The Open Range Record article archive — page 4
Complete archive of news articles, investigations and columns published by The Open Range Record, Wyoming's Independent News Source.
- "The Buck Does Stop With Me:" Degenfelder's Convention Conversation
As the conversation turned to responsibility inside the Wyoming Department of Education, Degenfelder said the sentence that now frames the whole controversy: “The buck does stop with me. No matter what an employee does.” - Guggenmos Announces Re-Election Bid for House District 55
Should Guggenmos be successful, this would be his second term in the Wyoming House - Darin McCann Announces Re-election Campaign for House District 48
My background as a Green Beret prepared me for difficult challenges and standing firm under pressure. My work as a physician assistant has strengthened my commitment to serving families and communities across Wyoming. - Who Will Own Wyoming’s Future: Its People or the Government?
Wyoming is steadily removing productive land from use, creating an artificial scarcity that drives up costs and threatens the agricultural foundation that built this state. - Weston Commissioners Fail to Select Candidate--Three Days Remain to Comply with Statute
At one point the commissioners asked Weston County Attorney Michael Stulken if they were required to select a replacement from the three candidates. He instructed them that according to statute they had to. The commissioners ignored his advice. - Marlene Brady Announces Re-Election Campaign for House District 60.
What matters more than any score is this: I worked hard and voted to defend conservative families in Wyoming. - Charlie Cole: Over the Stop Just Will Not Stop
As events continue to unfold across America, patriots need to calmly and rationally view them through the prism of history before casting their votes in November. As philosopher George Santayana famously noted, “Those who fail to learn the lessons of history a... - Campbell Rep John Bear Announces Re-Election Campaign
Wyoming State Representative John Bear (R-HD 31), Chairman of the House Appropriations Committee, today announced his candidacy for re-election to the Wyoming House of Representatives asserting that in a state full of rhinos, it’s good to be a Bear. - "The Story of Everything" is a Great Movie
This movie gave me hope that our own incessant arguing can find agreement. If Einstein and Hoyle could ultimately change their minds to agree with Hubble and Lemaître, we can learn something from them. Their zeal for the truth enabled them to admit errors and... - The Third Shot: How Media Saturation is Warping the American Psyche
The task of cooling the political rhetoric may be a job that the media establishment is currently unwilling to perform. For the American people, the question remains: how much longer can the republic withstand a media environment that prioritizes "rocket fuel"... - JD WIlliams' Not So Welcoming "Welcome" Speech
Williams’s speech did not sound like it was aimed only at voters who have checked out. It sounded like a criticism of where party is heading — and who is now steering it. For months, establishment Republicans have hammered the Freedom Caucus and grassroots con... - Pendergraft: Why did I vote to let hungry kids starve?
No one voted to let kids starve. We did vote against money for administration that didn't have anything to do with food. - Senate Candidates' GOP Speeches Reveal Very Different Approaches
For a first-time attendee, that undercurrent was hard to miss, because the convention isn’t just about candidates or speeches. It’s about contrast—tone versus tone, style versus style, and a quiet but persistent question about where the party is headed and who... - Board Application Raises More Questions for April Marie Morganroth
Another charge of forgery has been added to the 20 others Morganroth is already facing. It stems from what appears to be the same allegedly fraudulent letter she submitted elsewhere. This charge raises questions about a board application Morganroth submitted t... - An Open Letter to Senator Ogden Driskill
You said you wanted people to trust your word. The best I can tell, the main thing you’ve done to try and trick voters into doing this is by sitting under an “1880s” ranch sign during the interview. - Mission Accomplished: Kathy Russell Announces Retirement as Wyoming GOP Executive Director
The vacancy created by Russell’s departure comes at a critical time for the Wyoming Republican Party as it navigates the 2026 election cycle. However, the tone of her letter suggests that the party is in its strongest position in decades. - Wyoming GOP Changes Bylaws to Challenge Decades of State Control
This legal strategy, described by party leadership as a necessary defense of constitutional rights, is expected to argue that Title 22 unconstitutionally infringes upon the party's ability to communicate its preferences to its members. - Campbell: Bien Received the Most Applause
In contrast, Brent Bien received a significantly louder and more energetic response. About three-quarters of the delegates stood and cheered as he approached the stage, then rose to their feet again and chanted “Brent! Brent! Brent!” as he exited. - 375 Resolutions: Wyoming Conservatives are Right On-Target
Convention Resolutions Chairman Rep Pendergraft: "As I considered these resolutions, I was reminded of the often-parroted claim that the “extreme far right” are only concerned with national issues, and ignore the needs wants of Wyoming’s people. Looking back a... - The Managerial Revolution Stifles True Humanity
Understanding the essence of humanity is the first task in choosing sides. Can life be boiled down to adequate food, housing, and clothing? How much cultural cuisine are we willing to lose to put “a chicken in every pot”? How much should we suppress religious... - Mossburg: Legislators Should Make Transparency a Top Priority in 2027
As I discovered, many grant recipients did not use grant money as promised, didn’t complete projects on time, and were not audited. It would have been a lot easier and faster to find this information and hold grant recipients accountable if the information had... - "Protect Wyoming" is Really Protecting an Agenda
"Protect Wyoming" co-founder Zach Lentsch supported Bernie Sanders in 2018. His political action committee, under the guise of fairly evaluating legislators on public lands, created a scorecard with a predetermined outcome--to penalize conservatives and reward... - Closing the Summer Gap: A Practical Case for SUN Bucks
Critics have raised concerns about expanding government programs or weakening personal responsibility. Those are valid concerns and should always be part of the conversation. Public programs should be limited, efficient, and focused on clearly defined needs. T... - Gray Holds, At Times Contentious, Sheridan Town Hall
An interesting dynamic emerged as both Gray and attendees encouraged orderly discussion, reminding participants to allow space for questions and respectful dialogue. Toward the end of the event, the tone shifted into a more open exchange, with individuals from... - How Wyoming's Insurance Network Determined School Funding
Wyoming’s school insurance system is not hidden. The documents are public, the structure is visible, and the participants are listed in plain sight. And yet, for many residents, it remains largely unseen. - Mythos: Why AI Just Ended the “Safe Machine” Argument in Wyoming
In the age of Mythos, the barrier to entry for cyber interference has dropped significantly. Traditionally, advanced hacking required a rare level of specialized expertise, but ten trillion parameter models make advanced exploitation capabilities accessible to... - Mike Yin Says Ignore the Scorecards. Wyoming Voters Should Ask Why
When Mike Yin tells Wyoming voters to back away from the scorecards, maybe the question is not whether the scorecards are too harsh. Maybe the better question is why so many people in power are suddenly nervous now that voters are reading them. - Jennings Announces Re-Election Bid
Holly serves as an advisory board member for the Salvation Army, and as a Commissioner she sits on the Child Support Authority Joint Powers Board, the Law Enforcement Center Joint Powers Board, the E-911 Committee, and she is a liaison to the Sheridan County P... - Yellowstone Effect: Has it Changed Discourse in Wyoming?
The "Yellowstone Effect" is not just a local phenomenon. It has become the go-to script for an establishment that is increasingly losing its grip on the political narrative. Nowhere is this more evident than in the recent behavior of Governor Mark Gordon. - An Easter Miracle Happened in Iran
So how did Wyoming figure into the F-15 Easter Miracle? About three years ago, an exercise was conducted on a remote highway outside of Casper. It involved an MC-130, helicopters, and special forces that formed the same core package used to rescue the downed a... - It's a Liberty Issue: Brent Bien in Kemmerer
After nearly three decades in the Marine Corps, he said returning home to see government restrictions and shutdowns was the moment he decided Wyoming needed a different course. - Franklin's Library Tradition Continues in Sheridan
When I first dreamed of having my own lending library, I didn’t know it wasn’t an innovation. Though the idea wasn’t original to Benjamin Franklin either, he founded the first one in the American Colonies in 1731. - SCOTUS: Lying About Party Affiliation is Not Protected Speech
April 9, the U.S. Supreme Court denied a challenge to a lower court ruling that lying about one's party affiliation to infiltrate another party is not covered by the First Amendment. This may have effects in Wyoming which has some of those most restrictive law... - Tax Without a Vote: Why Local Oversight Failed in Crook County
In October 2025, after the Crook County School Board Trustees voted to appoint themselves to the new Recreation District, Koep followed the statutory requirement of filing a formal complaint with the office of then-County Attorney Joe Baron (D). - Rep. Ann Lucas Announces Re-Election Bid for Wyoming House District 43
“I ran for office two years ago to fight for Wyoming families, protect our way of life, and ensure that government works for the people—not the other way around,” said Lucas. “We’ve made real progress, but there’s more work to do.” - Neil Jeske Launches Campaign for Wyoming House District 59
In addition to his work as a truck driver and small business owner, Jeske served three years as a garbage man for a public works department. This experience gave him a firsthand understanding of the importance of reliable public services and the challenges fac... - Tyrrany of the Minority: Data Challenges the “Generation Wyomingite” Mantra
The evidence suggests that the "Old Wyoming" gatekeeping effort is being conducted by a group that is numerically shrinking. While the rhetoric focuses on 1890 roots, the state’s actual character is being directed by a majority of residents who have lived in t... - The Wyoming Gentry Would Like the Peasants to Calm Down
That is what this really is: Not a defense of conservatism, not a lesson in civic virtue, and not a concern for the health of the republic. It is establishment panic with a panache for bending the rules. - Gary Brown Announces Re-Election Campaign for HD41
True to my word I have supported all pro-life, 2nd Amendment, religious freedom, and parental rights legislation. We worked and passed property tax relief for Wyoming residents and made long-term homeowner 50 percent property tax relief permanent. - The Illusion of Local Control: How National Teachers Unions Shape Wyoming Classrooms
From Evanston to Sundance, smaller districts maintain their own local associations, forming a web that stretches across the state’s wide and often disconnected geography. - It's The Tomb That Proves It All
Had the stone been still in place and Jesus’ body been undisturbed, word would have spread rapidly that the Jewish priests and pharisees were right all along - Letter: Easter is More Than Egg Hunts and Candy
The celebration of Easter is so much more than egg hunts and candy. - Degenfelder HAS NOT Contacted All Families in Document Release
The public statement issued by the WDE leaves out affected families, and at least one of them has not, as of April 3, even spoken to anyone from Degenfelder’s office. - Good Friday: This Changes Everything!
When Jesus’ disciples realized he had really died, they must have believed they had come to the end of the path to glory they had thought they were following with him. Though they didn’t understand what was coming, they had to have been thinking, “Well, this c... - Freedom Caucus Unveils Plan to Create Unity Inside Fractured Party
"If everyone is a Republican, then no one is secretly a Democrat pretending to be a Republican,” said caucus Chairwoman Rachel Rodriguez-Williams, unveiling a new membership policy - Degenfelder's Office Exposes Confidential Student Information...TWICE
WDE said the error “was quickly identified, corrected within the online folder containing the produced documents, and communicated to recipients the day after the matter was brought to the department’s attention.” But this isn’t accurate. The WDE released the... - Wyoming's Data Center Dreams May Fade Away with Technology Advances
The current strategy involves millions of dollars in sales and use tax exemptions for data center equipment. However, if the "TurboQuant" revolution continues to move AI away from the cloud and onto local devices, Wyoming may find itself holding the infrastruc... - Retired Judge Denies Bid to Add Heartbeat Bill to Ongoing Abortion Case
Retired Natrona County Judge Campbell denied a motion by Wellspring Health Access to combine its challenge to HB0126 Human Heartbeat Act with the ongoing challenge to Wyoming's abortion regulation laws. - Lange: Finnish Censorship is Already Here
At the time of its passage, virtually no one considered the potential for a conflict between “religion or belief” and “sexual orientation.” Far less did anyone imagine that such a conflict would result in criminalizing doctrine that had been included in the Bi... - A Crowded Corral: Nine Candidates in Wyoming House Race
Candidates are largely appealing to the same bloc of voters, using the same language, and prioritizing the same national issues. That dynamic has left relatively little room for deeper discussion on topics that uniquely affect Wyoming.