1. It was long. Very long.
2. It was repetitive. Very repetitive.
3. It was interesting and exciting. Despite the length and the unfortunate repetitiveness of a lot of the questions, it really was an amazing process and an incredible event to be able to observe.
I am very pleased with the list that we are submitting to the Governor tomorrow morning. Tom Sansonetti and John Barrasso are amazing and you couldn’t ask for two better Republicans. Cynthia Lummis is very nice, but too nice. So nice it was a little annoying after a while. I know more than one person felt the same way… I wish we could have just told her to stop smiling and act serious for once! I also wasn’t impressed with too many of her answers. That said, I hear that she really doesn’t have much of a chance for Freudenthal to pick her. Apparently he’s not her biggest fan. That leaves Sansonetti and Barrasso for him to choose between, either of which will be a great Senator for Wyoming and a very strong contender in 2008. I really wish Micheli would have been the third candidate instead of Lummis, but I’m satisfied with the results overall.
Here are some notable quotes from the three candidates (with my comments non-italicized):
Barrasso:
- “You can count on me to show up, stand up, speak up, and shut up.” I love that summary of what a Senator should do. Show up is pretty basic. Stand up for the people of Wyoming and speak up for issues that matter most. And finally, just shut up and act.
- “This is my philosophy for government: helping people help themselves.”
- I didn’t get the exact transcript, but I really liked Barrasso’s answer during the questioning session about his passions. He mentioned all of his hard work on the Laci Peterson Act - introducing it a total of three times and finally having it pass the state House and Senate before being vetoed by our DemonRatic Governor.
- “Bring ‘em on. I’m ready for any one of ‘em. I don’t know who they’re going to nominate and I don’t care.” In response to a rather weird question about who he thinks the Democrats will nominate against us next year. Easily the best statement of the day.
Sansonetti:
- I have to admit that I don’t really have a lot of pithy, memorable quotes from Sansonetti. That is not to say, however, that he did not make an incredibly strong showing and say a lot of good things. I just happened not to write any of them down. ;) I liked how he emphasized both his fiscal conservatism and his social conservatism. Also mentioned being a strict constructionist and pro-10th amendment, etc.
- Concerning compromise (when to do it and when not to) -”Frankly, each and every one of us up here have a very good conservative traditional philosophy… You gotta start with a line and know that you will not go beyond it.”
- Discussing the issue that he’s been passionate about and shown leadership, he brought up his efforts to move our presidential primary up to January - “The problem came from the fact that even though we are one of the most conservative states, we have seldom had the chance to select our president. And I felt that it was time for Wyoming to be put on an equal playing field as New Hampshire…”
- On how to stay connected with Wyomingites when you have so much to do in Washington - “Plug into staff, plug into the state’s media, and make sure you’re on committees that meet a lot [about issues that are important to WY].”
Lummis:
- My paraphrase of a point she made repeatedly: “Let the states due their thing so that the federal government is freed up to do their thing.”
- Mentioned Teddy Roosevelt and John Adams as dead role models and her husband and daughter as living ones. Interesting?
- Oh, I have to be honest. I really found it hard to listen to anything she said because she was so darn smiley. And honestly, some of her answers just made me uncomfortable.
And that’s my two cents, for whatever it’s worth. I met a ton of interesting (and influential!) people today and had a great time overall… near death experience with boredom notwithstanding. As far as I can tell (and based upon the information I’ve received from numerous knowledgeable Republicans), we are going to have a solidly conservative, pro-life Senator within the next week. I’m excited, like any good government nerd should be. 
Sounds like an interesting batch of folks.
Here is some biographical information on the 3 finalists. I didn’t look too hard, but it should be a little helpful:
Tom Sansonetti
Dr. John Barrasso
Cynthia Lummis : Scroll down
You all know Cynthia is pro-choice don’t ya?
what the heck! - it’s hard to take your comment seriously when you don’t even have the decency to leave a name. I’ve actually been told by a lot of reputable Republicans that Lummis is very pro-life. What sort of information do you have that she’s not? I really would like to know because I wouldn’t support her at all if she were pro-choice. I already don’t support her much because I just wasn’t impressed with her presentation, but you do have me curious.
I’m not leaving my name. You’re a creature of the web. You should know why. Until I know I can trust you, I wouldn’t dare leave my name. Is your real name tieki rae?
I was told by a person I would trust that Cynthia is indeed pro-choice. But I’m not asking you to believe me. Call her and ask. I think she’s one of the few candidates that wasn’t asked that question either at the forum or under questioning by the R’s. I think most people assume, just like you do. Neither of us will know if we’re correct unless one of us asks.
You’re the political animal, not me. I have no connections or feelings toward one candidate or another. I think they’re all strong Republicans. And the Gov. has a tough decision ahead of him. And that was the point. But I have been told that she does not support your cause.
WTH - you’ve been told wrong, because I know central committee members who specifically asked about her stance on pro-life issues when they were interviewing her.
And just to be clear, I don’t ask for people’s real names, I just appreciate something to address people with other than “what the heck!”, which is a bit on the ridiculous side. And yes, tieki rae actually is a name that I go by. It’s been my nickname since I was a baby.
By the way, you should also know that since I’m a “creature of the internet” I do have tools to know where my visitors come from and I could tell you what town in WY you’re from. Not trying to creep you out, but don’t be under the false impression that you’re completely anonymous anywhere you go on the internet just because you don’t leave a name.