Politics of 2017
As this is my last column for 2017, I thought I would reflect back on the year concerning politics. It certainly hasn’t been boring. This was a year that broke almost everyone’s predictions in a lot of ways. At the start, we all just hung on and rode the waves, and as the year went on, we got used to everything and let go some.
For the year 2017, the big story came when Donald Trump was elected, and we knew change was coming starting on Inauguration Day in January. Some said they were headed to Canada after President Trump got elected, and that was okay with others of us as they just didn’t fit our examples of good Americans. We learned that there were some not very nice political losers out there, and their main goal was to hinder President Trump and his administration in anything he did – and some in the press helped. Our new President seems to like to keep us all guessing with his never-ending tweets, but hey, doing business in the West and proposed tax breaks for families are really looking up.
Fake news came to be the most used phrase all year, as cable news and even some print news had their own slant on everything. The news never got reported. We just heard someone’s opinion. One news outlet reported Donald Trump won the election and was headed for the White House, while another reported Donald Trump forced a minority family from their home. I stopped watching the news. It was just trash, all of it.
The good news was that our Congressional delegation is a strong one, and they’re in leadership positions. Newly elected Liz Cheney established herself on some powerful and top committees in the U.S. House, and she won over those at home who heard her speak. Our Senators, both in U.S. Senate leadership in committees and in the Senate, represented our state and nation well as we have become accustomed to. They all had a hand in “changing and draining the swamp around the Potomac.” I heard time and time again from others in western states about how they respect our Congressional delegation for their work helping the West. I’m proud of them.
Politics back home in the state was tough, too. State government needed at least a 10 percent cut, and with strong leadership from Gov. Mead, we did just that. Now, we are still short of cash, especially in education. We’ve got good leadership in our legislature, and we’ll come out of this as we’ve done before. Some want more taxes, while others want more cuts to balance the budget, as we have to by law. It will be an interesting session. I’m leaning towards more cuts. Those in Cheyenne need your input. Visit with them and those in state government every chance you get.
Our state economy has stopped dropping, and it has even popped upward a little. Our state investments, under great watchful eyes, have really done well, as the stock market has risen since the day President Trump was elected. With the new ENDOW program started by Gov. Mead, Wyoming is hoping to create more diversity in the state and help our workforce and youth find jobs in the future that last. We all support this action.
There is a lot of work to do in our state. This hard work lies in the hands of our elected officials, and it is our responsibility, too. Have a blessed and prosperous New Year in 2018.
