Wyoming Vote Tracker

My fellow Wyomingites, this year we face an important and historic election cycle in this state. I know many of you (myself included) are somewhat distraught about the Republican Presidential nomination process. Our nominee has been picked for us by the influence of Independents and Democrats in open primary states and the struggle of having two conservatives in the race vying for the same block of voters.

Let not your heart be troubled. It’s not the end of the world because we didn’t get our favored nominee. It just means we’re gonna have to do some self-examination and regrouping in the party over the next four to eight years.

On another, more exciting token, we have a rare event taking place in Wyoming this year. All three seats of our D.C. representation are up for election this year! Sen. Mike Enzi’s second term is about to expire; Sen. John Barrasso needs to survive the primary in August and the general election in November to finish out the term begun by our beloved Sen. Craig Thomas. Rep. Barbara Cubin has announced that this will be her last term.

Democrats are going to be pouring money and attention into this state like never before. We must be strong and unified, and pick candidates that have Wyoming’s interests at heart. Senators Enzi and Barrasso have been chipping away at the Washington way of doing things in D.C. and they’re gradually getting hearts changed to see the wisdom of legislating the way we do in Wyoming. They deserve our support, but this endorsement is not about them.

When Barbara Cubin leaves office next January, we have a huge opportunity to send someone to fill her shoes and continue representing Wyoming values in the U.S. House. Gary Trauner will have to campaign on issues and not on how many votes Rep. Cubin missed, because now he’ll be facing a Republican that has not held office in D.C. For this reason, we need a good, conservative Republican that, as a state, we can rally around and support, and not have to worry about a group of Republicans rising up, like some did in 2006, to give support to a Democrat that does not have our interests at heart.

You are probably aware that there is quite a slate of Republican candidates running to be Wyoming’s vote. They all have their unique perspectives on what needs to be done and why they should be our choice. They all have their own individual strengths and weaknesses. While weaknesses have their place in consideration, I like to focus on strengths. With the exception of this year’s Presidential election, when was the last time you talked with some one about an election, and you said “I’m voting for Candidate X in spite of this short list of concerns.” Typically, we say, “I’m voting for Candidate X because they stand for A, B, and C.”

I have considered my vote and endorsement. On March 15th, I had the pleasure of attending the Big Horn County Lincoln Day Dinner. Our Secretary of State, Max Maxfield was the M.C. of the event. In his closing remarks, noting the array of candidates and campaigns, particularly on the U.S. House race, he encouraged us to find the candidate we like and get excited about them and help their campaign out in whatever way possible. Over the past several days, I’ve thought about what Mr. Maxfield said, and I’ve come to the conclusion that he was right. For a few months, I’ve had a preference in this race. It’s time to make that preference my choice.

Admittedly, it’s not easy when you have a large slate, but you can gradually sift through them, until the best one remains. I have met some of the candidates, and they all have good personalities. They’re kind, willing to talk, and willing to listen. They are real people, and they understand that voters are real people too. However, there is more to a choice than a personal encounter or two. Issues and experience are major factors in a political race such as this.

The U.S. House of Representatives is the legislative body that starts the process for appropriation and revenue bills. Granted, the Senate can amend anything the House sends over, but the two bodies have to pass the exact same bill before the President can receive it.

When it comes to working with government budgets, there is one candidate in the Wyoming Republican Congressional primary that stands out like a shining star. You can finally breathe; relax the grip you have on your seat; her name is Cynthia Lummis, and she is a well known and respected individual in the state of Wyoming.

Cynthia Lummis served 14 years in the Wyoming House and Senate with a focus on natural resources and taxes. While she was State Treasurer, she worked to more than double the state’s $3.5 billion investment portfolio to a fully diversified $8.5 billion portfolio, invested in equities, real estate and fixed income investments, public and private, domestic and international. She wants to help Washington see that Wyoming has a great model when it comes to budgets; that you can have a surplus, spend on needs, and still have money left over to save, and you don’t have raise taxes to achieve all this!

Today, she shares her knowledge around the world at sovereign wealth management conferences. At these conferences, she presents the common-sense capitalist American point of view, and she even gets Wyoming on the globe, telling foreign dignitaries about the success story of Wyoming’s budget during her time as State Treasurer.

Natural resources is still an issue that Cynthia Lummis cares about. In 2007 , she was on the Subcommittee on Royalty Management which audited the federal mineral royalty collection and enforcement functions carried out by the Department of the Interior. She believes Wyoming has resources and answers that Washington can use to make America energy independent.

Cynthia Lummis was one of the leading conservatives in the process of filling the Senate seat now held by Sen. Barrasso. When you review the process of narrowing the field of candidates from 31, to 10, to 5, and finally to 3, it stands to reason that Cynthia Lummis would not have survived to the final vote if she had not convinced the state central committee that she would be a conservative voice to represent Wyoming.

While she wasn’t the Governor’s choice to be our next Senator, she didn’t give up on her aspirations to continue on serving Wyoming. I can tell you that this woman will work for your vote. I have experienced it first-hand. Not to say that no one else approached me or contacted me for my vote and endorsement.

The supporters of Cynthia Lummis that I’ve met are a good group of people, and they have shown their support for someone that they and I believe to be an extraordinary candidate, and I consider it an honor to be able to join their ranks, and to encourage you to sign up to do what you can to help Cynthia Lummis be our Republican nominee for U.S. House. On August 19, 2008, I’ll be voting for Cynthia Lummis in the Wyoming Republican Primary, and I hope that you’ll join me in doing the same.

2 Comments »