So there was the new governor – standing by the copier
patiently waiting for some copies to print. He was making a little banter with
Alfrieda Gonzales who keeps things humming in his front office while chatting
with the plain-clothed highway patrolman, who serves as security man and
all-around helper.
Making his own
copies?
Mark Gordon
promised to run a lean operation but this was impressive.
Finding the governor’s office in
the maze that is the Jonah Building in Cheyenne can be difficult. And the
governor’s office is definitely not opulent.
Sometimes it
is important to compare perception to reality.
I have known Mark Gordon for more than ten years and always found him an
easy-going, “comfortable in his own skin” kind of guy.
But during
that crazy Republican Governor Primary Campaign of 2018, Gordon often seemed
nervous and uncomfortable during public speaking. Compared to his primary adversaries, Foster
Friess, Harriet Hageman, Sam Galeotos, and Taylor Haynes, Gordon often competed
in a tentative manner among that group in joint appearances.
Gordon was
great in one-on-one and small group situations. He started out the front-runner
and ended up an easy winner.
As governor,
he is much more composed than he appeared as a candidate.
One example
was watching him answer 23 questions from 200 members of the Wyoming Press Association
at that group’s annual convention last week.
They peppered him with tough queries over lunch. The reporters and
publishers all chowed down and asked questions while Gordon’s own meal was
getting cold.
He was
confident and decisive. In a word, he
was “gubernatorial.”
There are high
expectations for him as governor. This is the first time in 50 years that
Wyoming has a chief executive who comes into office having served in one of the
state’s top five statewide offices. His
past six years as State Treasurer have prepared him well. He has served on those important state boards
and attended countless meetings. He has heard hundreds of hours of important
testimony and made scores of critical votes.
His learning
curve is not steep. The people of Wyoming are expecting a lot.
In his first
television campaign ad back during that primary election, the future governor was
shown in his cowboy clothes and the message implied that he could round up
cattle so he can also round up Legislators.
The true test
of Gordon’s success as governor will be how he deals with the legislature.
In recent
sessions, the legislature has flexed its muscles and occasionally ignored the
executive branch. Gordon expressed a conciliatory
tone during this state of the state address.
The general belief is that Gordon is a moderate. But he tilted more to
the right, politically, since being elected.
The Legislature seems to be controlled by conservatives and Gordon is
sounding more conservative all the time. Based on this, you would assume they
will all get along just fine.
He says he
prefers a lean government, which is reflected by the spare staff he has so far
surrounded himself in the governor’s office.
A big issue during the primary was
Wyoming’s lack of transparency. Gordon operated
his State Treasurer’s office in a transparent manner. He told the Wyoming Press he wants to be “the
most transparent governor” ever.
He and new
State Auditor Kristi Racines have teamed up with a transparency initiative and
formed a working group to try to open up Wyoming’s books more. Good luck on
this and it will be a breath of fresh air when that happens. Wyoming is just
one of three states in the USA that does not offer total transparency.
His wife Jennie
was with the governor when I interviewed him.
She says she has not decided what special emphasis she will promote as
First Lady. They obviously make a good team. They have not moved into the
governor’s residence as some repairs and modifications needed to be made.
They are
staying in the house they already own in Cheyenne. Mark has also opted to keep his Ford
Expedition rather than getting a new governor’s car. “It works just fine. No need to change,” he
says.
Wyoming has
moved slightly out of the recessionary times that haunted the state the last
few years. This should help Gordon as he finds his way as our new state leader.
Gordon is the
sixth Wyoming governor that I have interviewed and gotten to know over the past
almost five decades. He seems to be coming into the office with a real Wyoming
tail wind.
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