So just how good a governor are you to be ranked the
number-one governor in America for popularity?
Based on the
large crowd that gathered Friday, June 8 in Cheyenne, Gov. Matt Mead and First
Lady Carol Mead are loved.
The event was
organized to recognize the Meads for the last seven and a half years of
service. He will depart office on Dec. 31.
The
star-studded night included speeches by U. S. Senators Mike Enzi and John
Barrasso and Dr. Laurie Nichols, president of the University of Wyoming.
Enzi talked
about how “honorable” Mead is and has been during the past seven and half
years. Among his comments were:
“When Matt was running for governor,
he said Wyoming needed to be proactive to fend off federal regulations.
I’m not sure he knew how much he’d be doing between 2011 and 2018,
but he has been a valuable partner to the Wyoming Congressional
delegation in that fight.
“We’ve stood shoulder to shoulder
since he was sworn in as Wyoming’s 32nd Governor to fight the
Clean Power Plan; the Stream Protection
Rule; the moratorium on coal leases on federal lands; and the
rest of President Obama’s War on Coal. The Governor has
made a lasting emphasis with lawsuits challenging the War
on Coal, and with President Trump in office, we’ve
had some success in that effort. Miners are starting to mine
again!
“Matt, as residents of the Powder River
Basin, Diana and I thank you for fighting for coal. But it’s not just
the coal industry you’ve helped. The oil and gas industry is
appreciative of your leadership on sage grouse
management that helped keep the bird from being listed as
endangered. Your advocacy for Wyoming’s existing hydraulic fracturing
standards was also crucial in getting President Trump to
repeal the Bureau of Land Management’s fracking rule.
“And Matt’s successes don’t
stop there. His voice was critical in delisting the grizzly
bear in Yellowstone and continuing the black-footed ferret’s
recovery. I’ve enjoyed working with him on the annual GRO-Biz
Conference, which helps Wyoming companies to do business
with the federal government. We couldn’t have
opened Wyoming’s first Job Corps Center in 2015 without Matt’s
help.
“Matt
also created the ENDOW Initiative to diversify Wyoming’s economy after
revenues from oil, gas and coal slid to the point that budget cuts were
necessary. His quiet leadership and effective explanations are
unmatched.”
Sen. Barrasso listed other accomplishments
by Gov. Mead but listed what he called “the great eight” as worthy of
highlighting. These are honors bestowed on
Wyoming during Mead’s two terms:
2011 – 2018 – Wyoming named best
state business climate.
2011 – Wyoming named best-run state.
2012 – Wyoming named the state with
the most cost-effective state highway system.
2015-2016 – Wyoming named best state
for retirement.
2016 – Wyoming named best state in
which to start a business.
2017 – Wyoming named best state for
being most confident in the U. S economy.
2018 – Wyoming named best state for
individual return on bachelor degree program.
2018 – Wyoming’s Matt Mead named most
popular governor in USA.
Barrasso saved his biggest praise
for Mead by telling the overflow crowd that the governor never missed a
deployment of Wyoming servicemen or an opportunity to welcome them home.
“Plus he opened it up to
recognizing all veterans all across Wyoming, which was long overdue,” the
senator said. He said Mead even started a program to recognize new recruits.
Dr. Nichols said Mead had never-ending
support for higher education. He is a huge supporter of the university, she
said.
During his rebuttal, Mead said, “Thank
God we live in Wyoming!” He talked about
his great grandfather who served in the state senate, his grandfather who was a
governor and a U. S. Senator and his mom, who ran for governor and lost.
But the loudest roar of the night
came when he talked about how he thought he was shooing a kitty out from under
a bush at the governor’s residence and got sprayed head-on by a skunk.
As he staggered into the house, his
wife First Lady Carol ordered him “get out of this house!”
Ultimately he took off all his
clothes and figured out a way to hose himself off and then went into the garage
to somehow get the skunk spray off his body. “Where does a skunky governor go?”
he asked.
He ended his talk by quoting a
family motto about living in Wyoming. “Find
one blade of grass and replace it with two,” he concluded to a long, standing
ovation.
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