Cowboy State Politics

Morning Reload - Cyrus Western Censured By Sheridan GOP 3/20

Rep Cyrus Western was censured by the Sheridan County GOP during its quarterly meeting Saturday.

Weekend Update - It’s Up to Parents 3/18

House leadership seems to be in favor of gender ideology, diversity, equity and inclusion and not parental rights.  They didn't do anything of consequence regarding education.  So, it's up to parents.  Before the session ended I sat down with the ladies that run Parents Defending Education.

Replay -Live Episode March 16

Cowboy State Politics Live March 16, 2023.  Executive orders on guns; Uinta County's 'traditional' Republicans and more.

Rep Harriet Hageman in Buffalo 3/15

Rep Hageman held a town hall in Buffalo on March 14.  She covered a wide range of topics--everything from the federal debt, Fauci, AI, her vote for Kevin McCarthy and her thoughts on the 2023 Legislative Session.  It was interesting who WAS NOT in attendance.  It was a fantastic discussion.

Morning Reload - Atheism in the Red Star 3/13

The Red Star published an op-ed claiming we aren't aren't a Christian nation.  We certainly started out that way but are we still one?  It claims that the Freedom Caucus is to blame for all of our state's problems. 

Weekend Update - Property Tax Bait & Switch 3/11

What all of your legislators are calling property tax reform couldn't be farther from it.  Really it's a bait and switch to get you to vote for them...again.

Live Replay - Cowboy State Politics March 9, 2023

Replay for Cowboy State Politics Live from March 9, 2023

Rep. Hageman’s Response to the 2023 Session 3/8

Rep Harriet Hageman responds to what happened (or didn't) in this year's legislative session.  She responds to criticism from state lawmakers and weighs in on the impact of passed legislation.  She also discusses some of her priorities in the U.S. House.

Teaser - Rep Harriet Hageman Responds

On Wednesday, U.S. Representative Harriet Hageman joins me for an exclusive interview.

Morning Reload - Stories You Told Constituents 3/6

Our representatives are home and they have all kinds of stories to tell us.  None of them are really true of course, but at least there's lots for them to talk about.  There really is no tax reform and they killed just about every bill that we cared about.

Weekend Update - Gold & Governor Gordon’s Remarks

Gold was one bill debated this past week.  The discussion exposes how clueless House leadership is.  In Governor Gordon's closing remarks he once again said we are relying on the federal government--the last thing we should be doing.

Replay - Live Broadcast March 2, 2023

Replay of Cowboy State Politics Live from March 2.  Cyrus Western.  How completely biased the Wyoming media is and how they try to drive policy.

Convention of States Smackdown 3/1

The WY House killed the Convention of States Resolution 21-41--a clear message.  Some great speeches from the floor.  Landon Brown makes some ill advised tweets. And there's a whole bunch of stuff that Youtube doesn't show you about the Wyoming Legislature.

Morning Reload - It’s Still Called Abuse 2/27

Albert Sommers is holding several bills in his drawer.  One of them is SF117 which would ban teaching gender and sexuality to kindergartners through 3rd grade.  He claims that none of that is happening in Wyoming.  Gender ideology is being taught in Wyoming Schools.  Here's the proof.

Weekend Update - Stuck in Casper 2/25

I'm stuck in Casper with Representative Mark Jennings.  With limited sound equipment to work with, we still managed to put together an interview about this year's session.

News Update - Thank the Senate Ag Cmte 2/24

The Senate Ag Committee passed the Life is a Human Right Act 5-0.  As promised, my testimony in House Revenue against the Convention of States and Rod is out with another one of his crazy columns.

Bills in the Butcher Shop 2/22

House committees have taken to using "substitute bills" to accomplish what they want to do.  So far they have used the measure on 4 pieces of legislation without consulting the bill's sponsor or even mentioning it to them.  Senators Bo Biteman, Lynn Hutchings and Rep Jeremy Haroldson have been their latest victims.

Morning Reload - The More You Vote Like a Democrat 2/20

Legislative rankings are in at the 3/4 mark for the 2023 session.  It's even more obvious that there are no moderates.  The Red Star wants to talk about hypocrisy, maybe they should look in the mirror.  Also an update on the Cyrus Western/Bill Novotny fiasco.

Weekend Update - Charlie Kirk in Jackson 2/18

Charlie Kirk was the keynote speaker at the Teton County GOP Patriot Dinner.  Rep Andrew Byron has an interesting voting record and it has nothing to do with being a Republican.

Stacked Committees 2/15

House committees were stacked with liberals to prevent conservative legislation from reaching the floor.  Not a single one has a conservative chairman.  The cross-over voting bill has been revived in the Senate.

Breaking - Washut Threatens Ranking Member with Removal 2/14

Breaking: Chairman Art Washut threatens ranking member Mark Jennings with removal because of a vote.  He also threw the press out of a legal committee meeting.

Morning Reload - Corner Crossing Conundrum 2/13

The corner crossing issue can't be solved by a single bill.  The problem was created by the legislature a very long time ago.  Senate File 56 won't do anything except create criminals out of well meaning sportsmen.

Weekend Update - Tax Breaks for the Wealthy! 2/11

Rep Steve Harshman thinks that only the wealthy will benefit from a cap on property taxes--and he said so!  The conservative media is trying to claim that the conservatives torpedoed tax reform but there's a big reason why they killed the Constitutional Amendment.

A Tale of Two Bills 2/8

Two bills in the Wyoming House have grabbed the attention of everyone more than any other.  HB00143 is a ban on health mandates from the CDC and WHO and HB00152 is another abortion ban.  Both have faced stiff opposition and until today have survived without being amended.

Morning Reload - 37 Democrats in the House 2/6

The mid-session legislative rankings are out.  They paint a very telling picture of Wyoming legislators.  The data shows that there really are 37 Democrats in the House of Representatives and not 5.

Weekend Update - Keeping Porn in Schools 2/4

HB87 would have held teachers and librarians accountable for blatant pornographic material in public schools.  The Revenue Committee killed the bill but not before the ALA claimed there's no obscene material in Wyoming libraries.  Sheridan College President Walter Tribley compared pornography to the Bible.

Bonus - Lights Out at the Legislature

The only known recording of the Wyoming House of Representatives February 3, 2023 PM Session during the power outage.

Voting With Your Campaign Contributors 2/1

Once again, the House voted against your medical freedom and with their campaign contributors.  They killed HB66 which would have banned mask and vaccine mandates.  Also, I tangled with the President of Convention of States Action in the Corporations Committee.

Morning Reload - Legislative Impressions 1/30

A group discussion between Representatives Scott Smith, Tony Locke, Mark Jennings and Ken Pendergraft about their impressions of the first three weeks of the legislature.

Breaking - Report Implicates Western and Novotny 1/29

A Sheridan County Sheriff's Report implicates Rep Cyrus Western and Johnson County Commission Chairman Bill Novotny in illegal campaign activity.  More details are coming.  Jeff Wallack responds to the report.

Weekend Update - How to Steal a Fairgrounds 1/28

A group in Jackson is trying to gain control of the Historic Teton County Fairgrounds to give it to a private developer.  I have the documents to prove it.  Also, the House voted to give themselves a raise.

Outlawing Chemical Abortions - Tim Salazar 1/25

Chemical abortions account for 53% of all babies killed each year.  Sen Tim Salazar's bill would almost completely outlaw that practice.  Also, the House debated increasing the minimum age for marriage.

Morning Reload - Bills That Threaten Journalists 1/23

The "News Source Shield Law," or HB0091 is not unlike the "Inflation Reduction Act."  Neither of them do what they purport to do.  HB91 directly threatens journalists and whistleblowers in defamation cases.

Weekend Update - Ember Oakley and Library Books 1/21

All bills get assigned to committees--some to be passed, others to be killed.  Jeanette Ward's HB87 is now in the Revenue Committee.  There's at least one member of that committee that doesn't even want to give it a hearing.

Replay - Live Episode 1/19/23

Replay of Cowboy State Politics Live from January 19, 2023

We’re All Radicals Pt2 1/18

The House struck a compromise on the rules that works for both sides.  A flashback to a year ago.

Morning Reload - Overtick the Plumbling 1/16

Today is the floor debate on the rules.  The Redcoats have decided to put off the discussion of the manual and instead are opting to debate only a few rule changes.  Also, curiously, the House is way behind schedule.  In this episode, I provide the reason.

Morning Reload - Overtick the Plumbing 1/16

Today is the floor debate on the rules.  The Redcoats have decided to put off the discussion of the manual and instead are opting to debate only a few rule changes.  Also, curiously, the House is way behind schedule.  In this episode, I provide the reason.

Weekend Update - Simple Bills, Big Consequences1/14

The pomp and circumstance is over and we have finally got down to business.  One seemingly innocuous bill is HB0028.  It increases the threshold under which community colleges don't have to seek approval to spend your money.  Representative Chip Neiman gave me his perspective.

Replay - Live Episode 1/12/23

Replay of Cowboy State Politics Live for January 12, 2023

The Media’s Misleading You From Day 1 1/23

The Wyoming press can't seem to give you an accurate reporting of the facts.  The Casper Star Tribune published an untrue report of Secretary of State Chuck Gray's speech from yesterday.  Also the bills are coming in and many of them deserve your attention.

Morning Reload -The Odd Couple’s Rules / HD44 Tamara Trujillo

Albert Sommers and Ogden Driskill are having a hard time understanding why everyone is shocked at their proposed rule changes.  They shouldn't be, they've already talked about the problems that would create.  Tamara Trujillo joins me to discuss the upcoming legislative session.

Weekend Update - A Mess Explained: U.S. Rep Harriet Hageman 1/7

In an exclusive interview, U.S. Representative Harriet Hageman joins me to explain what we all witnessed this week.  Shocker, it's not what the media made it out to be.  But it was a good result.

Flashback - They’re in Bed With Lobbyists

It's important to remember who we are dealing with in Cheyenne--politicians. Over a year ago, Wyoming held a special legislative session to deal with vaccine mandates from the Biden Administration.  But the fix was in from the beginning.

Morning Reload - The Outgoing Secretary 1/2

Outgoing Wyoming Secretary of State has an interesting perspective on the office he held for around 3 months.  His experience up to that point was confined to the Wyoming Republican Party.  He joined me to reflect on what it's like to be on the inside of an office he was sometimes at odds with.  Also, what is being done about the state of "journalism" in Wyoming.

Weekend Update - Not Winning? Change the Rules! 12/31

Happy New Year's Eve!  The Redcoats lost their super majority in the House.  They've decided to just try to change the rules to make up for it!  Documents obtained by Cowboy State Politics prove it! 

2023 Legislative Outlook: HD42 Ben Hornok

The Democrats are singing the blues about their recent performance.  I can't blame them, most of their members are hiding in the Republican Party.  A conversation with Representative-Elect Ben Hornok of House District 42.

Morning Reload - Two Sides of the Isle 12/26

Most of the folks in Cheyenne claim to be conservative Republicans but a lot of them are no different that liberal Democrats.  Now, they have inadvertently created two sides of the aisle in the Wyoming Legislature.  One simple piece of paper tells the entire story!

The Man and the Birds 12/24

On this Christmas Eve, a Christmas story.

2022 Christmas Eve Special

The Cowboy State Politics Christmas Eve Special!!  A couple of guests join me, as well as some music and a couple of Christmas stories!  This is a must listen!