017. The Friess family also kick-started Charlie Kirk’s group Turning Point USA and a host of other conservative groups and causes.

Gray was elected to the state Legislature in 2016 and served for six years. He was elected Secretary of State in 2022 and has repeatedly pushed the Legislature for election reform, resulting in the passage of several new election laws.

[{"type":"text","text":"Both men point to pro-life victories."}]

Gray and Friess also face state Senate President Bo Biteman, Casper businessman Reid Rasner, former Superintendent of Public Instruction Jillian Balow, former legislator Keith Goodenough, singer/actor Richard Dodson, and military veterans David Giralt and Kevin Christensen.

[{"type":"text","text":"The primary election is Aug. 18."}]

“Steve has a lot of skill. ‘Hochma’ is the word in the Old Testament: wisdom,” said former legislator Nathan Winters. 

Winters said that wisdom manifests in Friess’s four children, whom he cast as well-educated and thoughtful.

“As I’ve watched Steve, he’s just a remarkable person to run for that office,” said Winters.

Winters runs a Christian-issues advocacy group, Wyoming Family Alliance. But he said he gives his endorsement in his private capacity, not in connection with any group.

Most of the endorsers matched Winters’ attitude of praise. A minority of four added negative comments about Gray.

“Oh, I mean I’m not going to get into personal attacks,” said former Senate President Tony Ross, a Republican from Cheyenne, when saying why he wants someone to beat Gray. “I mean I think it’s self-evident. Jeez-Louise.”

Former state Rep. Elaine Harvey, a Big Horn County Republican, went further. On the one hand, she praised Friess on a nuanced policy level, saying she agrees with his approaches to public-lands management, health insurance and energy policy.

On the other hand, Harvey said she’s “disgusted” with Gray, in particular for his recurring spats with Gov. Mark Gordon in state board meetings.

[{"type":"text","text":"The other endorsers are:"}]

The four who voiced specific desires to see someone beat Gray were Geringer, Ross, Harvey and Ron Micheli. The rest were silent on that topic, sticking to Friess’s merits.

[{"type":"text","text":"‘Tired Class Of Political 1% Insiders’"}]

Gray in a Thursday text message called the endorsers a “tired class of political 1% insiders.”

“It’s not a surprise that Jackson Hole socialite Steve Friess is receiving the support of the same 1% insiders who want woke data centers and woke wind projects,” wrote Gray.

Not all of Friess’s endorsers have voiced a position on wind farms and data centers. Dockstader was one of seven Senate Republicans who voted against 

giving tax breaks to large data centers in 2010

Gray has come out against data centers, while Friess has said state and county governments – not Congress – should lead data center permitting decisions in ways that protect Wyomingites.

[{"type":"text","text":"Both men tout a pro-traditional-energy stance."}]

“Jackson socialite Steve Friess has rounded up the same tired class of political 1% insiders who have spent years trying to stop the silent majority and who are upset that I’ve been so successful in advancing common sense election integrity measures,” Gray continued.

Bebout rebutted that, saying "I call B.S." Bebout said he dislikes wind farms insofar as they're associated with government subsidies; and he approves of much of Gray's advocacy for election reform. He said he disapproves of Gray's approach to state land boards, where, Bebout said, he'd "try to make a stand or try to be, just ridiculous. And he doesn't fit." 

Gray alleged a “silent majority of Wyoming will see through this attempt by the insiders, with their media allies at Cowboy State Daily – which is owned by Friess allies in Jackson – to get behind a Jackson based insider candidate.”

Gray asserted that Friess is trying to “manufacture” momentum but “isn’t even in 2nd place in this race.”

[{"type":"text","text":"Then Give The Jackson Money Back, Says Friess"}]

[{"type":"text","text":"Friess countered in his own interview."}]

“Now isn’t Chuck the insider, with the new GOP trying to put the thumb on the scale for him?” he asked.

One of Gray’s recent slogans has been for people not to “let Jackson buy” the race.

Friess had the biggest war chest as of July 1 with $2.5 million, followed by Rasner at $2 million and Gray at nearly $1.4 million. Each of those three has loaned himself more than $1 million.

“I’m curious then, if he’s interested in returning the checks he’s received from donors in Jackson Hole,” said Friess. “If Jackson money is a bad thing.”

Donations from Jackson residents to Gray’s campaign committee as of July 1 totaled $59,000, or just over a quarter of his individual contributions, according to the U.S. Federal Election Commission (FEC).

[{"type":"text","text":"But Not Tom Lubnau"}]

Former House Speaker and Cowboy State Daily columnist Tom Lubnau didn’t join the list of Friess endorsers.

He speculated that for an endorser list that big to emerge suddenly, someone is purposefully coordinating endorsements for Friess.

Lubnau theorized that Friess is trying to benefit from an “Anyone-but-Chuck” mantra that’s surfaced within the past couple weeks among some Wyomingites.

 last week that he and Gray are tied in the polls and it’s a “two-man race.” 

 that Friess’s argument is, “hold your nose and vote for me, or else your U.S. Representative might be Chuck Gray.”

[{"type":"text","text":"Lubnau clarified in a Thursday interview."}]

“It wasn’t a comment about Steve Friess. I was commenting on what the campaign tactic looked like – by coming out and saying ‘We’re (Friess and Gray) both at 16% so vote for me.’”

[{"type":"text","text":"Lubnau said he hadn’t seen that strategy used in a statewide campaign."}]

Even in the 2016 primary election where Liz Cheney narrowly won the nomination to U.S. House against eight other Republican contenders, Lubnau said, he can’t remember one of the candidates using a unite-against-Liz strategy.

To the columnist, Friess’s messaging looks like, “Abandon your affection for the candidate you’re in love with and vote for me – as part of the ABC (anyone-but-Chuck) movement.”

U.S. House candidate Steve Friess received 19 endorsements Thursday by Republican lawmakers, former legislators, energy industry leaders and Gov. Jim Geringer. Chuck Gray called them "a tired class of political 1% insiders" who support "woke wind projects."

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