(Cheyenne, WY) – On October 26th, a delegation of five from the Fremont County Wyoming Republican Party (FCWRP) attended the special session of the Wyoming Legislature, according to a press release sent to County 10.
Annette Baxter, secretary of the Fremont County Republican Women, Ginger Bennett, county chairwoman, Nancy Justice, precinct committeewoman, Karl Falken, precinct committeeman, and Sallye Kessler, county party secretary, drove down together from Riverton the morning of the first day of the session.
Prior to this, the FCWRP Central Committee passed a resolution for the governor to call for this special session. Anecdotal comments by members of the Wyoming Highway Patrol providing security for the event indicate this may be one of the best-attended events at the capital to date.
“Overflow crowd watches legislature proceedings from the State Capitol Room” (h/t Karl Falken)
Besides many private vehicles that made the journey, other groups around the state-chartered three busses to bring their members down for the session.
On the first day, the legislature did not pass special rules intended to expedite the process, which required a ⅔ majority. They did however vote down two attempts to adjourn the special session, which continued under the standard rules adopted by the 2021 general session. All the Democrats in both houses voted against the special rules and for adjourning the special session.
Twenty draft bills were introduced and their current status can be viewed here.
“Initially I was disappointed when the legislators did not pass the special rules,” Ginger commented. “However, I realized afterward that this really showed they felt this special session topic deserves their full attention and public scrutiny and comment. For the rest of the session, my hope and prayer is that they will duly consider the broader and individual impact on finances and health the mandates will have if unchecked.”
Nancy Justice explained her reason for attending: “I came today along with many fellow citizens of the great state of Wyoming to remind the legislators of the importance of defending and exercising our 10th amendment rights. (governmental powers not given in the U.S. Constitution to the federal government are reserved to the states). It is clear to me that these are being abused and in danger of being lost.”
Annette Baxter had her reasons for going too, and went to Cheyenne to see first-hand the legislative process.
She was particularly impressed at how much is involved and the capabilities of our leaders.
“One comment that made a lasting impression on me was when Representative Chuck Gray (R-57th district) emphasized the need for quick action to protect the rights and livelihoods of people which are under immediate threat. I was profoundly disappointed by those who minimized the importance of the problem and advocated for delaying action. I was also positively impressed at how well attended, peaceful and orderly the rally was.”
“The citizens and especially the voters of Wyoming need to firmly remind their legislators in both houses,” Sallye stated, “that they will be held accountable for the outcome of this session. If we don’t do this, Wyoming could go the way of other states where mere posturing and political process have become cover for pandering to special interests.”
Besides watching the house and senate proceedings live, the delegation also attended committee meetings and between sessions watched the rally and listened to speakers talk and testify about the federal mandates. They also informally toured the three-year, $3.2M restoration of the capitol building. The delegates returned late that night to follow the remainder of the session as reported in the media.