GOP town hall talks Cheney, censure

Alexis Barker
NLJ News Editor
 
During a standing-room-only town hall on Jan. 26 at the Newcastle Lodge and Convention Center, Weston County Republican Chair Kari Drost and Wyoming GOP Chair Frank Eathorne encouraged county GOP members to continue to stand together for the party’s beliefs. 
Drost said she scheduled the town hall in an effort to reach as many concerned citizens as possible following what she said was a mass influx in calls and emails to both the local and state Republican Party after Rep. Liz Cheney’s vote to impeach President Donald Trump. 
“There is no doubt that the events of late are a big blow to conservative Republicans. We have to stick together, stand together and vote the right people into office,” Drost said. “If we don’t, the RINOs (Republican in name only) and Democrats will roll right over us. … Cheney is a great example. We have to weed out the RINOs and elect leaders that truly represent us. I want you to leave tonight knowing you are not alone in the outrage.” 
Following an eruption of applause from the crowded room, Eathorne  welcomed the crowd. 
“Weston County is loaded with patriots, and I am excited to see you all here,” he said. 
The response of the public, he said, is crucial in conveying concerns and opinions to elected officials. The GOP, according to Eathorne, will only act after the party hears from the grassroots, from the people on the ground. 
“We have received a record number of emails, phone calls, texts and visits to our website. In a half a day, website visits were up 357%; it almost crashed the website,” Eathorne said. “We need to hear from you. When you feel like you are not being represented, we want to represent you.” 
Eathorne and Drost took time to listen to anyone who wanted to speak. Both vowed that the state party wanted make sure the people were heard and to provide information on the available options regarding Cheney and their dissatisfaction with her decisions. Rep. Hans Hunt, R-Newcastle, helped to explain some of the statutes and laws that might pertain to any recall efforts. 
“There are no recall statutes in Wyoming,” Hunt explained. “There is a bill coming through … a recall bill, but there are limitations on that. It would be limited to only state elected officials and not federally elected ones.”
Eathorne said that the issues go beyond the ability to recall an elected official and include the ability to control who registers as a Republican. 
“When I voted for a Republican, I thought I was getting a conservative. I was disappointed. It should mean something to be Republican. It is our brand and we need to take it back,” Drost said. “We need to define what it means to be a Republican, and it is our job to call them out and make sure they are our definition of Republican.” 
According to Drost, in 2018 the Wyoming Republican Party voted on 19 planks, with another added in 2020, that make up the party’s state platform. She said that these planks are what it means to be a Republican in the state of Wyoming. 
Eathorne explained that while the party can’t control who registers as Republican with the county clerk or secretary of state, it can explore the avenue of a true party primary instead of the state-government-run party primary. 
“This can happen in a number of ways,” Eathorne said. “We need to get back into that mind-set. If we are going to have control, we have to have control over who our primary choice is.” 
“That is how we take it back, how we take back our brand,” Drost said. 
If the primary election process doesn’t change, Eathorne said, the party would need to come together and back the best candidate to ensure that Cheney does not get reelected. 
When it comes to conveying the public’s concerns to Cheney before the election, Eathorne said there are a few options. Cheney can be censored or a group can issue a vote of no confidence. 
A vote of no confidence is a formal vote by a body to indicate that it no longer supports a leader or government. 
The Weston County Republican Party scheduled a committee meeting on Wednesday, Feb. 3, to formally censure Cheney.  
To date, at least three Wyoming counties have approved a formal statement of disapproval, in the most recent being Sheridan County. 
The Republican State Central Committee could address the topic when it meets Feb. 5-6 in Rawlins. Eathorne said that Cheney has also been officially invited to the February
meeting in hopes that she will explain her actions to the central committee.