Author: Fritz Pettyjohn

Friday morning, to be precise.  If we can’t get our bill out of Revenue it will not be a good sign.

The hearing’s at 7:30 a.m., which is good for a morning person like me.  Notice is a little short to fully mobilize our grass roots support, but it’s the same for any opposition.    I’ll be there with Tyler to testify, probably Tony Gagliardi as well.

I guess this is the way they roll in Wyoming  — not a lot of foreplay, just get to it.  At this rate we could be on the floor of the House in a week.   Hell, let’s get it through the Senate and done in February.  We’ll have a race with Hal Wick in South Dakota to see who gets us to 25.

Kasich will have made his pitch less than 24 hours before the hearing.  I’m counting on his making enough of an impression that these guys on the committee will feel they’re being rude if they kill “his” bill.  Folks in Wyoming like to be thought of as friendly and hospitable.  They are, all of that.

Let them show it.

When’s the last time you heard a Democratic politician of any stature come out for a balanced budget amendment?  It was Jerry Brown almost 40 years ago.  Since then, silence, even though Gallup says 65% of D’s want it.  A lot of rank and file D’s want it, but are divided from their leadership on this issue.

When’s the last time you heard a consequential Republican come out against a BBA?  They’re all for it, Tea Party and establishment.  It’s one big issue that unites the entire party.

And it is big.  The last 15 years have proven that neither political party, as they’re currently constituted, will make the tough decisions needed unless they have no choice.  And calamity awaits if those decisions are not made.

A couple issues are front and center for 2016  —  income inequality and the Islamic War on the West.  Because of what the Task Force is doing, the balanced budget amendment will be the third.  And if the Republican wins, we will get a BBA, if we haven’t already.

Personally, I want an Article V Amendment Convention more than I want a BBA.  The foregoing political analysis, if widely adopted, may well provide the impetus to put us over the top.

And once we’re over the top, away we go.

Looks like we’ve got one on Revenue.  Roy Edwards, a tire dealer from Gillette, doesn’t want to hear our arguments.  His mind’s made up.  If he is, in fact, a Bircher, there’s no way to move him.  But we can afford to lose three R’s on this committee, so this is not too much of a concern.

It’s a different story in Montana.  And Arizona.  In the MT House Judiciary we can only lose one R.  And on the floor of the Arizona Senate, assuming we can bludgeon Biggs into putting the bill on the floor, he’s the only vote we can lose (it’s a 17-13 split).  We’re never going to get Biggs’ vote — but we can’t lose any more.

It’s a tall order, but can be done.  Let’s say half of R’s are establishment, half are insurgents.  We always get establishment votes.  If we get the rank and file, grass roots, activist insurgent voters to understand and appreciate what we’re doing, they’ll put the heat on their legislators and we’ll get their votes.  Unless they’re Birchers.  They don’t listen.

Fox News First said last week that Kasich was going to be on Special Report’s series on potential presidential candidates.  He wasn’t.  I think that means he’ll be on this coming week.  It seems to me that Kasich, and Fox, would want the segment on him to be filmed on his Mountain State Tour.  I’m guessing they’ll do it in Salt Lake, with the local Fox crew.  Kasich will have been in five states in three days, and heading to Idaho the next day.

Impressive.

Matthew Monforton told me he’s a hero to conservative Montana lawyers, such as Speaker Knudsen.  Brent Mead says, in addition, his standing among all conservative legislators is such that it should be able to overcome the Birch/Eagle tendencies some of them may have.  He’ll be in Helena for several events on 1-26, 27 so they’ll all get to hear his arguments first hand.  This may be enough, with everything else we’re doing, to win.  Unlike the Dakotas and the other mountain states, there are a lot of Democrats in the Montana legislature, which means our margin for error  — the number of Republican votes we can lose — is small.  We can only lose one vote in Judiciary.

You can’t count on a Democrat, not to be the deciding vote.  The party would be out to get any D who did it.  There’d be too much pressure.

If I go to Cheyenne to testify on the 23rd, I’ll get to Helena on the 26th, so I’d be able to attend one or more of Natelson’s presentations.  The logic of Article V is so overwhelming that I have a hard time concealing my disdain for those who just don’t get it.  I’ve got to work on that.

Biddulph’s robocall project is about to launch a test in Arizona.  If it goes well we’re going to have Gov. Kasich (pronounced Case-itch, I picked up on today) do the intro to the call in Wyoming.  He’s scheduled to meet with legislators in Cheyenne at 8:30 a.m. on Thursday the 22nd, so there will be media coverage throughout the day.  We’ll do the robocalls to Republican Revenue Committee members’ districts that night.  The resulting messages of support from constituents should be received by the member on Friday.  The hearing is 5:00 p. m. that afternoon.  It all looks good.

On paper.

I’m convinced.  Kasich is completely committed to this.  Any lingering doubt I had is gone.

He called in to our cc today and gave us a pep talk, and committing himself to go all the way.  Not to be too Obamatic about it, but he’s the one we’ve been waiting for.  As he told us today, when we get four or five more states this will become a national story, and when people realize what we’re doing they will rally to the cause.  I’ve thought that all along, but couldn’t be sure.  Because he’s involved himself, there’s no doubt about it.

The best thing, though, is not the much needed publicity he’ll give us.  He’s going to be instrumental in getting the votes.  He makes the case better than anybody, because of who he is, and what he’s done.  With him going into Wyoming, Montana and Utah I bet we win all three.  I can’t really talk about Idaho, but  it could happen as well.  We were already counting on the Dakotas.  Even without Idaho that gets us to 29.  West Virginia  should be 30.  South Carolina will be 31 by May.  If Coburn signs on in Oklahoma it will be 32  — this year.    Wisconsin will be 33  — but when?   Idaho or Arizona could be 34.  (Virginia is a last ditch effort in 2016, if need be.)

To the press, Kasich understandably downplays the chances of pulling this off.  I wonder if he fully realizes how doable it is.