Wyoming Democratic Party : Blogger

One Year of the Affordable Care Act: We've Come a Long Way

brianna@wyomingdemocrats.com (Brianna Jones) — Wed, 23 Mar 2011 14:52:22 CDT

When President Obama signed the health reform law, the Affordable Care Act, on March 23, 2010, it was a moment that was decades in the making. Presidents from both parties had attempted to reform our health care system and as President Obama said, he wasn't the first President to try and pass health reform, but he was determined to be the last.

This year, Vice President Biden has recorded a new video looking at the work to pass reform and how the law is already helping...

Better Benefits, Better Health for Small Businesses

brianna@wyomingdemocrats.com (Brianna Jones) — Mon, 21 Mar 2011 14:36:57 CDT

Re-posted from http://www.healthcare.gov/foryou/betterbenefitsbetterhealth/index.html
By Richard Sorian

This week, we will be marking the one year anniversary of enactment of the Affordable Care Act and kicking off the Better Benefits, Better Health Initiative. This initiative will highlight the important information consumers, families and businesses need to get the benefits of reform.

We're kicking off the...

2011 Legislative Update - Week 7

brianna@wyomingdemocrats.com (Brianna Jones) — Sat, 26 Feb 2011 15:38:12 CST

This week was the final week for legislation to make it off of general file in the second body. It looks like the last day of the session will be next Friday (3/4).

At this point in the session things begin to move rather quickly and it is easy to be confused about procedure. This is a quick explanation of certain procedure as mentioned below: If legislation passes third reading in both houses, without amendments, it goes to the Governor. If the second body...

Democrats Brought Problem-Solving Proposals to 61st Legislative Session

brianna@wyomingdemocrats.com (Brianna Jones) — Fri, 25 Feb 2011 10:27:05 CST

Cheyenne, WY: Legislation brought by Democrats during the 61st Legislative Session focused on solving specific problems that affect Wyoming citizens. Democrats emphasized good government and practical solutions for the people of Wyoming and opposed legislation that interferes in the private lives of citizens and serves no public policy purpose. Democrats supported and proposed legislation to enhance the economy and bring jobs to the state, strengthen Wyoming...

Legislature Votes Not to Recognize Same-Sex Marriages; Take Major Step to Void Civil Contracts

brianna@wyomingdemocrats.com (Brianna Jones) — Fri, 18 Feb 2011 17:20:01 CST

Cheyenne, WY: Today Wyoming Senate passed a bill that would refuse to recognize same-sex marriages from other states or nations. In this unprecedented step the overwhelmingly Republican lawmaking body made the decision to explicitly condone the expansion of government by voiding legally binding, civil contracts.

The full Democratic Caucus opposed the bill and offered legislation that would create civil unions in the state of Wyoming as an...

House Refuses to Support Wyoming's Unemployed Workers

brianna@wyomingdemocrats.com (Brianna Jones) — Mon, 07 Feb 2011 18:19:52 CST

Money will be distributed to other states, denied to Wyomingites

Cheyenne, WY: Today the Wyoming House voted down a measure that would have modified the state's unemployment provisions to make the Wyoming unemployment system eligible for additional funds and unemployed Wyoming workers eligible for additional...

2011 Legislative Update - Week 4

brianna@wyomingdemocrats.com (Brianna Jones) — Fri, 04 Feb 2011 16:56:09 CST

Today (Friday, 2/4) was the last day for bills to pass out of committee in the house of origin. Monday (2/7) is the last day for bills to be moved off general file or they will die. A significant amount of bills will die either in committee or on general file.

Below is a highlight of bills that may be of interest and saw action this week.

Please continue speaking up and contacting your elected...

WY Democrats Criticize Lummis' Vote to Repeal the Affordable Care Act

brianna@wyomingdemocrats.com (Brianna Jones) — Wed, 19 Jan 2011 17:53:53 CST

Wyoming Democratic Party Chair Chuck Herz Criticizes Rep. Lummis' Vote to Repeal the Affordable Care Act

Moose, WY - Today, Republicans in the House of Representatives voted to repeal the Affordable Care Act. Following that vote, Wyoming Democratic Party Chair Chuck Herz released the following statement:

"Today, House Republicans took a vote that would have two primary consequences: Americans would be stripped of patient...

61st Legislature - Opening Remarks by Minority Leader John Hastert

brianna@wyomingdemocrats.com (Brianna Jones) — Fri, 14 Jan 2011 16:00:09 CST

Governor Mead, all elected officials, Mr. President, members of the senate, Good afternoon and best wishes from the Democrats on the success of your administration, and of our session. I am elated to be addressing you, my colleagues and the people of Wyoming here today

I wish to extend special greetings to all my family & friend's in the gallery or listening in today on the internet, It's very...

61st Legislature - Opening Remarks by Minority Whip Mary Throne

brianna@wyomingdemocrats.com (Brianna Jones) — Fri, 14 Jan 2011 13:30:12 CST

Thank you Mr. Speaker. Mr. Secretary of State and Madame Deputy Secretary of State, thank you for being here and for your dedicated service to Wyoming. Mr. Speaker, fellow members of leadership, members of the House of Representatives of the 61st legislature, honored guests, friends and family of the House:

I am pleased to have this opportunity to speak to you today on behalf of the Minority, pinch hitting for our...

Minority Leaders Respond to Gov. Mead's State of the State

brianna@wyomingdemocrats.com (Brianna Jones) — Wed, 12 Jan 2011 14:20:39 CST

Cheyenne, WY - Senate Minority Floor Leader John Hastert and House Minority Whip Mary Throne released the following statement in response to Gov. Matt Mead's first State of the State address:

"In Gov. Mead's first State of the State address he outlined a number of critical priorities to the citizens of Wyoming. He rightfully noted our vast resources from open spaces to mineral wealth to our citizens.

Gov. Mead highlighted...

At home and abroad, a record of achievement

brianna@wyomingdemocrats.com (Brianna Jones) — Tue, 04 Jan 2011 12:41:25 CST

By Chuck Herz
From the Casper Star Tribune, 1/2/2011

Over President Barack Obama's first two years in office he and Congress have:
- Rescued our economy from the free fall it was in when he took office and laid the foundation for a much sounder future economy.
- Enacted reforms that make us safer in our health and our...

Democrats Honor and Thank Veterans, Service Members

brianna@wyomingdemocrats.com (Brianna Jones) — Thu, 11 Nov 2010 12:44:35 CST

Casper, WY - In honor of Veterans Day, November 11th, the Wyoming Democratic Party Chair, Chuck Herz, issued the following statement:

"On Veterans Day the Wyoming Democratic Party joins the nation in thanking and honoring the brave men and women who have devoted themselves in the service of our country.

"To each of the 56,000 Wyoming veterans and the thousands of Wyoming men and women currently serving in the armed forces and Wyoming National...

Vote Early, Vote Often!

brianna@wyomingdemocrats.com (Brianna Jones) — Wed, 22 Sep 2010 20:56:51 CDT

Bryon Lee sent out the following reminder to voters: Good afternoon active Wyomingites, I hope you are rockin' in the free world today. It is glorious in Sheridan today. The purpose of this email is to remind us all of a couple things: 1. Wyoming's absentee/early vote begins tomorrow, Thursday, September 23. 2. In the spirit of dedicating our time and energy to voter outreach, helping candidates, and getting voters to the polls on election day, it may be wise for us all to...

Pre-Primary Candidate Forums and Debates

brianna@wyomingdemocrats.com (Brianna Jones) — Tue, 13 Jul 2010 17:24:07 CDT

Secretary of State's Primary List. The document is updated several times a day and proves to be very useful.

There are many Democrats...

Snyder v Phelps: A Free Speech Case

brianna@wyomingdemocrats.com (Brianna Jones) — Tue, 25 May 2010 17:44:43 CDT

Guest blog by Ken McCauley, Vice Chair of the Laramie County Democratic Party

The US Supreme Court will soon address the case of Snyder v Phelps.

Election 2010 Announcements

brianna@wyomingdemocrats.com (Brianna Jones) — Tue, 16 Mar 2010 14:11:21 CDT

Today Rep. Byrd (D-Cheyenne) announced he will seek reelection to the Wyoming House. His statement is below. A number of other democratic legislators have announced their intentions (mainly to not seek reelection).

Those who will not throw their hat in the ring for another round include: Rep. Lori Millin (D-Cheyenne), Rep. Debbie Hammons (D-Worland), Rep. Pete Jorgensen (D-Jackson), and Rep. Ross Diercks (D-Lusk). ...

Gov Freudenthal Announces Plans

brianna@wyomingdemocrats.com (Brianna Jones) — Thu, 04 Mar 2010 17:38:59 CST

As you have surely read Governor Freudenthal announced he will not seek another term. He made the announcement today at 10:00 AM and WDP put a statement out soon thereafter. Succinctly, we were greatful for his service and leadership and are sad to see him go.

He thanked Wyoming and indicated he had been leaning in this direction since around Christmas. He also said his children were universally in favor of his...

Nellie Tayloe Ross 2010

brianna@wyomingdemocrats.com (Brianna Jones) — Mon, 01 Mar 2010 13:48:54 CST

Every year during the legislative session we gather for meetings and the Nellie Tayloe Ross (NTR) Banquet. This past weekend was our 2010 NTR and I think it turned out to be a success. We had a number of great speakers, folks from all around the state, and a lot of enthusiasm.

Our county chairs had a meeting that helped to evaluate what the basic function of a county party is and how they can expand, shape and fill that role. The...

Legislature considers funding statewide legal services program

brianna@wyomingdemocrats.com (Brianna Jones) — Wed, 24 Feb 2010 17:57:37 CST

Today the Senate Judiciary Committee passed a bill (HB 61) that would create a statewide legal services funding program. There is currently no program in the state the offers legal service in civil cases such as divorce, child custody, or domestic violence. The program would be funded by raising court fees by $10.

The committee room was packed and a variety of groups stood in favor of the bill. Wyoming Supreme Court Chief Justic Voigt...

WY House says it will no longer support school lunch program

brianna@wyomingdemocrats.com (Brianna Jones) — Tue, 23 Feb 2010 19:05:05 CST

A budget amendment was brought today in the Wyoming House that would provide funding for the school lunch program. The amendment was brought by Rep. Cathy Connolly (D-Laramie), but failed in a voice vote. It would have provided $3.6 million in funding.

Connolly argued that this problem has come about because costs of programs have increased by 20% in the past few years and that there are often very few students in Wyoming schools. ...

Guest Blog on Foreign Language Education at Young Ages

brianna@wyomingdemocrats.com (Brianna Jones) — Fri, 19 Feb 2010 18:01:06 CST

Guest blog written by James DuPont of Teton County. James is serving as a high school intern for Rep. Pete Jorgensen (D-Jackson) during the first two weeks of the session. Many thanks for his insight and perspectives.

On February 12, 2010 House Bill 55 passed the House with a vote of 49 to 9. The bill was introduced by the Joint Education Interim Committee with the intention to eliminate elementary foreign language...

Guest Blog on Conceal and Carry Permits

brianna@wyomingdemocrats.com (Brianna Jones) — Thu, 18 Feb 2010 17:34:20 CST

Guest Blog written by Gus Harrison of Teton County. Gus is serving as a high school intern for Rep. Jim Roscoe (D-Wilson) during the first two weeks of the session. Many thanks for his insight and perspectives.

House Bill 113 is one step closer on it's way of becoming a law after the House Judiciary committee passed it with the recommendation it do pass the General Committee. The Bill first passed introduction last...

Bill Calls For Support of Wyoming Business

brianna@wyomingdemocrats.com (Brianna Jones) — Thu, 18 Feb 2010 16:50:56 CST

The AFL-CIO, Wyoming Contractors Association, ABC Wyoming, National Electrical Contractors Association and Wyoming Building and Construction Trades are supporting an important bill that is on general file in the Wyoming House.

Transparency at the Legislature

brianna@wyomingdemocrats.com (Brianna Jones) — Tue, 16 Feb 2010 16:11:06 CST

Wyoming's Legislature may have worked on being more transparent by making all bills available online and streaming proceedings live, but there is still a long way to go. Last week the legislature took a big step by allowing people to testify by video conference. According to the Equality State Policy Center, committee chairs are now questioning whether testimonies should be permitted by phone.

There is a new feature available online that allows...

Gov Weighs In During Press Conference

brianna@wyomingdemocrats.com (Brianna Jones) — Tue, 16 Feb 2010 15:45:18 CST

Today in a morning press conference Gov. Dave Freudenthal discussed some of the pieces of legislation passing through the Wyoming Legislature.

The Governor's proposed excise tax on wind energy was one of the most discussed proposals since lawmakers amended the legislation to $1 per megawatt hour versus the proposed $3, but did not change the 60-40% split between state and local governments. The Governor stressed that he does not need this tax...

Wind Tax Cut by 1/3

brianna@wyomingdemocrats.com (Brianna Jones) — Mon, 15 Feb 2010 14:57:32 CST

The House Revenue committee met this morning to discuss the excise tax on wind energy (HB 101) brought forward by the Governor. The proposed tax was $3 per megawatt hour of energy produced, but following amendments it was reduced to $1 per megawatt hour.

According to the Casper Star Tribune, "If a $1-per-megawatt-hour tax existed last year, wind companies would have paid just over $4.9 million."

There was also a proposed amendment to change...

2010 Legislative Budget Session News - Week 1

brianna@wyomingdemocrats.com (Brianna Jones) — Mon, 15 Feb 2010 09:55:07 CST

Do away with concealed weapons permits?

brianna@wyomingdemocrats.com (Brianna Jones) — Thu, 11 Feb 2010 16:31:34 CST

Rep. Lorraine Quarberg (R-Thermopolis) introduced a bill giving concealed weapon authority to Wyoming residents over the age of 21. This would do away with the current requirement that residents show knowledge of firearm use and register and receive a concealed weapon permit from the state of Wyoming.

Minimum Wage for Tipped Employees Remains Pitifully Low

brianna@wyomingdemocrats.com (Brianna Jones) — Wed, 10 Feb 2010 18:08:21 CST

Rep. Bagby (D-Rawlins) introduced a bill to raise the minimum wage for tipped employees from $2.13 an hour to $5.00. He brought this last year and it failed and the same with this year. Three Republicans stood up in opposition and said things like: "If a...

Quest for General File

brianna@wyomingdemocrats.com (Brianna Jones) — Wed, 10 Feb 2010 00:55:45 CST

The 2010 Budget session has officially begun and currently each house is considering which bills will be accepted onto the General File. It takes a 2/3 vote for bills to reach general file.

A few to note: HB 37 and HJ 04 introduced by Rep. Keith Gingery (R-Jackson) - These bills would remove the current law that Wyoming Judges and Justices must retire by the age of 70. Passage of both would ultimately bring a Wyoming constitutional amendment and statutory...

2010 Budget Session Convenes

brianna@wyomingdemocrats.com (Brianna Jones) — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 10:38:59 CST

The budget session of the 60th Wyoming Legislature convenes today. Governor Freudenthal will be delivering the State of the State at 10:00 AM and you can listen in here: http://legisweb.state.wy.us/2010/audio/AudioMenu1.htm.

These blogs will be regularly posted throughout the budget session on topics important to Wyoming's Democrats, working families and...

Health care reform; A beginning, not the end

brianna@wyomingdemocrats.com (Brianna Jones) — Mon, 21 Dec 2009 17:36:38 CST

Please see below for a fact check on false claims made by Senator Barrasso on the Senate floor today on the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act today:

RHETORIC: Barrasso Said That The Senate Health Care Bill Would...

Fact Check: Senator Barrasso on Fox News 12/1/2009

brianna@wyomingdemocrats.com (Brianna Jones) — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 17:03:53 CST

Please see below for a fact check on the erroneous claims made by Senator Barrasso on FOX News this afternoon:

RHETORIC: Sen. Barrasso: Americans Don't Support Reform, Reform Cuts Medicare, Premiums Will Go Up: "That this is not the right prescription for america. The majority of people in america do not support this. The reasons are because it cuts medicare and health care for our seniors that depend on...

Enzi's Staff Holds Meetings around State

brianna@wyomingdemocrats.com (Brianna Jones) — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 17:00:39 CST

This is a heads up that Senator Enzi's staff will be holding sessions in the following communities over the next few weeks and starting tomorrow. Please share this information!

Below is a letter we are circulating in support of a public option. You can copy and paste the text below into a one-page word document and then circulate it to your friends and family. Once you...

Public option makes health care reform work - OpEd by Kim Floyd, Executive Secretary of AFL-CIO

brianna@wyomingdemocrats.com (Brianna Jones) — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 17:30:16 CDT

A public health insurance plan should be an option for everyone, alongside private health insurance plans. However, U.S. Sens. Mike Enzi and John Barrasso, along with U.S. Rep. Cynthia Lummis, are siding with Big Insurance and HMOs over the citizens of Wyoming and the American people. They have teamed up with private health insurers and are fighting to make sure no public health insurance plan cuts into private health insurer markets at a time when we're enacting reforms to cover...

"Time is Now For Health Care Action" Op-Ed in Casper Star Tribune 9/27/2009

brianna@wyomingdemocrats.com (Brianna Jones) — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 12:57:17 CDT

By: Mike Bell, Vice Chairman of Wyoming Democratic Party
http://www.trib.com/news/e

YOU can have an impact on health insurance reform

brianna@wyomingdemocrats.com (Brianna Jones) — Mon, 31 Aug 2009 15:34:15 CDT

Fellow Democrats,

Below are a number of ideas of how you personally can make an impact in the movement for health insurance reform. I know...

Project New West Summit

brianna@wyomingdemocrats.com (Brianna Jones) — Wed, 19 Aug 2009 17:17:06 CDT

Representatives from the Wyoming Democrats and the Young Democrats of Wyoming attended the first Project New West Summit in Denver, August 12-14. The summit was designed to bring together leaders from around the West to discuss the opportunities, challenges, and important issues facing the West as we enter a new decade.

Project New West (PNW), founded in 2007, is an organization dedicated to strategic planning and research in regards to the progressive...

Obamas visit Yellowstone

brianna@wyomingdemocrats.com (Brianna Jones) — Mon, 10 Aug 2009 11:16:14 CDT

The Wyoming Democratic Party is excited that President Obama will be visiting our great state this coming weekend when he and the First Family come to Yellowstone as part of a greater tour of the West. This trip falls on the free weekend meant to promote the country's National Parks and will also include stops in Bozeman, MT; Grand Junction, CO; and Phoenix, AZ. It is great to have the President and his family coming to Wyoming!

For a bit more...

Saundra Meyer and James Elliot are Wyoming's Newest Democratic Senators

brianna@wyomingdemocrats.com (Brianna Jones) — Fri, 07 Aug 2009 14:17:20 CDT

The Wyoming Democratic Party is very pleased to welcome Senator Saundra Meyer and Senator James Elliot to the Wyoming Senate. The following is taken from a press release by the LSO:

Following the administration of the oaths of office,...

Sotomayor confirmation in the Wyoming media

brianna@wyomingdemocrats.com (Brianna Jones) — Fri, 07 Aug 2009 11:31:32 CDT

Statements from the state party were featured in a few different media outlets today. We were pleased that attention was drawn to the fact that both Wyoming Senators Enzi and Barrasso voted against Justice Sonia Sotomayor. You can check those out below.

Sotomayor gets her votes - KGWN Channel 5

Reports on new WDP Chair Leslie Petersen

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Tue, 21 Apr 2009 14:46:18 CDT

As a follow-up to the previous post, here are a couple media reports on new Wyoming Democratic Party Chair Leslie Petersen and our other officers:

Wilson resident to head Democrats (Jackson Hole News & Guide)

Democrats elect new state leaders...

Leslie Petersen elected as our new state chair!

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Tue, 21 Apr 2009 14:31:16 CDT

Greetings from party central! The big news is that Leslie Petersen of Wilson was elected as the new state chair of the Wyoming Democratic Party during our State Central Committee meeting in Casper on April 18th. Other officers elected were new Vice Chair Mike Bell of Cheyenne, new Secretary Linda Barton of Lander, and re-elected Treasurer Chuck Herz of Moose (elected for a second term). I've worked extensively with all four of our officers since I started...

Democrats ready to elect leaders

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Sun, 15 Feb 2009 14:57:42 CST

Just a quick note to let you know that Democrats all across the state will be holding county meetings throughout the month of March to elect their local leaders for the 2009-10 election cycle.

Then, on April 18, those county leaders will meet in Casper to hold state party officer elections for the positions of chair, vice chair, secretary and treasurer.

So tune in on April 18 to find out who will comprise the Wyoming Democratic Party's...

09/06/08 Wyoming Democratic Party Daily News Roundup

lauri@wyomingdemocrats.com (Lauri Elbing) — Sat, 06 Sep 2008 16:53:03 CDT

Casper Star-TribuneCasper Star-Tribune

09/03-04/08 Wyoming Democratic Party Daily News Roundup

lauri@wyomingdemocrats.com (Lauri Elbing) — Fri, 05 Sep 2008 17:09:05 CDT

Casper Star-Tribune

61 Days Until Election Day 2008

lauri@wyomingdemocrats.com (Lauri Elbing) — Tue, 02 Sep 2008 17:47:00 CDT

Do you know where your candidates are

and what help and support they...

09/02/08 Wyoming Democratic Party Daily News Roundup

lauri@wyomingdemocrats.com (Lauri Elbing) — Tue, 02 Sep 2008 17:43:44 CDT

Wyoming Business Report

Casper...

08/26-27/08 Wyoming Democratic Party Daily News Roundup

lauri@wyomingdemocrats.com (Lauri Elbing) — Mon, 01 Sep 2008 16:13:59 CDT

Holy Torrential Trauner!!! Check out the press for the last TWO days�

8/24-25/2008 Wyoming Democratic Party Daily News Roundup

lauri@wyomingdemocrats.com (Lauri Elbing) — Mon, 01 Sep 2008 16:09:49 CDT
CSPAN will be covering the Convention LIVE from "Gavel to Gavel"Gary Trauner, candidate for U.S. House of Representatives, will hold a press conference tomorrow to unveil and discuss his energy proposal and you are invited!

***Just in case you missed it, you can read Obama's Prepared Text

08/21-22/08 Wyoming Democratic Party Daily News Roundup

lauri@wyomingdemocrats.com (Lauri Elbing) — Mon, 01 Sep 2008 15:59:29 CDT

2008 Democratic Convention Speech Archive

lauri@wyomingdemocrats.com (Lauri Elbing) — Mon, 01 Sep 2008 15:52:00 CDT

Monday, August 25: One Nation

Democratic National Convention, Day Two

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Wed, 27 Aug 2008 07:15:12 CDT

Where to begin in summarizing Tuesday's Democratic National Convention experience for your Wyoming delegation? How about at the very end, with Sen. Hillary Clinton's amazing speech to top off the night? Sen. Clinton is a fabulous orator on a normal day, but I've never seen her in this rare of form. She laid it on the line, in no uncertain terms: If you supported Clinton's candidacy and what it stood for - be that its historical ramifications or its policy significance - if...

Democratic National Convention, Day One

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Tue, 26 Aug 2008 07:07:40 CDT

Actually, I'm writing this at the beginning of Day Two. As a special bonus part of the whirlwind of activity known as the Democratic National Convention, your tireless executive director has the dubious honor of being the designated Credentials Collection Agent for the Wyoming Democratic Party. This means I have to be in our hotel lobby between 4:45 a.m. and 5:15 a.m. every day to meet the nice folks from the DNC who deliver the credentials for our state delegation for that day. To...

08/20/08 Wyoming Democratic Party Daily News Roundup

lauri@wyomingdemocrats.com (Lauri Elbing) — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 17:16:57 CDT

For Compete State and Federal Primary Election Results:

08/19/08 Wyoming Democratic Party Daily News Roundup

lauri@wyomingdemocrats.com (Lauri Elbing) — Tue, 19 Aug 2008 16:29:45 CDT

Casper Star-Tribune

08/16-18/08 Wyoming Democratic Party Daily News Roundup

lauri@wyomingdemocrats.com (Lauri Elbing) — Tue, 19 Aug 2008 16:28:05 CDT

Casper Star-Tribune

PRESS ENDORSEMENTS UPDATE for 08/15/08

lauri@wyomingdemocrats.com (Lauri Elbing) — Tue, 19 Aug 2008 16:22:52 CDT

Casper Star-Tribune

USA Today

08/14/08 Wyoming Democratic Party Daily News Roundup

lauri@wyomingdemocrats.com (Lauri Elbing) — Thu, 14 Aug 2008 14:20:40 CDT

Casper Star-Tribune

08/13/08 Wyoming Democratic Party Daily News Roundup

lauri@wyomingdemocrats.com (Lauri Elbing) — Thu, 14 Aug 2008 14:19:22 CDT

Casper Star-Tribune

08/12/08 Wyoming Democratic Party Daily News Roundup

lauri@wyomingdemocrats.com (Lauri Elbing) — Thu, 14 Aug 2008 14:16:04 CDT

08/11/08 Wyoming Democratic Party Daily News Roundup

lauri@wyomingdemocrats.com (Lauri Elbing) — Tue, 12 Aug 2008 16:33:07 CDT

Casper Star-Tribune

***ACTION ALERT***

We begin this day with very sad news about the untimely death of our dear friend Joe Oldfield, Sweetwater County Commissioner. As you know, Joe had a zest for life following the "work hard, play hard" adage. He was an avid skier, an educator who served with distinction and his passion public service improved the lives of everyone he...

08/07/2008 Wyoming Democratic Party Daily News Roundup

lauri@wyomingdemocrats.com (Lauri Elbing) — Tue, 12 Aug 2008 16:25:52 CDT

WyoFile.com

I am still trying to identify people to sign Letters-to-the-Editor as we enter the general election.

WDP was given NO (ZERO) Tickets to this event.

lauri@wyomingdemocrats.com (Lauri Elbing) — Thu, 07 Aug 2008 12:19:43 CDT

08/05/2008 Wyoming Democratic Party Daily News Roundup

lauri@wyomingdemocrats.com (Lauri Elbing) — Tue, 05 Aug 2008 11:55:55 CDT

Casper Star-Tribune

08/04/2008 Wyoming Democratic Party Daily News Roundup

lauri@wyomingdemocrats.com (Lauri Elbing) — Mon, 04 Aug 2008 14:30:05 CDT

Letters to the Editor supporting Republican candidates have been surfacing all across the state. We need to be prepared to support our candidates in the news and other creative ways as well once the Democratic Primaries are complete.

08/02-03/2008 Wyoming Democratic Party Daily News Roundup

lauri@wyomingdemocrats.com (Lauri Elbing) — Sun, 03 Aug 2008 17:09:06 CDT

08/01/2008 Wyoming Democratic Party Daily News Roundup

lauri@wyomingdemocrats.com (Lauri Elbing) — Fri, 01 Aug 2008 13:19:59 CDT

Casper Star-Tribune

Casper Star-TribuneIf there is anything interesting, controversial or relevant happening that the media is not reporting on, please drop me a note ASAP. Thank you!

07/29/2008 Wyoming Democratic Party News Roundup

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Tue, 29 Jul 2008 17:06:05 CDT

For Tuesday, July 29, 2008

Back in the saddle again! And big news while I was gone: Chris Rothfuss, who has a doctorate in chemical engineering, announced his intention to run for the U.S. Senate seat now held by Mike Enzi:

Spring calls, and I listen. As such, I'm taking a road trip over the next five days with my lovely wife to see where the birds go for the winter and to see where the defending National League champion Colorado Rockies go for spring training. Sadly, this means that there will be no more news roundups until next Monday. In the meantime, here's what's cookin' for today.

The Gillette News-Record leads off the news roundup today with this excellent piece on a wounded Marine's struggle with post-traumatic stress disorder as he tries to return to a "normal" life in Gillette:

Not too terribly much in the news today. Maybe all the papers are saving their really good stuff for the weekend. Or maybe it's been a slow news week, after all the excitement of LAST week.

The U.S....

Daily news roundup, March 13, 2008

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Mon, 17 Mar 2008 13:59:43 CDT

After his first tour of duty in Iraq in 2003, local soldier David Julian joined other veterans and servicemen in dedicating a new Fallen Comrade monument in downtown Evanston. Sadly, now his name will be added to the memorial statue:

Daily news roundup, March 12, 2008

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Wed, 12 Mar 2008 20:35:18 CDT

As exciting as our county caucuses were last Saturday, unfortunately some people did not get to participate because they were either not registered as Democrats by the Feb. 22 deadline or they arrived at their caucus sites late. We did our best to inform people of these rules, and our friends in the media did an honorable job of helping spread the word. The Casper Star-Tribune chimes in:

Frankly, it takes a great state like Wyoming to command the attention of The Daily Show with Jon Stewart. The Comedy Central news parody program offers this report on our caucuses and an accompanying analysis piece by Samantha Bee, complete with cute Cowboy State graphics and other jokes. Warning: Enjoying these videos will require a healthy sense of self-depreciating humor at times, but it's still a lot of fun:

Daily news roundup, March 10, 2008

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Mon, 10 Mar 2008 23:09:40 CDT

The moment we've all been waiting for! And Wyoming Democrats turned out IN FORCE. We had more than 8,700 people participate in our county caucuses on Saturday, for a record 15 percent turnout of registered Democrats. By comparison, in the last presidential race four years ago, 675 people voted across the state for a turnout of just over 1 percent. Oh, and Sen. Obama won the day. Here's the Associated Press story that appeared in most of the...

Daily news roundup, March 8, 2008

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Mon, 10 Mar 2008 23:07:58 CDT

Too much fantastic news today not to spread the word. Hope you don't mind if I stick only to the campaign trail, but really, that's the theme of the day. First off, of course, is that our party's two magnificent candidates for president spent Friday traveling across the state, talking to Wyoming Democrats and asking for their support in today's votes:

Daily news roundup, March 6, 2008

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Sun, 09 Mar 2008 09:16:58 CDT

Yes, folks, the whole world really is watching. I know this, because today, I fielded calls from Japan's largest daily newspaper, a French national news service, and a gentleman who identifies himself as a "Spanish correspondent," whose native language was certainly not English. Every 24-hour news channel, all major television and radio networks, and several of the nation's most respected newspapers have all been in touch in the past couple...

Daily news roundup, March 5, 2008

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Wed, 05 Mar 2008 19:24:10 CST

Seriously, I never imagined when I took this job that we would see the day when the two front-runners for the Democratic presidential nomination would hold events in Wyoming on the eve of our county caucuses. Not to mention the fact that one of them will almost certainly be president a year from now. And as an added bonus, the greatest president of the 21^st Century (so far) would be touring the state to join in the...

Daily news roundup, March 4, 2008

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Wed, 05 Mar 2008 19:22:19 CST

Clearly, today is an important day in the race for the Democratic presidential nomination, with primaries in Texas, Ohio, Rhode Island and Vermont. CNN.com has this piece:

Daily news roundup, March 3, 2008

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Tue, 04 Mar 2008 15:54:07 CST

Let me be the first to tell you - since none of Wyoming's print media seemed too keen on reporting - that Saturday night's Nellie Tayloe Ross banquet will go down as one of the most successful Wyoming Democratic Party functions in recent history, if not longer, by several measures. Attendance at the dinner topped 200 people. My good friend Jason Marsden (director of Wyoming Conservation Voters) told me he has been going to the state...

Daily news roundup, Feb. 29, 2008

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Fri, 29 Feb 2008 15:07:00 CST

Happy Leap Day! Since this is, after all, a bonus day (there's only supposed to be 365 days in a year, right?), I'll start off with a fairly important story I missed yesterday, because the Casper Star-Tribune placed it on its "city" page.

Daily news roundup, Feb. 28, 2008

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Thu, 28 Feb 2008 12:22:43 CST

First up today: Another WyoFile.com article on voter registration shows that we're up more than 2,000 voters since Jan. 10. Viva Wyoming's Democratic county caucuses and conventions!

Daily news roundup, Feb. 27, 2008

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Thu, 28 Feb 2008 12:21:35 CST

FROM THE LEGISLATURE �

State senators...

Daily news roundup, Feb. 26, 2008

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Thu, 28 Feb 2008 12:20:40 CST

ON THE CAMPAIGN TRAIL �

WyoFile.com has this look at the Clinton campaign's announcement earlier today that it will have grand openings Wednesday at campaign offices in Wyoming's two largest...

Daily news roundup, Feb. 25, 2008

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Mon, 25 Feb 2008 16:11:07 CST

ON THE CAMPAIGN TRAIL

Leading off today is this Associated Press report on the Clinton campaign's arrival in Wyoming:

Daily news roundup, Feb. 22, 2008

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Sat, 23 Feb 2008 01:08:45 CST

ON THE CAMPAIGN TRAIL

What a wild, wild, wild, wild week! This morning, I strolled down to the Laramie County Clerk's Office with Brodie Farquhar, managing editor of

Daily news roundup, Feb. 21, 2008

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Thu, 21 Feb 2008 16:39:54 CST

ON THE CAMPAIGN TRAIL:

The Casper Star-Tribune has this front-page story package on our county caucuses/conventions:

I'm terribly sorry about getting this out so late today, but every day keeps getting busier than the last as we approach our county caucuses. And really, it's another feather in my hat every time some random guy calls me up and asks me what he needs to do to change his registration from Republican to Democrat, because he registered as a Republican last year to vote against Barbara Cubin in the primary, but now he wants to vote in the March...

Daily news roundup, Feb. 19, 2008

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Tue, 19 Feb 2008 15:57:49 CST

FROM THE CAMPAIGN TRAIL:

This piece reminds everyone that "robocalls" are prohibited in Wyoming, and it looks at their recent history while mentioning that the Obama campaign also announced some...

Daily news roundup, Feb. 18, 2008

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Tue, 19 Feb 2008 11:53:32 CST

The Los Angeles Times leads us off today with a story on superdelegates that features, among others, the Wyoming Democratic Party chairman. The item sent in by alert reader John from Cheyenne:

Daily news roundup, Feb. 15, 2008

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Fri, 15 Feb 2008 13:07:58 CST

FIRST UP, PRESIDENTIAL SELECTION:

The Jackson Hole News & Guide examines the role of the Wyoming Democratic Party's national committeeman, who will be a superdelegate to our national...

Daily news roundup, Feb. 14, 2008

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Fri, 15 Feb 2008 12:14:10 CST

I'd like to kick off today's news roundup with a look at a couple new online media offerings. The first one is called WyoFile, which can be found at www.wyofile.com. A self-described "non-profit, public service journalism enterprise, focused on politics and public policy issues in Wyoming, for Wyoming citizens and news media," WyoFile employs a handful...

Daily news roundup, Feb. 13, 2008

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Wed, 13 Feb 2008 12:21:35 CST

Two Wyoming newspapers fully cover the Legislature: the Casper Star-Tribune and the Wyoming Tribune-Eagle. Unfortunately, the Tribune-Eagle posts three stories a day on its Website, and they're not always fit for this politics-and-policy news roundup. And worse, today the Casper Star-Tribune's legislative Website has only one new...

Daily news roundup, Feb. 12, 2008

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Tue, 12 Feb 2008 12:56:54 CST

Good luck finding the Casper Star-Tribune's legislative Website. I had to use the link I sent you yesterday (also highlighted in the previous sentence), because the legislative page is not otherwise displayed or advertised on the paper's main news pages. Still, the news roundup today will begin with a healthy dose of legislative coverage from...

Daily news roundup, Feb. 11, 2008

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Mon, 11 Feb 2008 15:02:41 CST

Welcome to Day One of the 2008 Wyoming Legislature! Either late today or early tomorrow, I hope to post a blog entry on the state party Website with a more in-depth look at the Legislature. I'll let you know when that's up. For now, first up is this Associated Press article on Gov. Freudenthal's State of the State Address to legislators this morning:

Daily news roundup, Feb. 8, 2008

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Fri, 08 Feb 2008 14:16:50 CST

First up, for those of you who haven't seen it, here is a press release I sent out this morning on our county caucuses:

Daily news roundup, Feb. 7, 2008

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Thu, 07 Feb 2008 12:31:42 CST

Props to Democrats in Sheridan, Albany, Laramie and Teton counties for holding public events on Super Tuesday, and to anyone else who watched the returns that night with fellow Democrats. The Sheridan Press did a nice front-page write-up of the event in my hometown, sent in by alert county party Secretary Liz Howell, which I will use to lead off the news roundup:

How about those elections yesterday! Most observers believe that neither Clinton nor Obama gained an upper hand. If this race stays close, or gets even closer over the rest of the month as one analyst says it will, the Wyoming Democratic caucuses on March 8 could attract more national attention than we could have...

Daily news roundup, Feb. 5, 2008

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Tue, 05 Feb 2008 17:23:46 CST

Honestly, I'm giddy today to see what happens with all the primaries nationwide. I'll start today with the following excellent analysis piece for those of you who (like me) really enjoy tracking the race for the Democratic presidential nomination. I can justify this by noting that there is a reference to our state, which, while technically "tiny," more importantly, may "actually matter" in this exciting election year:

Daily news roundup, Feb. 4, 2008

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Tue, 05 Feb 2008 17:22:19 CST

Campbell County Democratic State Committeeman Nick Carter, a Gillette attorney, talks to the Casper Star-Tribune about his exploration of running a U.S. Senate campaign for the seat now held by John Barrasso. Meanwhile, former Wyoming House Speaker Randall Luthi ducks out of the U.S. House race:

Daily news roundup, Feb. 1, 2008

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Fri, 01 Feb 2008 17:25:24 CST

We're leading off with a national political story today, but only because it mentions Wyoming in the very best sentence of the article, which I'll repeat here in case you're too busy to read the whole thing: "As if it could get any worse (for the Republican Party), a recent poll showed Democrat Gary Trauner, a second-time candidate, leading a Republican who had been elected to statewide office by one point in normally ruby-red

Daily news roundup, Jan. 31, 2008

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Fri, 01 Feb 2008 16:51:19 CST

The Hill newspaper in Washington, D.C., reports that Sen. Mike Enzi's low fundraising numbers and the Senate GOP leadership's repeated snubs of his bid for a coveted seat on the powerful Finance Committee have fueled speculation that the senator may leave Congress, although some Republicans say he is raising just enough money to run a race:

Daily news roundup, Jan. 30, 2008

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Wed, 30 Jan 2008 12:11:27 CST

Our "representative" in the U.S. House made a rare appearance at work yesterday to cast a vote, this one against the bipartisan plan to rescue the nation's economy. Why? Because it helps poor people too much. Gosh, we're lucky to have her for the whole rest of the year. (It's the third story...

Daily news roundup, Jan. 29, 2008

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Wed, 30 Jan 2008 12:10:13 CST

Gov. Freudenthal leads us off today with his op/ed piece on property tax relief for seniors. He takes issue with the Joint Revenue Committee's refusal to consider helping out elderly people whose property taxes have in some cases doubled this decade, while the panel also refused to subject helium to the same taxes as other minerals.

Daily news roundup, Jan. 28, 2008

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Tue, 29 Jan 2008 14:11:34 CST

The weekend's big news, of course, was a new Casper Star-Tribune poll which says that, in a head-to-head matchup, Gary Trauner would get 41 percent of the vote, while GOP front-runner Cynthia Lummis gets 40...

Daily news roundup, Jan. 25, 2008

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Fri, 25 Jan 2008 11:36:46 CST

Don't miss Sunday's Casper Star-Tribune. That's all I'll say. As for today's news �

Our senior U.S. senator gets passed over for a coveted finance committee seat by

Daily news roundup, Jan. 24, 2008

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 13:54:17 CST

Breaking this morning from the Associated Press, details about the new proposed federal wolf management rule:

Daily news roundup, Jan. 23, 2008

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 13:53:27 CST

Monday was Martin Luther King Jr. Day (or "Equality Day" in Wyoming), and here's an AP piece on the annual march in Cheyenne:

Daily news roundup, Jan. 16, 2008

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Wed, 16 Jan 2008 15:28:05 CST

Just a heads up - I will be on vacation tomorrow through Monday, so I don't anticipate writing any news reports during that time. I put in a requisition for an assistant about two-and-a-half years ago (the day I started this job), so I'm hopeful that any minute now, we can ramp this up to a full-time, round-the-clock service. Meanwhile �

Daily news roundup, Jan. 15, 2008

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Tue, 15 Jan 2008 11:04:55 CST

Wyoming's average daily spot price of $7.13 per thousand cubic feet at the Cheyenne Hub on Monday was just $1 behind the Henry Hub in Louisiana, which the industry uses as a market barometer. A dramatic comparison could be made by listing low points of the daily spot price of below $1 per thousand cubic feet for Wyoming gas -- even as low as 10 cents -- recorded on some days in 2007, which represented a deficit of $5 and more behind the...

Daily news roundup, Jan. 14, 2008

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 11:36:37 CST

Twenty stories from today and the weekend! Although at least half are from the Casper paper. Beginning with �

Gov. Freudenthal hosted the "Building the Wyoming We Want conference, but he wants the...

Daily news roundup, Jan. 11, 2008

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Fri, 11 Jan 2008 16:20:41 CST

Nearly 500 decision-makers, stakeholders and other interested people gathered in Casper yesterday for Gov. Freudenthal's "Building the Wyoming We Want" conference, intended to examine the challenges and opportunities Wyoming faces in this current era of relatively fast growth. The conference concluded this morning at Casper College. The Casper Star-Tribune offered these reports:

Lotsa news today! To begin, Gov. Freudenthal wants to generate ideas to answer this question: "How do we continue to enjoy a thriving economy and still keep in mind the kind of Wyoming we want...

Daily news roundup, Jan. 9, 2008

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Wed, 09 Jan 2008 10:53:55 CST

First up is this exciting news from Rep. George Bagby, D-Rawlins, who reports that James Elliott Jr., a Democrat from Saratoga, has been selected as the newest Carbon County commissioner. Congratulations to Commissioner Elliott, and thanks to Rep. Bagby!

Daily news roundup, Jan. 8, 2008

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Tue, 08 Jan 2008 11:19:41 CST

Honestly, I don't know all the ins and outs of the GOP caucuses, but some people are clearly displeased with the way it went down:

Daily news roundup, Jan. 7, 2008

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Tue, 08 Jan 2008 11:18:37 CST

The state GOP's presidential caucuses took place on Saturday, and the main issue seems to be whether the Republicans' controversial decision to break their own national party's rules and sacrifice half their delegates to their national convention was worth it. By and large, most media outlets answered that question with a resounding "no." The Casper Star-Tribune notes that our state got virtually no national attention for its early caucus,...

Daily news roundup, Jan. 4, 2008

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Fri, 04 Jan 2008 15:57:23 CST

Something is wrong with the Casper Star-Tribune's Website today, and I can't link to the THREE stories they have on Wyoming politics, INCLUDING a nice story on the impressive Wyoming Democratic Party organization and our upcoming house parties. So I scanned the story on the Democrats. Check it out:

Daily news roundup, Jan. 3, 2008

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Thu, 03 Jan 2008 18:28:44 CST

Sorry so late today! It's been nuts. Phone ringin' off the hook, and a surprising amount of good news today. A presidential candidate here (OK, it was his ballot access person), a newspaper reporter there, a new inspiring candidate from way up there, etc. Anyway, let's start off the news roundup with the newest declared U.S. House candidate, the lady famous for telling other Republican Party insiders that Gov. Freudenthal is no...

Daily news roundup, Jan. 2, 2008

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Wed, 02 Jan 2008 14:55:24 CST

Happy New Year! This year, the Casper Star-Tribune greeted us with a couple stories on the upcoming U.S. Senate elections. This story notes that no one from either party has yet thrown a hat into the ring to challenge John Barrasso or Mike Enzi:

Daily news roundup, Dec. 31, 2007

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Wed, 02 Jan 2008 11:32:11 CST

First up is this important story from the Casper Star-Tribune, which reports that the new Democratic Congress has been quite productive. The Democratic-controlled 110^th Congress was more active than its predecessor looking at the amount of time in session, committee meetings, oversight of the executive branch, votes and measures passed. "In terms of new laws enacted, it compares favorably with the...

Daily news roundup, Dec. 28, 2007

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Fri, 28 Dec 2007 19:46:47 CST

Top story today (or tonight, as the case may be) comes from the Riverton Ranger, whose interview with Fremont County Chair Linda Barton provided the meat for this story (and might I add that Linda did a wonderful job with the interview!):

Daily news roundup, Dec. 27, 2007

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Thu, 27 Dec 2007 12:42:17 CST

Let's hear it for the Wyoming Tribune-Eagle, for Cheyenne's daily paper is featuring an Associated Press story on the presidential race today. The Iowa caucuses take place Jan. 3, and less than five weeks after that is Super Duper Tuesday, Feb. 5, when more than half the delegates will be selected:

Daily news roundup, Dec. 26, 2007

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Thu, 27 Dec 2007 11:57:38 CST

Today we'll begin with Gary Trauner's campaign for U.S. House, and two notable blog entries on the topic. I want to call your attention to this first one, because the blog, hummingbirdminds, is written by Wyoming's own Michael Shay, an activist from Laramie County. Here's his take on the latest Trauner news:

Not much at all today. To start, the Sierra Club and the Powder River Basin Resource Council want a court review of the Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality's handling of an air quality permit for the proposed Two Elk coal-fired power plant in southern Campbell County. The groups have asked a district court judge to review of an administrative decision by the Environmental Quality Council, which governs the DEQ. They claim the agency...

Daily news roundup, Dec. 20, 2007

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Thu, 20 Dec 2007 15:27:26 CST

Some good stuff today! Roll Call, the newspaper that covers Congress, reports that Gary Trauner's race for Wyoming's U.S. House seat is on the short list for those across the country that Democrats plan to win in November:

Daily news roundup, Dec. 19, 2007

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Wed, 19 Dec 2007 18:39:37 CST

Not too much today. First up is a new story today in the Casper Star-Tribune on Chairman Millin's recent letter to the Denver Post:

Daily news roundup, Dec. 18, 2007

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Wed, 19 Dec 2007 18:38:41 CST

Casper-area lawmakers sound off on the possibility of a statewide smoking ban:

Daily news roundup, Dec. 17, 2007

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Mon, 17 Dec 2007 16:13:49 CST

Here you can see that the Wyoming Republican Party's strategy to break its national party's rules and hold an early primary has reaped rewards - stacks of glossy messages from Ron Paul:

Daily news roundup, Dec. 14, 2007

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Sun, 16 Dec 2007 10:37:24 CST

A letter from Chairman Millin has generated a story in today's Denver Post which will hit the Wyoming media today. The story can be found here (please give it a look):

Daily news roundup, Dec. 13, 2007

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Thu, 13 Dec 2007 11:53:05 CST

Here is a look at some of the major Wyoming politics and government news from the state's media and other sources today:

...

Trauner-Cubin news updates

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Wed, 17 Oct 2007 12:04:10 CDT

As promised, I have several links at the bottom of this post to different stories on Gary Trauner's entry into the 2008 U.S. House race. Suffice it to say people are excited. But first, here's an encouraging story on Gary's fundraising report for third quarter 2007, which gives him a nearly 20-to-1 cash-on-hand advantage over the incumbent...

Gary Trauner's running for U.S. House!

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Mon, 15 Oct 2007 17:22:04 CDT

It's official: Gary Trauner is the first Democrat to announce his candidacy for U.S. House. Here's a same-day story on his announcement - an announcement, by the way, which has attracted nationwide attention. Among the national media that have contacted state party headquarters today are Congressional Quarterly (

Gary Trauner plans exciting announcement

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Mon, 15 Oct 2007 11:47:58 CDT
Today, Gary Trauner plans to make an exciting announcement about the 2008 elections. Stay tuned for an update this afternoon after Gary tells us his plans for the coming year. I have a feeling that this time, things are going to work out like we hope.

Paper gives two good reasons to dump Cubin

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Thu, 11 Oct 2007 12:17:15 CDT

Two must-read pieces this week in the Casper Star-Tribune almost perfectly capture the essence of why we need to get rid of Barbara Cubin.

The first piece, an editorial called "Cubin should help override Bush veto," reveals a picture of a representative who votes with the extremist fringe of her party, while the good...

Gov warns: State revenue picture not as rosy as usual

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Fri, 21 Sep 2007 17:14:08 CDT

For pretty much this entire decade, state leaders have enjoyed revenues that significantly surpassed expectations. But Gov. Freudenthal says that won't be the case this year. Quoth the governor: "I don't believe that anyone should be expecting the kind of revenue in excess of projections, or what people call a surplus, this year," he said. "It's going to be...

Good times in Sheridan

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Wed, 22 Aug 2007 13:13:13 CDT

I traveled up to Sheridan last weekend to join area Democrats to celebrate the 150th of former Wyoming Gov. and U.S. Sen. John Kendrick. Despite the rain and wind, about 50 Democrats from Sheridan County and neighboring counties made it to the event, which is no small feat for a mid-August event during a non-election year.

The dynamic duo of state party Chairman John Millin and freshman Rep. Lori Millin made the trip up from Cheyenne and...

Another Democrat is born!

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Wed, 01 Aug 2007 18:02:35 CDT

I just got the word that Laramie County Democratic Party Chairman Mike Bell and his wife Amy are the proud parents of a newborn baby boy! Details forthcoming, but meanwhile, congratulations to Mike and Amy on the birth of their son.

*UPDATE*

Wyoming welcomes Jonathan Thayer Bell, who entered the world on Aug. 1 weighing in at 8-plus pounds and measuring 21 inches.

Quipped the new father: "We're building the...

Point, counterpoint

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Wed, 01 Aug 2007 18:00:27 CDT
I'm a bit late with this post, but in case you missed it, I put together this op/ed column for the Casper Star-Tribune on Saturday, July 21, in response to the paper's disturbingly misinformed editorial that had run Wednesday,...

Media takes notice of our grassroots efforts

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Mon, 16 Jul 2007 15:03:07 CDT

Our chairman's and executive director's efforts to reach into every corner of the state have garnered notice in the state's largest newspaper. Click here for the Casper Star-Tribune's profile on the Wyoming Democratic Party, where we're at and where we're headed. The story by Jared Miller takes a look at Chairman John Millin's 23-county plan, describes some of the party's...

Congratulations to new state Rep. Mary Hales!!!

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Mon, 09 Jul 2007 16:17:32 CDT

Congratulations to Mary Hales, Wyoming's newest state representative! The Natrona County Commission has appointed Mary to fill the vacancy in state House District 36 left by the resignation last month of Liz Gentile of Evansville.

Mary has served the Wyoming Democratic Party as state party secretary for a number of years, and she is a long-time local real estate agent. Now, the people of Evansville and parts of east Casper will be able to enjoy the benefits of...

Natrona County Commission to pick HD 36 rep today

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Mon, 09 Jul 2007 10:49:19 CDT
The Natrona County commissioners plan to meet today at 1 p.m. to interview the three finalists to fill the House District 36 vacancy left by the recent resignation of Liz Gentile of Evansville. The meeting, which will be in room 115 in the Natrona County Courthouse, will be open to the public. By the end of the day, we should know who are new representative is going to be (or, at the very least, we should know WHEN we will know). We'll keep you up-to-date as information becomes available.

Wheeler, Miller, Hales finalists for HD 36 vacancy

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Tue, 03 Jul 2007 10:57:18 CDT
Monday night, the Democratic precinct committee men and women selected Gretchen Wheeler, Penny Miller and Mary Hales as our three finalists to fill the state House District 36 vacancy left by the recent resignation of Rep. Liz Gentile of Evansville. Now, those three names have been submitted to the Natrona County Commission, and the commissioners have five days to appoint one of them to fill the legislative seat. Apparently, they're planning to meet at 1 p.m. Monday, July 9, for the...

Seven strong apply for HD36 vacancy

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Fri, 29 Jun 2007 12:19:08 CDT

We are pleased to announce that our party has seven quality candidates who have applied to fill the House District 36 vacancy left by the resignation of Rep. Liz Gentile of Evansville. Thursday night, the candidates introduced themselves at the Natrona County Democrats' meeting and answered a few questions, and all seven pledged to seek election in 2008 if appointed. Our candidates are:

Bill Sisco, a Casper businessman

Dan Coey, a bricklayer...

Wyoming Democrats look to fill House vacancy

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Mon, 25 Jun 2007 17:45:26 CDT

The Wyoming Democratic Party is seeking applicants to replace state Rep. Liz Gentile of Evansville in the Legislature. Gentile resigned to pursue carer opportunities. The party is accepting expressions of interest through 5 p.m. Thursday from people interested in filling out the remaining year-and-a-half in Gentile's term, representing House District 36, which includes Evansville and parts of East Casper.

Interestingly, as Republican John Barrasso resigned his...

Barrasso sworn in to U.S. Senate

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Mon, 25 Jun 2007 17:40:33 CDT
Gov. Freudenthal on Friday chose state Sen. John Barrasso of Casper to represent Wyoming in the U.S. Senate, to fill the vacancy left by Craig Thomas' death earlier this month. Monday, Barrasso was sworn in to his new job. State law required Freudenthal to choose one of the three names submitted by the Republican Party, as that was the party to which Thomas belonged. This story looks at Barrasso's background and...

Senate applicants list finalized; three finalists to be named Tuesday

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Fri, 15 Jun 2007 12:45:24 CDT

Although the procedure to replace the late Craig Thomas in the U.S. Senate is restricted almost entirely to the other party, there is understandably considerable interest across the political spectrum in who that person will be, so I thought I'd note it here in our blog. There are 31 applicants for the position, a field that will be whittled down to three when the Republican state central committee meets at the Ramkota Inn in Casper at 8 a.m. Tuesday, June 19. That meeting...

Fun(draising) in Converse County and a visit to Campbell

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Fri, 15 Jun 2007 12:23:39 CDT

Reflections on a couple of road trips: First, the Converse County Democrats held a fundraiser on June 2, in conjunction with Jackalope Days in Douglas. The fundraising idea was a chilling (literally) concept affectionately called Dunk-A-Democrat. Among the dunkees were recent (and hopefully future) U.S. House candidate Gary Trauner, state Rep. Lori Millin, local activists Sissy Goodwin and Jay Wright, and yours truly. While I was hoping for a 90-degree day, the temperature barely...

New executive director, field director on board

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Fri, 15 Jun 2007 12:08:32 CDT

Just a quick announcement about some new faces at party central. The state party Executive Committee has hired a new executive director and new field director, both of whom started working for the state party on June 1.

Executive Director Brandon Owens brings extensive experience in rural politics to the position, having served as the campaign coordinator for the Alabama Democratic Party during the 2006 election cycle. He has over 10 years working for Democratic...

Wyoming's U.S. House seat remains on national radar

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Thu, 10 May 2007 18:03:29 CDT

National political analysts are keeping Wyoming's lone U.S. House seat on their radar. Congressional Quarterly just published this story predicting a possible rematch between 2006 Democratic nominee Gary Trauner and incumbent Republican Barbara...

Rove: Cubin is in trouble.

Fri, 30 Mar 2007 11:56:50 CDT
A White House PowerPoint presentation from January lists Barbara Cubin as one of the 20 most vulnerable Republican incumbents in Congress. When Karl Rove says that the Wyoming Republican is in trouble, you know that Cubin has to be getting worried.

This week, the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform has been holding a series of hearings to investigate allegations of misconduct at the the...

Visiting with County Parties

Tue, 27 Mar 2007 13:22:26 CDT
As you probably already know, county parties across the state meet during the month of March in odd-numbered years to elect their officers who will serve for the next two years. These get-togethers also give me an opportunity to drive around Wyoming meeting activists and finding ways for the state party to help build and strengthen our party's local presence. I thought that I would take a few minutes to tell you about some of the people that I've met and the exciting things...

2007 session wrap-up

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Mon, 19 Mar 2007 16:13:52 CDT

Here is a look at some of the major pieces of legislation lawmakers passed this year:

Sales tax on groceries (House Bill 93) - Legislators built on last year's success, when they took this tax off the books for the first time ever. Last year's action only lifted the tax for two years, and this year, they voted to make it permanent. This is real tax relief for all the people of our state, and it helps our poorest citizens the most. However, legislators did not...

Legislature passes quality child care bills

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Tue, 27 Feb 2007 14:32:22 CST

The quality child care legislation, House Bills 95 and 96, are heading to Gov. Freudenthal's desk after the House on Tuesday concurred with Senate amendments to the legislation. The bills cleared third reading in the Senate on Monday. This story describes some of the details of the legislation. The main thing is that our state government is finally going to...

Wolves, quality child care, and a look at the budget

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Mon, 26 Feb 2007 12:55:48 CST

As we head into the Legislature's final week, those pesky wolves have once again taken center stage. This story takes a look at House Bill 213, which is scheduled for its initial debate and vote on the floor of the Senate today. The bill has already cleared the House and the Senate Travel, Rec, Wildlife Committee.

Meanwhile, the quality...

Friday update: food tax, same-sex marriage, wolves, etc.

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Fri, 23 Feb 2007 12:59:03 CST

Moments ago, the Senate passed House Bill 93, the bill to permanently eliminate the sales tax on food, on third and final reading. However, after passing an amendment Thursday to reimburse cities, towns and counties for their lost sales tax revenue, senators on Friday deleted the amendment. Many want to spend the next year coming up with the "right" formula to properly reimburse local governments. Some, obviously a minority, wanted to get at least something in the law this year to...

Updates on major legislation

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Wed, 21 Feb 2007 19:03:03 CST

Many of the high-profile pieces of legislation are still working their way through the legislative process at the Legislature heads into its last week of the 2007 general session. Here is a look at some of those bills and where they stand now (Note: every bill still alive at this point in the session has cleared third reading in one legislative chambers and is currently moving through the second chamber):

House Bills 95 and 96, quality child care: The meat of the...

Legislature back from break

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Tue, 20 Feb 2007 11:36:40 CST

The Legislature has returned after a three-day President's Day weekend for the final two weeks of the 2007 general session. Among the hot topics this week will be wolves and same-sex marriages, according to this Casper Star-Tribune story. For more on the wolf issue,

New report: President's policies fail rural Wyoming residents

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Fri, 16 Feb 2007 12:14:56 CST

President Bush's budget would severely and negatively impact the quality of life of rural Wyoming residents, according to a new report issued by the Democratic Policy Committee. Since 2001, the committee has issued reports on the failure of the president's policy to address the issues important to rural Americans. The report confirms that the president's cuts in funding for law enforcement,...

Updates on budget, quality child care

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Thu, 15 Feb 2007 11:06:01 CST

The budget bill has made it through second reading in both chambers this week, with third reading tentatively scheduled for tomorrow (Friday). Read here for news on some of this week's budget action. There's some good news in there for highway funding and the Wildlife Trust Fund. As a reminder, all of this week's budget amendments will set the stage for the...

UW Democrats on the move!

Mon, 12 Feb 2007 21:39:55 CST
The Rocky Mountain Democrats at the University of Wyoming have been actively engaging the campus community and building an energetic organization. Earlier this month, three members of the group were in Washington, DC for the College Democrats/Young Democrats Leadership Summit. While they were there, incoming UW College Dems President Samy Tolsted and Vice President Martha Tate went to a rally for Sen. Barack Obama at George Mason University. You can read more about the rally...

It's finally budget week

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Mon, 12 Feb 2007 14:36:27 CST

You wouldn't know it, but our legislature technically meets once every two years to craft the state's biennial budget. This is not one of those years. Yet, for most of the past decade, state government has enjoyed substantial surplus revenues, and figuring out what to do with those revenues has become pretty much an annual, rather than biannual, tradition.

The budget "mirror bill" - so-called because identical bills will be introduced on the House and Senate...

Budget work starts NEXT week; gambling legislation update

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Wed, 07 Feb 2007 12:42:33 CST

First, a correction from yesterday's blog. Lawmakers are scheduled to begin their work on the supplemental budget bill next week, not this week. I was misinformed. This is a good exemple of the constant state of flux that governs the legislative session. What ever the plan may have been five days ago is not necessarily the plan today, and things may be entirely different again tomorrow. But as of right now, the tentative plan is for the...

Budget work begins; updates on some bills

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Tue, 06 Feb 2007 10:23:52 CST

The major legislative news this week will be the supplemental budget bill. Last year, lawmakers crafted the state's budget for fiscal years 2007 and 2008. This year, they will work on a supplement to that spending measure. Some of the main topics of discussion will be money for infrastructure, especially state highways, and funding for local governments.

Meanwhile, a few bill updates are in order. The quality child care bill, House Bill 95, made it through the...

Quality child care bill passes first test in House

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Thu, 01 Feb 2007 16:27:25 CST

House Bill 95, the quality child care bill, cleared a significant hurdle Wednesday afternoon when the bill made it through its first vote before the full House. Unless the bill's progress gets delayed for some unusual reason, we should know by the end of the week whether the bill will clear all three readings in the House and move over to the...

Newspaper stands up against ideological extremism

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Tue, 30 Jan 2007 16:47:23 CST

Slithering their way through the legislative process this week are two bills we can all do without. House Bill 144, misleadingly labeled "women's right to know," would require Wyoming doctors who perform abortions to tell their patients about alternatives and inform them of potential risks and side effects before performing the procedure. I don't know very many people who think politicians should make it their business to decide what kinds of conversations they are going to have with...

Feds delist some wolves, but not ours

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Mon, 29 Jan 2007 17:00:38 CST

The federal government, in its infinite wisdom, has concluded that wolf populations are rebounding successfully enough that the feds announced they would remove wolves from the endangered species list in the Great Lakes region (Michigan, Minnesota and Wisconsin) in about a month and possibly take the same action for the wolves in the Rocky Mountain region (Wyoming, Montana and Idaho) in about a year. Story

Food tax exemption clears House; eminent domain bill moving

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Fri, 26 Jan 2007 11:13:37 CST

House Bill 93, the bill to make the sales tax exemption on food permanent, cleared third reading in the House on Thursday and now heads for the Senate. For most Democrats, they had to hold their noses a little bit when they voted for the bill, because while everyone favors removing the sales tax on food for good, most of them want to include a provision to reimburse local governments for the lost sales tax revenue. Right now, the bill does not have any way to provide this "backfill"...

Food tax exemption cruising; child care debate looms

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Tue, 23 Jan 2007 16:52:58 CST

Today, updates on two major bills. First, House Bill 93, the bill to make the sales tax exemption on food permanent, sailed through the House in Committee of the Whole on Tuesday. There were no amendments offered, and observers report that the discussion on the bill was very short. Second reading is currently scheduled for Wednesday, and if all goes well, it should be up for third and final reading in the House on Thursday, and if it passes, it will head over to the Senate.
...

Food tax exemption ready for another chance

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Mon, 22 Jan 2007 17:31:18 CST

So, the food sales tax exemption bill will head to the House floor again, this time without any mechanism for reimbursing local governments for the sales tax revenues they will lose. Last year, when the Legislature first passed the exemption, but only for two years, they allocated $46.6 million for state payments to local governments to keep them "whole." It seems like lawmakers...

House on food tax exemption: Try again

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Wed, 17 Jan 2007 15:43:58 CST

The House Revenue Committee made such a complicated mess out of the food sales tax exemption bill that the full House on Tuesday voted to send the bill back to committee for more work. House members' frustrated reactions to the measure, House Bill 93, prompted House Revenue Committee Chairman Rodney "Pete" Anderson, to apologize for bringing it to the floor is the shape it was in. He said the committee will probably rework on the bill on Friday. More

Lawmakers work on food tax, open containers, eminent domain

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Mon, 15 Jan 2007 16:21:05 CST

It looks like the state House is going to take on the food sales tax exemption this week. House Speaker Roy Cohee, R-Casper, said he expects House Bill 93 to come up on the House floor either today or Tuesday. That bill is sponsored by Rep. Rodney "Pete" Anderson, R-Pine Bluffs, who last year was one of the staunchest opponents of exempting food from the sales tax. Anderson's bill would make the food sales tax exemption permanent. Under current law, the exemption will expire on June...

Harmony defines Legislature's opening week

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Thu, 11 Jan 2007 16:43:07 CST

Just a quick note on Wednesday's State of the State address: Republican legislative leaders conspicuously did NOT hold a "Republican response" press conference after Gov. Freudenthal's speech. That was a fairly visible example of events that are contributing to a general feeling of bipartisanship in Cheyenne as the 59th Wyoming Legislature goes to work.

Several reporters noted that this is the first time since Freudenthal has been governor that the Republicans...

Freudenthal encourages Legislature to invest in Wyoming

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Wed, 10 Jan 2007 18:51:01 CST

In his State of the State address today, Gov. Freudenthal urged legislators to invest in Wyoming's future as they pore over the dozens and dozens of issues they will face over the next eight weeks. Among the several initiatives the governor specifically identified, he asked lawmakers to make the food sales tax exemption permanent, to make sure "fair market value" is a key component of any eminent domain bill they pass, to ban all open containers of alcohol in cars on state highways,...

Trauner awaiting vote certification process

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Thu, 09 Nov 2006 14:50:16 CST

At a press conference Thursday afternoon, Gary Trauner announced that he will let Wyoming's election certification process run its course before he concedes the election or claims victory. Gary said provisional ballots are still being counted in some counties, though he's not sure exactly which ones. As of Wednesday, Gary trailed Barbara Cubin by 970 votes out of more than 190,000 cast statewide in the U.S. House race, or one-half of one percent. If the provisional ballot count or...

Election results

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Thu, 09 Nov 2006 04:29:31 CST

By all accounts, this was a good election for Democrats. Our party has taken control of both houses of Congress; Gov Dave Freudenthal won re-election by one of the largest margins in the nation; and we won a net total of three seats in the Wyoming House of Representatives. It remains to be seen what will happen with the U.S. House race in Wyoming. But we have cause for celebration, and we must keep in mind that at the end of the day, it's not what's best for any particular party....

VOTE VOTE VOTE VOTE VOTE VOTE VOTE!

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Tue, 07 Nov 2006 11:53:37 CST

Vote today! Bring three people with you. Then call everyone you know and make sure they have voted. Keep alert for anything fishy at the polls or on your phone - and let us know if something seems amiss (800-SAY-DEMS). Today is the day when we can take control of our future and enact the kinds of changes we need in Wyoming (in the case of our congressional representation) or keep our state on the right track (by re-electing Gov. Dave Freudenthal and sending more Democrats to Cheyenne...

Star-Tribune endorses Trauner, Freudenthal; party rallies in Rock Springs

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Sun, 05 Nov 2006 12:34:57 CST

The state's largest paper has endorsed both Gov. Dave Freudenthal AND future U.S. Congressman Gary Trauner on its editorial page today. If you recall, the Casper Star-Tribune inexplicably endorsed Cubin in 2004, so their endorsement of Trauner is especially good news.

Troubling note: I'm in Wamsutter today, and one of the convenience stores reported that they didn't get their Casper Star-Tribune...

More good signs for Gary Trauner

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Fri, 03 Nov 2006 11:22:15 CST

As we head into the last weekend before Election Day, national political observers keep finding good news for Gary Trauner. First, the nation's premier politics Website, DailyKos, reports that Gary was greeted enthusiastically in Cheyenne while going door-to-door this week. The article includes a telling look at both of the personalities in the U.S. House race. Check it...

Trauner offers change from negativity, partisan bickering

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Wed, 01 Nov 2006 10:31:51 CST

In this Associated Press feature on Gary Trauner's campaign, he offers a simple and compelling choice to voters: You can vote for change, or you can vote for continued negativity and partisan bickering which has poisoned politics for such a large share of the people. And, if Trauner fails to deliver the promised change, voters can hire someone else at the...

Trauner-Cubin race officially a toss-up

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Tue, 31 Oct 2006 09:56:39 CST

For the first time since probably the 1970s, the race for Wyoming's only U.S. House seat is now officially considered a toss-up by one of the nation's foremost political analysts. Many experts have changed their rating of the race to indicate that it's close, in the wake of Gary Trauner's fine debate performances, Cubin's recent bizarre behavior, and Gov. Freudenthal's endorsement of Trauner. But the Cook Political Report -...

New poll: Trauner is catching Cubin

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Sun, 29 Oct 2006 15:56:14 CST

Gary Trauner is statistically tied with Barbara Cubin in a new independent poll. The survey conducted by the Wyoming Tribune-Eagle shows Trauner at 40.4 percent, Cubin at 44 percent, Libertarian Thomas Rankin at 5 percent, and 8 percent of the voters undecided. The 3.6-point difference between Trauner and Cubin is within the poll's 4.2-percent margin of error, which means the race...

Experts acknowledge Trauner's momentum

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Thu, 26 Oct 2006 11:47:20 CDT

Wyoming's U.S. House race is trending toward a Gary Trauner victory on Nov. 7, according to national experts. Two of the country's foremost political prognosticators have changed their official ratings of the race to reflect the increasing likelihood that Gary Trauner will take Wyoming's only House seat from Barbara Cubin. It's encouraging to see that the national experts are finally catching on to something that those of us who know Gary and who know Wyoming have known for...

Gov Dave backs Gary Trauner: 'It's time for a change'

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Wed, 25 Oct 2006 15:21:11 CDT

Listen to the press conference: Gov Dave backs Gary Trauner

Gov. Dave Freudenthal explained why he is supporting Gary Trauner for Congress this year during a press conference Wednesday, Oct. 25, in the State Capitol Building rotunda.

"It is time for a change, and the change did not occur in the Republican primary," Freudenthal said. "Gary...

Cubin threat raises eyebrows nationwide

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Tue, 24 Oct 2006 12:27:06 CDT

After Sunday night's debate among Democrat Gray Trauner, Repubican Barbara Cubin and Libertarian Thomas Rankin, Cubin reportedly told Rankin, a wheelchair-bound multiple sclerosis patient, that she would slap him if he weren't "sitting in that chair." This story was first published on the Casper Star-Tribune's Website, but it quickly made waves across the...

More debates

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Mon, 23 Oct 2006 18:16:49 CDT

We are in the middle of the second round of debates among candidates for statewide office. Sunday afternoon, Dale Groutage and Craig Thomas squared off in the U.S. Senate race, and then last night, Gary Trauner, Barbara...

Trauner within striking distance

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Tue, 17 Oct 2006 10:24:32 CDT

This week's big news is the Casper Star-Tribune poll on the Trauner-Cubin race. It shows that Cubin is leading 44-37 percent, with 15 percent still undecided and the other 4 percent planning to vote for the Libertarian candidate. So the score here in the fourth quarter is that we're down by one touchdown with just enough time to catch up and win. It's...

Wow, what a weekend!

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Mon, 16 Oct 2006 14:57:38 CDT

What an exciting weekend full of Wyoming political news! We've got debates, we've got polls, we've got endorsements. First off, we had the debates in Casper yesterday among the candidates for governor, U.S. House, and U.S. Senate. Here are the links to the news articles that the Casper Star-Tribune published about the debates:

- Governor debate:...

Groutage: People want their government back

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Fri, 13 Oct 2006 16:32:26 CDT

The Casper Star-Tribune has a nice story today on Dale Groutage's campaign, in which a reporter followed him around while he campaigned in Cheyenne recently. Dale raises several issues people need to keep in mind this campaign season:

- Our country is off-course.

- Our government is dysfunctional.
...

Cubin campaigns on taxpayer money, Trauner talks sense

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Fri, 13 Oct 2006 16:26:04 CDT
Barbara Cubin and a fellow congressional Republican visited F.E. Warren Air Force Base to campaign for Cubin yesterday, presumably at taxpayer expense, during something billed as "an official congressional delegation visit," according to this story in the Wyoming Tribune-Eagle. The story points out that Cubin's traveling partner, Rep. Terry Everett of Alabama, took a Nancy Pelosi...

Wyo congressional delegation no friends of environment

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Thu, 12 Oct 2006 16:00:42 CDT
Our state's current U.S. senators and representative earned a notorious distinction this week by being ranked the worst congressional delegation in the United States when it comes to protecting our environment. Despite the fact that pretty much everyone who lives here says Wyoming's uniquely beautiful environment is one of the main reasons why they like living here, Barbara Cubin,...

Of wolves and men

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Wed, 11 Oct 2006 16:23:03 CDT

I didn't notice a lot of politics news skimming through the papers today, so I'll link to the Associated Press story on Wyoming's new lawsuit over wolf management. It sounds like the state may yet one day get its day in court over whether the feds had the right to reject our wolf management plan. My concerns about the success of the wolf reintroduction...

GOP issues bizarre press release

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Tue, 10 Oct 2006 10:07:32 CDT

Wyoming Republican Party leadership provided further evidence Monday that it is totally bereft of useful ideas by issuing a press release stating that Gov. Freudenthal is a Democrat. This is so inane on so many levels it's hard to know where to start. Apparently, the Wyoming GOP leadership's approach is to insult the intelligence of Wyoming's voters by assuming that they will...

Freudenthal, Hunkins debate on Public Radio tonight

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Tue, 10 Oct 2006 09:47:54 CDT

Wyoming Public Radio will broadcast a debate tonight at 7 p.m. between Gov. Freudenthal and challenger Ray Hunkins. The debate took place in real time Monday night at a convention of Wyoming's travel, hospitality, merchants and liquor dealers' associations in Cody. Public Radio's Renny MacKay is the moderator. This Casper Star-Tribune...

Trauner, Cubin discuss Foley scandal

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Fri, 06 Oct 2006 12:31:44 CDT
Here are the first extended public comments from Gary Trauner and Barbara Cubin on the Foley scandal and the House Republican leadership's handling of it. Trauner is right: this situation needs to be investigated, and anyone who knew what was going on and failed to fix the problem needs to be held accountable. This is a serious issue that should not be politicized,...

Judge restores access to Hawk Springs

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Fri, 06 Oct 2006 12:20:02 CDT
I don't know all the details of what is going on behind the scenes here, but I bet 99 percent of the public is glad to see that Wyoming 8th District Judge Keith Kautz restored public access to Hawk Springs Reservoir in south Goshen County. This isn't exactly an election story, but it's a pretty interesting political one. As Gov. Freudenthal points...

Hot Week for Dems in Fremont County

Thu, 05 Oct 2006 18:27:24 CDT

On Thursday October 12, the Fremont County Democratic Party is hosting a volunteer rally at the Lander Arts Center on Main avenue.   Live music, catered food, and speeches from Gary Trauner for US Congress and Dale Groutage for US Senate.

The Fremont County Democratic and Republican party have set a new precedent of bi-partisan cooperation by co-hosting a forum with county commissioner candidates. To be...

Thomas promises more partisanship

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Wed, 04 Oct 2006 18:20:24 CDT

Craig Thomas gave the Casper Star-Tribune this insight into the kind of litmus test he thinks we need to govern our country by vowing to use his power to assure that no Democrat will be appointed to the seat on the U.S. District Court bench being vacated by Judge Clarence Brimmer.

By contrast, remember

As promised, debate details

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Tue, 03 Oct 2006 15:00:30 CDT

I've managed to gather some of the details of the major debates taking place this campaign season. There seem to be two big ones. The first will be held Sunday, Oct. 15, in Casper, sponsored by the Casper Star-Tribune and KCWY-TV, Casper's Channel 13. In addition, Wyoming Public Television is sponsoring a series of debates Sunday, Oct. 22, through Tuesday, Oct. 24. More details:

The Star-Tribune/KCWY debate will be held in the Gertrude Krampert Theater at Casper...

Star-Tribune editor sheds light on negative Cubin ad

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Tue, 03 Oct 2006 10:09:22 CDT

Casper Star-Tribune editor Clark Walworth recently offered this explanation for how Gary Trauner said something in July, the newspaper printed its version of his comments, and the Cubin campaign has misconstrued them (I found this online here but not in the actual pages of the paper):

this report from Cheyenne's NewsChannel 5. The TV station did some quality research last week and concluded that the negative Cubin ad "doesn't check out." Her ad draws from a Casper Star-Tribune article that mischaracterizes Gary Trauner's position on the Bush tax cuts and military spending. This is, sadly,...

Couple of pieces on governor's race

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Fri, 29 Sep 2006 16:35:56 CDT

There have been a couple news items relating to the governor's race in the past few days, so I thought I'd mention them here. The newest one comes from yesterday regarding the candidates' positions on abortion. The Wyoming Tribune-Eagle published this story, which is about the same as the

Groutage argues for ESA reform, seeks debates

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Thu, 28 Sep 2006 14:59:01 CDT

Senate hopeful Dale Groutage held a press conference yesterday in Cheyenne and got a couple of good pieces of news coverage out of it. Although Dale's press conference was intended primarily to shed light on the fact that Craig Thomas is trying to avoid debating him, the Associated Press seems to have been in a wolfish state of mind, so they ran this story,...

USA Today: Dems gain momentum out West

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Wed, 27 Sep 2006 12:59:29 CDT

This week, USA Today published this story about the gains Democrats have been making in the West over the past few years. It notes Gov. Freudenthal's win in 2002 and Gary Trauner's strong U.S. House run this year. It also lists a few other races this year in which Democrats are looking good in the Rocky Mountain region.

In semi-related news, the popular blog Daily Kos has...

Trauner scares Cubin, exposes her deceptions

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Tue, 26 Sep 2006 20:46:47 CDT

Two good pieces of news reported in the Casper Star-Tribune (via the AP), the Wyoming Tribune-Eagle, and various newspapers, radio stations and TV stations across the state. First of all, Barbara Cubin is running scared in the U.S. House race. She...

What ticks you off? What can we do about it?

Tue, 25 Apr 2006 00:39:17 CDT
We want to hear what ticks you off. And we want to know how you would fix it.

As a community, what can we do to make Wyoming a better place?

Jennie Blackton will be in Southern Wyoming during the first week of May to lead workshops for Democratic grassroots activists. Jennie is a nationally recognized trainer, who coaches political candidates in public speaking. She'll help us organize to strengthen our community....

Trauner campaign generates national buzz

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Mon, 24 Apr 2006 16:58:54 CDT

Gary Trauner's U.S. House campaign is making waves on the national political scene! That's no small feat being a Democrat in a "red" state running against a Republican incumbent. First, here's a story from Congressional Quarterly from over the weekend:

Newcastle refreshes party organization

Tue, 11 Apr 2006 09:29:44 CDT
In Newcastle over the weekend, 30-40 Weston county democrats gathered to visit with Governor Dave, who took time to answer their questions on topics ranging from healthcare to wildlife.  State party officials stayed on with the Weston dems to discuss supporting their organization. The group decided that Kaydee will soon return to Newcastle to help them organize a door to door canvass as outreach to the 900 registered...

Freudenthal kicks off re-election campaign

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Mon, 03 Apr 2006 13:41:51 CDT

Just as he did four years ago, Gov. Dave Freudenthal held press conferences Monday in his hometown of Thermopolis, Casper and Cheyenne to formally announce his intention to seek another four years in office. I attended the Casper announcement at the Parkway Plaza Hotel, and there were more than 100 people there to show their support for "four more years," as some of them periodically chanted.

The governor began his remarks by noting how many people in the audience...

Quality child care bill passes on last day of session

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Wed, 15 Mar 2006 09:43:03 CST

In my elation that the legislative session has ended and the post-session work that ensued and the Wyoming Cowboys' Mountain West Conference tournament championship basketball game Saturday night (what a heart-breaking loss!), I somehow forgot to post a blog entry on Saturday's activities. So I'll update you now.

I began the morning at the Laramie County Democratic Party Convention at the Hitching Post. The first part of the morning was dedicated to candidate...

Field Update

Wed, 15 Mar 2006 09:07:00 CST

Over the past week I attended the Sheridan and Fremont county conventions, both well-attended by active and concerned local citizens. The platforms of the county parties were thoughtfully deliberated, as people sought to define and refine government procedure, articulate their values, and outline their vision.

I am currently working on the field strategy by inputting all grassroots volunteer information into our central PT database,...

Quality child care bill lives; lawmakers override legi-communications veto

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Fri, 10 Mar 2006 17:04:54 CST

Well, THIS was a laid-back day, legislation-wise, though not entirely without drama. That's to be expected, as we're into the tail end of the session, but not yet at the tip of the tail. That is to say, the leadership finally decided they will meet again tomorrow (Saturday) for what I am confident will be the last day of the 2006 budget session (and, barring a special session between now and January, the last day of the 58th Wyoming Legislature). Lawmakers spent a lot of time taking...

Freudenthal issues first veto, panel ponders quality child care bill

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Fri, 10 Mar 2006 03:05:44 CST

Sorry for this oh-so-brief and oh-so-late blog post, but somehow my life is getting busier as the budget session is starting to wind down.

Among the biggest news of the day was that Gov. Freudenthal issued his first veto of the session Thursday. He vetoed Senate File 5, which would specify that legislators' communications with their staff, constituents and consultants don't have to be disclosed.

In his message accompanying his veto, the...

Budget sails, Senate reshapes quality child care bill

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Wed, 08 Mar 2006 16:15:36 CST

First things first: the compromise version of the budget bill easily passed both chambers of the Legislature today and has headed to Gov. Freudenthal's desk. My understanding is that he has told lawmakers he will try to take action on the bill by Friday, so the Legislature doesn't have to remain in session on Saturday to find out whether the governor vetoes any part of the budget. I haven't received any indication that he plans to use his line-item veto on anything in the bill, but...

Budget compromise reached

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Tue, 07 Mar 2006 17:35:05 CST

The 10 budget conference committee members finally wrapped up their work about 5:30 p.m. this evening after starting their day at 8 a.m. So tomorrow, both chambers will cast votes on the compromise version of the budget bill. If either side votes not to adopt the compromise version, another conference committee will be appointed, a "free committee," which will be able to change any part of the budget in hopes of coming up with something that will pass...

Highlights from the Nellie Tayloe Ross Banquet

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Mon, 06 Mar 2006 21:16:06 CST

Just a quick note to say that our Nellie Tayloe Ross Banquet on Saturday at the Hitching Post was fabulous.

Iowa Gov. Tom Vilsack gave a wonderful keynote address, talking mainly about the importance of community. "The current policies of our national government are undermining our sense of community," Vilsack said. He pointed out how our nation is at war, yet we aren't making any sacrifices. In fact, the richest people in our country are paying less in taxes now...

Budget compromise begins, HB 92 survives

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Mon, 06 Mar 2006 20:44:01 CST

Today, the budget conference committee began its work. Members got about halfway through the budget, and they continue tomorrow (Tuesday) at 8 a.m. Highlights from the first day included the Wildlife Trust Fund and the food tax exemption.

As for the food tax exemption, it went like all the other identical amendments that cleared both chambers. All of those were adopted, so that means the grocery tax exemption will be in the budget version that goes back to both...

Budget clears both chambers

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Fri, 03 Mar 2006 20:04:04 CST

The budget bill cleared both chambers of the Legislature today on third reading, setting the stage for the next step in the process: the budget joint conference committee. More on the conference committee in a moment.

One of the biggest stories of the budget's final reading in the House and Senate was what DIDN'T happen. Neither chamber amended the language that takes the sales tax off groceries for two years. So the conference committee will quite likely approve...

House, Senate vote to remove food tax

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Thu, 02 Mar 2006 19:05:35 CST

They did it! Both the House and Senate adopted budget amendments today to remove the sales tax on groceries for two years. These votes took place near the end of the longest day yet of the 2006 budget session.

The House voted first, after about 20 minutes of debate. Rep. Ann Robinson, D-Casper, the primary sponsor of the amendment to remove the tax on groceries, told her colleagues that the amendment offered them a genuine chance to improve the lives of Wyoming's...

Food tax exemption remains in spotlight

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Wed, 01 Mar 2006 17:39:40 CST

Eliminating the state sales tax on groceries is emerging as perhaps the biggest issue of the Legislature's 2006 budget session, and tomorrow (Thursday) will be a pivotal day for the idea. Casper Democrat Ann Robinson in the House and Casper Republican John Barrasso in the Senate are planning to introduce budget amendments tomorrow to lift the tax off food.

If the amendment succeeds in both the House and Senate, that will give clear direction to the conference...

Debate focuses on tax breaks

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Tue, 28 Feb 2006 19:53:05 CST

I think the big news today was the debate between the executive branch and legislative branch over tax cuts. In case you haven't heard, our state government is dealing with a massive budget surplus, enough to fund government at its current levels and still have enough left over to pay for the state General Fund share of state government for another two years.

Of course, Gov. Freudenthal's budget recommendations would use some of that extra money to invest in the...

Budget work starts slowly

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Mon, 27 Feb 2006 19:41:52 CST

Legislators began their budget work today, but it wasn't as exciting as it's going to get. I focused on the Senate, where they had all of four amendments on their first reading of the budget, and they were all "technical amendments," according to Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman John Hines, R-Gillette, who sponsored all four amendments. That means the amendments weren't very interesting as far as policy questions go.

Tomorrow (Tuesday), they'll continue...

Ten days down, ten to go

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Fri, 24 Feb 2006 20:58:05 CST

We've reached the halfway mark of the 20-day budget session, and to tell the truth, we haven't seen a lot of fireworks so far. Not that that's a bad thing. When we see, as I said, "fireworks," what that means is that people's passions and emotions can become larger factors in the decision-making process, and they can wind up making different decisions than they might otherwise under calmer conditions. We could consider ourselves lucky that we don't have doctors and lawyers at each...

Full House votes down 'heat and eat'

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Thu, 23 Feb 2006 18:03:59 CST

You've got to give Rep. Ann Robinson credit for trying. Thursday, the Casper Democrat resorted to a rarely-if-ever used procedural maneuver to revive House Bill 117, the "heat and eat" bill that would remove the sales tax from groceries and home utility bills. After the House Revenue Committee voted 5-4 against sending the bill forward to the full House, Rep. Robinson asked the full House to trump the committee's recommendation and bring the bill back to life. And it almost worked -...

New positions, and new life for "heat and eat"?

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Wed, 22 Feb 2006 18:09:03 CST

Several pieces of legislation were the focus of much of the discussion during the House Democrats' caucus today. Naturally, this being a budget session, part of the talk focused on the budget. Specifically, the number of new government positions in the budget, which is about 780.

Chris Boswell, a former House Democrat himself and now Gov. Freudenthal's chief of staff, explained how the vast bulk of those positions are either A) related to the opening of a new...

"Heat and eat" bill dies

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Tue, 21 Feb 2006 18:17:55 CST

I guess this will qualify as the first slightly depressing post I've made this session (which is slightly odd). Today, Rep. Ann Robinson's "heat and eat" bill, as several people around the Capitol Building were calling it, died on a 5-4 committee vote. This was House Bill 117, which would have eliminated the sales tax on groceries permanently and would have suspended the sales tax on home utility bills for two years. Both Democrats on the House Revenue Committee, Reps. Mary Meyer...

Ahh, the joy of committees

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Mon, 20 Feb 2006 20:25:23 CST

This is just part of the "fun."

Sen. Kathryn Sessions, D-Cheyenne, specifically invited me to the Senate Judiciary Committee meeting this afternoon to see how the panel handled her bill on registration of sex offenders. Obviously, she was excited about her bill, which she and Attorney General Pat Crank said also had the support of the governor.

Have you ever been to a legislative committee meeting? They can be a little trying. There were four...

Cheney address highlights Day Five

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Fri, 17 Feb 2006 20:34:21 CST

Vice President Dick Cheney's address to the Legislature today struck a positive and bipartisan tone by all accounts, and it was well received by all of the Democrats in attendance who I talked to later in the day.

Cheney began by expressing his appreciation for the warm welcome six days after his hunting accident that has been the main national news story all week, and he reported that his hunting partner's recovery is going well.

2006 Legislature launches budget session

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Tue, 14 Feb 2006 13:48:51 CST

And we're off!

The 58th Legislature's 2006 budget session kicked off at 10 a.m. yesterday, highlighted by Gov. Freudenthal's State of the State address. Speeches by the governor and legislative leaders were the main events of the day, sprinkled with some choral entertainment. By the day's end, legislators had begun the laborious process of bill introduction, a topic that deserves its own paragraph.

During budget sessions (even-numbered...

Exciting News

Mon, 13 Feb 2006 21:26:58 CST
I have just returned from several days of meetings and training sessions sponsored by the Democratic National Committee and the Association of State Democratic Chairs. It has been exciting to hear about the grassroots energy that state parties all across the country are witnessing. Almost every state has stories to tell like Kaydee's. With growing numbers of activists and volunteers spread out in precincts across Wyoming and the United States, 2006 really does look like a good...

House Bill 92

Wed, 08 Feb 2006 11:59:40 CST

On Wednesday, February 1st, in Laramie WY on the UW campus, Deanna Frey of the Wyoming Children's Action Alliance came to speak at the Grassroots meeting on behalf of House Bill 92, "Quality Childcare."

The Federal Reserve Bank conducted a multi-year research on economic stimuli that are most effective in spurring and sustaining a vibrant economy. Art Rolnick concludes that investment in early child development is the single wisest investment for...

Poll contains good news for Democrats

luckett@wyomingdemocrats.com (Bill Luckett) — Wed, 08 Feb 2006 10:19:40 CST

You may have noticed that the Casper Star-Tribune is publishing the results this week of major polling the paper conducted recently, and there is plenty of good news in there for Democrats to celebrate. First, Gov. Dave Freudenthal's job performance was rated as good or excellent by 81 percent of the people surveyed. This is in line with the tracking poll of SurveyUSA.com, which shows the governor's job approval rating consistently in the mid-60s for the bulk of the past year....

Grassroots numbers more than double in Sheridan, Natrona, and Laramie counties

Mon, 06 Feb 2006 16:46:41 CST

The grassroots meetings of January 23- 31 in Sheridan, Casper, and Cheyenne saw the participation numbers more than double since the first meeting in late 2005. Old party activists, new residents, young people; including high school, college age, and young professionals. Even registered Republicans turned out to listen to the Wyoming Democrats new grassroots strategy.

Representative Mary Gilmore spoke about the legislative...

Sheridan Grassroots Numbers Double

Sun, 29 Jan 2006 22:21:41 CST

January 23 meeting in Sheridan: Participants in the grassroots meetings more than doubled since the first meeting.   High school and young professionals began trickling into the field meetings. Participants openly discussed their points of view in realms of local, state and and national concern. Throughout the course of the meeting, participants proposed to hold a community forum on points of pertinent...

Announcing: Sheridan County Upcoming Grassroots Meeting

Thu, 19 Jan 2006 12:43:29 CST
***********
Grassroots Field Organization, Democratic Party: Phase II

Date: Monday January 23rd
Time: 6:30 - 8 p.m.
Where: Inner Circle in the Fulmer Public Library

1.. "What's at Stake" in the upcoming legislative session: analysis by
State Executive Director Kyle DeBeer
2.. Mini-workshop on writing effective letters-to-the-editor
3. Identify leadership for...

January 9 meeting in Jackson

Fri, 13 Jan 2006 12:33:36 CST
The meeting with longtime party activists in Jackson was inspiring and positive. Convened in front of a fire at Leslie and Hank's beautiful home, former social workers, foreign correspondants, environmental justice and conservation lawyers and scientists, substance abuse cases caseworkers and founders of equality-inspired NGOs, all discussed what's at stake for Wyoming and the nation. From this point, we will work to develop active precinct teams, and...

Did I sign that? Barbara Cubin's latest excuse.

Wed, 11 Jan 2006 18:03:02 CST
Last year, Rep. Barbara Cubin supported changes to the 1872 Mining Law, which would have opened thousands of acres of public land to potential private development. The proposed changes were roundly condemned by Western politicians, including Wyoming Senator Craig Thomas, also a Republican.

Now Congress is considering another scheme that would force the sale of millions of acres of the public lands managed by the Department of the Interior (except for National...

Field Program Launched in 2005, laying groundwork for exciting 2006

Sat, 07 Jan 2006 13:35:19 CST

The first year of our field program targets seven counties. Those include Teton, Natrona, Albany, Laramie, Sheridan, Fremont, and Sweetwater. As of this week, I will have visited all of them for the introductory and initiatory phase I. This month, I look forward to revisiting each county for phase II, including an issue-by-issue discussion of the upcoming legislative session, and a mini-workshop on writing letters to the editor. I have enjoyed getting to know the...

What does Wyoming need in 2006?

Tue, 03 Jan 2006 01:01:03 CST
That's the question that the Casper Star-Tribune recently posed to their readers and 56 state leaders.

Some of us at the state party also wrote into the paper to offer our thoughts on what Wyoming needs in the year ahead. Mike Gierau (our chairman) wrote about small business promotion. Nancy Drummond (our vice chairman) focused on

Vice Chair Nancy Drummond recognized for "chronic volunteerism."

Tue, 03 Jan 2006 00:36:07 CST
If you've met Nancy Drummond, it won't come as a surprise that she was named the 2005 Volunteer of the Year by the Sheridan Chamber of Commerce. (You can find her bio here.)

Nancy gives an incredible amount of time and energy in community service. At the moment, she is a member of her local school board. She delivers hot meals to senior four days a week for meals on wheels....

Welcome to the Wyoming Democratic Party's Blog!

Wed, 21 Dec 2005 15:49:06 CST
Earlier this week, Bill Luckett (our communication's director), Kaydee Dahlin (our field director), and I got together to talk about where the state party is headed and what projects are on the radar for the start of the next year. One thing that the three of us agreed on was the need to let people know what is happening at the state party. To that end, we are starting this blog for the Wyoming Democratic Party.

At least once each week,...

Bush Record of Failure on Veterans: 3 Years of Broken Commitments

Fri, 28 May 2004 10:21:29 CDT
Washington, D.C. - On the eve of Memorial Day Weekend, Democratic National Committee (DNC) Chairman Terry McAuliffe was joined at a press conference by several Veterans to highlight George W. Bush's plan to cut nearly $1 billion from the Department of Veterans Affairs - should he win a second term in November. "This weekend, we as a nation will honor those who made the ultimate sacrifice in their service to our country," DNC Chairman Terry McAuliffe said today. "And while now...

America Under Bush: The State of Wyoming's Working Families

Thu, 20 May 2004 15:18:15 CDT
Since the Bush Administration took office, Wyoming's working families are worse off. Here a few of the ways in which the failed policies of George W. Bush and Barbara Cubin have hurt Wyoming's working families:

1,300 of Wyoming's workers have lost their unemployment benefits since January 2004.

42 percent of Wyoming taxpayers will receive less than $100 from the latest Bush tax cut in 2004.

Wyoming's families face a...