DUBOIS—Sen. Eric Barlow, Col. Brent Bien and Superintendent Megan Degenfelder fielded questions about judicial nominations, COVID-19 policies and library book rules during a Republican gubernatorial debate Thursday put on by the GOP.  Two months to the day before the state’s primary electio n, the three candidates debated for roughly 80 minutes in front of more than 100 people at the Headwaters Arts and Conference Center in Fremont County.  All three candidates called for more energy development and said they would fight to protect private property rights. Moderators also asked about recent court rulings and how the candidates would defend the state from federal government overreach.  All three candidates were born and raised here, and they touted their Wyoming bona fides. Each gave punchy introductory statements — a sign of a slate of candidates who have found their footing after months of stumping on the campaign trail.  “I get it, I might not look like your average career politician, but I think that’s exactly what Wyoming needs right now. I’m not part of any good old boys club or any political establishment,” Degenfelder said. “I’m a Wyoming ranch kid whose parents clawed their way into the middle class. A University of Wyoming graduate who built her career in the coal and oil and gas industry, and I believe that Wyoming is worth fighting for, because look what’s happening across this country.” The one time President Donald Trump, who remains popular in Wyoming, was mentioned by name Thursday came when Degenfelder noted his endorsement of her campaign.  Barlow has a lengthy resume in the Wyoming Legislature, first as a House rep and more recently as a senator. But he stressed his time outside the statehouse. “I’m a Marine. I’m a veterinarian. I’m a business person. I’m a rancher,”Barlow said. “I’m a husband of this lovely young lady right here, who is my ninth-grade sweetheart. And last week we celebrated 35 years of marriage. We have two beautiful children, Kate and Graham, who found their way in Wyoming. We’re contributing to Wyoming and are making a difference in Wyoming.”  Barlow said he believes in limited government, a robust economy and thriving communities, while Bien pointed to “individual sovereignty, self-governance, American exceptionalism, and absolute truth.” “I am so privileged to be running for governor of the greatest state in the greatest nation in the history of the world,” Bien said. “I’m a Wyoming native, a graduate of University of Wyoming Engineering College, United States Naval War College, retired Marine Corps colonel, aviator, combat veteran. I’ve been married to my lovely wife for almost 30 years, and we’ve raised three wonderful daughters.”  Curt Blake, the fourth Republican in the race, did not respond to the party’s debate invitation, according to Wyoming Republican Party Interim Executive Director Ginger Bennett. Mitch Benson and John Birbari, Fremont County GOP members, moderated the event.  One of the first questions of the evening dealt with the judicial branch. A recent court ruling striking down three of the state’s anti-abortion laws has renewed criticism of the judiciary by Republican lawmakers, including the Freedom Caucus, who say the solution to the ongoing legal battle over abortion lies in making changes to the third branch of government.  “What is your standard and criteria for nominating Wyoming Supreme Court justices?” Benson asked. “Though independent and not subject to a political litmus test, how will you nominate justices aligned with your political philosophy?”  First to answer, Barlow described the process outlined in the Wyoming Constitution, which leaves the final decision to the governor after a judicial nominating commission selects three names from applicants. Otherwise, Barlow said he would support nominees who are “beyond reproach” and have “integrity” and “good judicial experience,” and who will adhere to the constitution. Bien also said he would look for someone “who’s got that integrity, that character beyond reproach,” adding that he wants to add “some sort of legislative confirmation process on our justices.” After an initial term, Wyoming judges appear on the nonpartisan general election ballot for an unopposed, “yes” or “no” vote to determine if they will remain in office. That’s insufficient, according to Bien.  “We gotta fix this to where we the people actually have a say in this through their legislators,” he said.  Degenfelder said, “this is one of the most important duties of the governor,” adding that her top concern is ensuring “our judges respect and protect human life.” “When you have activist judges,” she said, “they try to strip down on the industries that protect us, they try to kill human life, and that is how important it is to ensure that we have judges aligned with our values.” When asked to weigh in on the policies Gov. Mark Gordon implemented during the COVID-19 pandemic, Bien described an origin story.  “Well, I’m sitting here because of what he had done,” Bien said. “The limitations on our freedoms, the imprisonments on our freedoms.” Degenfelder said she’s “opposed to medical mandates.” “I think it strips us from our freedom, and when we experienced the pandemic, I think we saw how quickly the government was able to force people to fall in line,” she said.  Wyoming had more in-person school days than any other state during the pandemic, but even so, Degenfelder said, “it was almost criminal keeping our kids out of school for the length of period that we did.”  Barlow reflected on losing a legislative colleague, Rep. Roy Edwards, who died from COVID-19 in 2020.  “It hit home to a lot of people and a lot of families, and it was real,” Barlow said.  “Now, what would I do differently? Actually, I did it differently,” Barlow said. “I ran a bill that says no longer do health authorities get to make those decisions after a certain amount of time.”  Passed in the 2021 general session, the law puts an expiration on public health orders but allows the governor to extend them.  The three candidates expressed varying degrees of willingness to support changing how the University of Wyoming Board of Trustees is appointed. Such a change would require amending the Wyoming Constitution since the governor has a constitutional duty to appoint the board’s 12 voting members. Those nominees are then confirmed by the state Senate.  Asked if she would support a constitutional amendment to allow voters to select at least half the board, Degenfelder said, “I’m not opposed to that.” “For me, it’s been very simple as an ex officio [board member] the last several years,” she said. “Number one is we focus on our land-grant mission, stop focusing on women’s studies careers that don’t exist, and focus on actual jobs in the state of Wyoming.” Barlow said he would support such an amendment if it was the will of voters.  “We certainly can have that discussion, but it’s a higher bar to get to the constitutional level.”  Bien gave a full-throated response, saying he would “absolutely support an amendment to change that.”  The candidates were also asked about public library book policies. Joining a nationwide movement of social conservatives who say sexually explicit content, mostly in books written for young LGBTQ+ readers, is inappropriate, some Republican lawmakers have sought out statewide policies to regulate the children’s section of the public libraries. The most recent effort stalled in March in the Senate.  “A lot of discussion has been had about inappropriate books in libraries,” Birbari said. “What do you intend to do to make sure age-appropriate material is located in its appropriate places?” Barlow described recent legislative attempts as “big government telling local communities and parents what their kids and children have access to.” “Look, I have no interest. I don’t even like — I don’t even like pornography. I don’t look at that stuff. No interest in it. I sure as hell don’t want young people having access to it,” Barlow said. “But I also think that parents and local governments can take that up at the local level and have those conversations.” Bien, meanwhile, said he supports a statewide policy “because it is completely unsatisfactory to have these kinds of things in our schools” and argued that people, not entities like libraries, have freedom of speech.  “It is unacceptable to have sexually explicit materials in taxpayer-funded libraries. Period,” Degenfelder said. “Especially for our children, it’s absurd that we’re even having to talk about this.” Degenfelder, who has served as superintendent of public instruction since 2022, also highlighted the book policy she worked with stakeholders to develop to guide school districts in shaping their own policies for providing or restricting books.  The sole question related to Wyoming’s major healthcare access issues came from an audience member later in the program. Margaret Wells of Dubois asked about emergency medical services. Her community is grappling with long ambulance response times.  “So I want to know how you feel about the state making emergency medical [services] an essential service,” Wells said.  Wyoming’s EMS system isn’t funded like an essential service. Meaning, unlike law enforcement or fire protection, local governments are not legally required to fund and operate emergency services.  “This is a huge issue, and it’s not just here. It’s everywhere,” Degenfelder said. “I was in Lincoln County the last couple of days and had the exact same conversation.” Degenfelder said the state needs to seek out “creative” solutions, “whether it’s regionalized or whether it’s statewide as that designated service. But I think that we’ve got to, it’s just, we have no other choice.” Barlow said he’s supported related efforts in the Legislature. The question is, he said, “Who is responsible for paying for it? So, is it county government? Is it cities, towns, and counties? Is it special districts?” Another challenge is collecting those funds, Barlow said, pointing to communities like Rawlins, where half the EMS calls come from travelers on Interstate 80 who don’t pay local taxes.  “It absolutely needs to be dealt with, and I, let’s figure that out now,” he said.  Bien said it needed to become an essential service, and went further in calling for state standardization for EMS certification.  When asked about the sovereign governments on the Wind River Indian Reservation, all three candidates agreed that the federal government has treaty obligations to the Northern Arapaho and Eastern Shoshone tribes.  The full debate can be viewed on County 10’s YouTube page.  The primary election is Aug. 18. The post Republican governor hopefuls tout conservative bona fides at Wyoming GOP debate appeared first on WyoFile . ...read more read less