We’re seeing numerous campaign ads (some from out of state) slamming many of our conservative Republican candidates for being beholden to the party platform. Denigrating support by Republican legislators for the platform of the Wyoming Republican Party belies an incredible ignorance of the values and principles embodied in that platform.
Far from being concocted in the dead of night by a bunch of pot-bellied insider fat cats in a cigar-smoke-filled back room, the platform was put together plank by plank by the grass roots members of the Republican Party in every county in Wyoming, then debated, voted on, and approved by the delegates to the state party convention. Anyone who doesn't want to proactively represent the principles of this platform is, by definition, not a sincere Republican and probably should consider finding a party whose platform suits them better, e.g. perhaps that of the Wyoming Democratic Party.
The voting records of our legislators seeking re-election (Mark Jennings, Ken Pendergraft, and Laurie Bratten) are available for all to see on internet platforms such as evidencebasedwyoming.com and wyorino.com. Their record votes are compared to Republican platform issues and principles and assessed as to how well they correspond to those values.
One candidate (Mr. James Temple) running for House District 29 has pledged his support of the party’s platform. For this he’s been labeled a “platform Republican” with the not-so-subtle insinuation that he will be less interested in his constituents and more apt to vote in lockstep with other “platform Republicans.” That’s akin to accusing a law enforcement officer of attempting to enforce the law! Principles matter, and the time-honored principles of governance found in the Wyoming Republican Platform are worthy of active support by every authentic Republican.
The next time a candidate expresses negative views of “platform Republicans” you might want to ask him/her: “So, what parts of the Wyoming Republican Party platform do you, as a Republican, disagree with and why?” Their answers (or lack of same) might surprise you.
Charles Cole,
Sheridan