CASPER, WY —
“Does anyone make a living catching horses?” asked Gabriel the Bull. On a hot, windy July night, the singer-songwriter took to the stage at a concert venue in a converted farm on the outskirts of town. Deep inside the cottonwoods, someone let out a half-hearted scream. otherwise it is silent. “Oh my god, Wyoming, what’s wrong?” he muttered.
That’s a question I’ve asked myself over and over again. This summer, as I was knocking on doors on behalf of moderate Republican candidates and working as an election judge in the Aug. 20 Wyoming primary, I noticed that my friends and neighbors were increasingly leaning to the right, and their I watched my opinions become more and more untenable. We are a crew jumping up and down, seared with fear.
So, do you have a story to tell? Wyoming’s primary, with more than 90% of races decided before Election Day, solidified the state’s Freedom Caucus majority in the state legislature and emphasized its MAGA identity. It was the lowest turnout in a decade, but the result echoed what I saw and heard on the campaign trail: a skeptical, angry, demotivated, and exhausted (take your pick) crowd. This result confirms that there are partisan Republican voters.
With each doorbell press, I heard disinformation and apathy, but also from many people, including all conservatives, refusing to accept the Republican Party’s dark message that the nation is in decline. I’ve heard some people say that they did (I’m one of them). Many people were trying really hard to do the right thing, but they didn’t know what to believe. But the tallies don’t lie. When in doubt, we vote with our tribe.
It is about the kind of people we are becoming: parroting menacing agendas, downplaying facts, and putting our lives in the hands of candidates who represent our worst instincts. This reflects that we are becoming a nation that is willing to delegate. Two-thirds of Wyoming’s Republican congressional delegation are election deniers. Senator Cynthia Lummis voted against certifying the results of the 2020 presidential election. Rep. Harriet Hageman, who defeated Liz Cheney in 2022, said the 2020 election was “rigged.”
Wyoming voters are choosing a candidate pushing a far-right message that echoes former President Trump’s fight songs: The state is on the verge of bankruptcy, has allowed soaring property taxes and tolerated fragile housing. It is a tyrannical government run by spendthrift RINOs. An electoral system threatened by illegal immigration.
None of this is true. Wyoming’s tax burden ranks 48th in the nation with no income or corporate taxes. The state is largely unaffected by illegal immigration. Less than 1% of the population are illegal immigrants. Overall, the immigrant population remains relatively stable at less than 4%. Our elections are secure, with only three recorded incidents of voter fraud since 2000. Recent testing of the voting equipment showed it to be 100% accurate.
Our quality of life is not just good, it is rich. Here in the High Plains, we have clean air and deep relationships. Worst traffic jam? Bison crossing in Yellowstone. As neighbors, we have access to political leaders.
However, it is not without its problems. Wyoming’s energy economy is making a difficult transition toward renewable energy. We are facing a mental health crisis, and our suicide rate ranks third in the nation. There is an exodus of young people. There are certainly difficult problems, but there are few seeds of rebellion.
But the state continues to move far to the right as voters embrace a fear-based message divorced from reality. Moderate Republican House Speaker Albert Somers, a rancher and electrician, dispatched Laura Taliaferro, a school bus driver, rancher, and political newcomer who sent incendiary mail to voters. It was Mr. Pearson. The Virginia-based organization Make Liberty Win was behind misleading emails supporting Freedom Caucus candidates. Some falsely accused several Republican lawmakers of trying to remove Trump from the ballot. Some gave voters the wrong dates for the primary and used a photo of a Virginia man to depict a Wyoming candidate with the same name.
Nevertheless, the strategy worked.
The far-right takeover of the country was swift, well-organized, and breathtaking in its behind-the-scenes attacks and dangerous rhetoric. John Baer, former chairman of the Wyoming Freedom Caucus, likened his group to a “military force ready to fight and stand up for the people of Wyoming.” This enthusiasm is evidenced by the overwhelming support for President Trump, who has advised all Americans to prepare for World War III. Wyoming people take that to heart. During this summer’s election campaign, Freedom Caucus candidates appeared on the parade circuit atop military tanks, and the optics were hard to ignore.
Belief overcomes fact and anxiety is palpable. Wyoming is itching for a fight. The SNF Agora Institute’s Political Attitudes Survey conducted in May found that 82% of Wyoming conservatives believe violence is justified to advance their political goals. did. Only 30% believe President Biden won the 2020 election.
“Someone’s going to get hurt,” a friend recently told me after describing a particularly tense meeting about the gravel pit project, an issue that animated my hometown of Casper. I continued to feel this tension. As I investigated, I adjusted the knocks on each door. I noticed that the welcome mat cheerfully read “Home Guarded by Smith and Wesson.” The bumper sticker reads, “My pit bull is okay, I’m the one you should worry about.” A flag that says “Biden is not my president.” I often made decisions on the spot and moved to the house next door.
In other years, door knocking was fun, a way to catch up with friends and make a case for a candidate. Not this time. One acquaintance refused to open the glass door separating us. Hey, what I wanted to say is that your daughter babysat my kids. We sold donuts together in the church lobby. Her message was clear. “Please leave.”
This retreat into a corner confuses me. It’s unsettling, and it’s the collapse of our cherished view of the state as a small town with one long street. We not only lose our identity, we also lose our soul.
This is how Rabbid wins. Traditional Republicans, conservatives – call them what you want – we have been beaten down, shamed for interacting with perceived enemies, ridiculed for accepting data and facts, and challenged by the law. is accused of loyalty to the rule of I mourn the loss of the Albert Summers of this country, the thoughtful leaders who were unsuited to this new, gritty organization and unwilling to spread fiction and promote the language of war. When we withdraw from the arena, only the barbarians remain.
Susan Stubson is an author, attorney, and 6th generation Wyoming native.
