Month: March 2015

It will organize, I believe, along party and regional lines, which largely coincide.  Broadly defined, the Mountain West* will have nine votes and is solidly Republican, except for New Mexico and Colorado, which are split.  Washington can be added to this group, for the purposes of this discussion, and is split as well.  These ten can be the core of a 26 member majority.  They have a great deal in common, and share, to a large extent, a common political culture.  Once they have formed a coalition of sorts, based on common goals and concerns, they can expand to the six borderline Western states** running from North Dakota south to Texas.  If accommodations can be made between these two blocs, which is certainly quite doable, the Western Coalition would have 16 votes.  The solidly Republican South has ten votes***.  What I call coal country, West Virginia, Kentucky, Ohio and Virginia, is another group of four.  The upper Midwest****, plus New Hampshire is the final bloc of red states, with five members.

So, the way I see it, the West is in the catbird’s seat, if they can stick together.  I get the impression these people, even the leadership, don’t know each other.  They may get together at ALEC or some other national meeting, but by and large they’re completely focused on their own state, and its people and problems.  That’s the way it was when I was in the Alaska Legislature.  We didn’t care how they did it in the lower 48, and didn’t appreciate any advice from strangers.  A popular bumper sticker back then was “We don’t give a damn how they do it outside.”  We were the Upper One.   I pick up on that same attitude all over the west, in every Capitol I’ve been in.  These are my kind of people.  In order to organize, and take advantage of their numbers, they need to get to know each other.

Maybe I can help.

*Alaska, Nevada, Idaho, Utah, Arizona, New Mexico, Colorado, Wyoming and Montana.

**North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas, Oklahoma and Texas.

***Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Tennessee.

****Indiana, Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin.

In Utah that would be Rep. Kraig Powell.  We got Utah, #26, today because of him.  Last year, mid-session, Kraig volunteered to give it a go.  Other members were afraid of being primaried by the Eagle-Birchers.  It was kind of a last minute deal.  I went back and spoke to the Conservative Caucus and testified in committee, but despite all of Kraig’s efforts we lost 32-41.  But we set the stage for this year.  If Kraig hadn’t stepped up to the plate last year we wouldn’t be celebrating tonight. That’s what patriots do.

We’re on the floor in the Oklahoma House next week.  Rep. Gary Banz has been working the bill, but right now is around ten short.  Dr. Coburn’s speech to the House Caucus put us in play.  If we’re not sure of the votes I think we should pull the bill and try next year.  We’ll be stronger next year.  Much stronger.  We’ll have the enthusiastic support of the oil and gas industry, for instance.

Everything’s set in West Virginia for next week except Speaker Armistead.  Bill Fruth will visit with him before the vote.  We should get it, but if we don’t we will next year.  We’ll have the coal industry with us.

We’ve got a subcommittee vote in South Carolina next week, with Senator Bright the swing vote.  Dave Guldenschuh had a long talk with him, but couldn’t get a read.

We’re depending on Senator Crapo in Idaho.  Kasich is calling him this weekend.

North Dakota will have us in Senate Committee on the 19th.  No sign of trouble.  Bill Fruth, road warrior, will go to Bismarck to testify.

The Reagan Project may put up a booth at Freedom Fest  in Vegas in July.  If we do I’m going to lay a bet on Kasich for President.  Because we are going to get this done, and he’ll get the credit, and it’s a very big deal.  Bigger than anyone understands, quite yet.

I see a bright future ahead.

Money does not stink.  That’s what the Romans used to say, and look what happened to them.

I’ve always hated money in politics, maybe because I never had any.  But I’m a libertarian, and a free speech zealot.  I don’t want the government regulating speech, period.  When the Framers, in the First Amendment, said, “Congress shall make no law….” they didn’t allow for exceptions.  But now I’m open to the idea of allowing individuals complete freedom to spend their own money, and preventing corporations, unions and PACs from spending any.  Full immediate disclosure of all contributions on the internet.  I’m signing up with Wolf-Pac, and I’ll support calling an Amendment Convention on campaign finance reform.  Let’s have a Convention, and see what they come up with.  If it manages to get ratified by 38 states it will represent a national consensus.  That’s how our system was designed.

What really got to me was last year’s Republican primary in Mississippi.  Thad Cochran has no business in the U. S. Senate.  He’s old and feeble and just does what he’s told, which is raid the Treasury for his contributors.  Republicans in Mississippi had enough of him, and wanted him out.  But Haley Barbour and the big money boys played the race card, disgracefully, and bought him six more years.

These same geniuses are all lined up behind the brother of the last dope they put in the White House, W.  Yeah, that’s what we need, yet four more years from the stupid wing of the GOP.  On the Democrat side these wizards want Hillary, who is a complete joke.  Her major qualification for office is a lifetime of enabling the sexual predator she married.

But Jeb Bush is not going to get the Republican nomination.  We’ve had this dog food before, and the greatest sales job in the world won’t make it taste any better.  And now it looks like the Democrats may be ready to turn on the Clintons and their sleaze machine.  They will, if they’re smart.  She’s a terrible politician, and she won’t change.  The quicker they dump her, the better, for them.  The reverse for the R’s.  The longer this woman and her contemptible husband are center stage, the better, if you’re an R.

West Virginia Speaker Armistead is holding up our bill, and talking about doing it next year.  I hope this is not inspired by the example of Phil Nicholas.

Looks like Senator Crapo is the key to Idaho Senator Bart Davis’ heart.  The request will be made to Crapo.  He’ll get the message.  I don’t know anything about him.  Maybe he’s a patriot.

There’s a hitch in my run for Congress.  You can’t file until January.  This upsets my plan.  I’ll have to come up with a new one.  Actually my whole strategy is based on the political conditions in California a year from now.  Right now, it makes sense.  A year from now, maybe not.

God, it would be fun.

It’s a good one, and if it works it could win us Wyoming and every other western state we don’t get this year, including Oklahoma.  I’ve started working to implement it, but it will be something that comes together, slowly, throughout 2015.  I don’t mean to be coy, but this is something that’s accomplished behind closed doors, it it’s done at all.  It’s a challenge.  I’m not the only one who’s thought of it.  Most importantly, I don’t see any downside to it.  Even if it fails, the attempt may do some good.

On another front I’ve decided to run for Congress as a Democrat.  I’ve been thinking about it, off and on, for a year, and I’m going to file the papers as soon as I get them from the Secretary of State.  It will be a lot of fun, but more importantly it will do some good.  Naturally, with my overactive imagination, I’ve concocted a number of different ways to exploit it for the cause.  One stunt that I came up with today is a doozy.  I won’t pull it off for a year, but, trust me, it’s a good one, maybe my best ever.  I can’t wait.

It’s been a good day.  It’s spring here in the foothills of the Sierras, with buds blossoming, flowers starting to bloom, and green grass growing.  A good time to be alive, and an American.  One year from now my campaign will really begin, in the same weather.  Some kids, growing up, want to be a movie star or football player.  I wanted to be a Congressman.

I was an odd kid.

It was always about Senate President Phil Nicholas.  When I left Cheyenne last week he was with us.  From what I’ve heard, his amendment today in third reading killed the bill.  So what happened?

Nicholas is even smarter than I thought he was.  Put yourself in his position.  His state is the least populous in the country.  It is extremely vulnerable to budget cutters who want to eliminate the royalty sharing arrangement it has with the feds.  If that goes it blows a huge hole in the State’s budget.  He has just a few cards to play.  One of them is Wyoming’s vote for an Amendment Convention.  As Juneau Senator Bill Ray used to say, “What’s in it for me?”  He wants to get paid.  Not him, personally.  He wants Wyoming to get something for its vote.  If he gave it to us this year he gets nothing.  If he holds out until next year, and Wyoming is one of the very last states, maybe he’ll be able to figure out a way to get paid.  What’s the rush?

I’m not mad at Nicholas.  I want to accommodate him.  We need his vote.  I can think of a couple of things that might appeal to him. I’ll try and think of more.  We’ve got almost a year to figure it out.  If we had lost for some other reason I’d be really down.  But we can work this out.

It’s just business.