Senate 10: The ultimate guide [Part 3]
The questionnaire. Republican Gary Crum and Democrat Mike Selmer answered questions about the role of government, education funding, abortion, climate and more.
Republican Gary Crum and Democrat Mike Selmer are vying for the support of voters in Senate District 10, each seeking a chance to represent half of Albany County in Wyoming’s upper chamber.
Below is the third and final installment of the Laramie Reporter’s ultimate guide to the Senate District 10 General Election race.
Part 1 detailed the candidates’ backgrounds, while Part 2 analyzed the stakes of this year’s contest.
Below are the candidates’ answers to the Reporter’s questionnaire. Both were given the opportunity to submit answers in written form. Selmer did, but Crum opted to answer these questions during a phone interview with the Reporter. Many of his answers were longer than the 100-word limit imposed on Selmer and have been abridged for publication here.
Every effort was made to retain the core thrust of Crum’s answers, including allowing the Republican more than 100 words on some responses to maintain necessary nuances of the original verbal answer.
For most of the electorate, early voting begins Oct. 8. Election Day is Nov. 5.
In your view, what are the most important issues facing Wyoming today?
CRUM: Number one — getting back to civility so we can come up with solutions. I think we’ve got to find a way to enhance our core industries, and that’s the natural resources industries — mining, natural gas, fossil fuels production — and do that in a responsible way, which I think the companies in the state of Wyoming do for the most part. I think we need to really look at our agricultural industry and how we support them [as well as education, healthcare and transportation].
SELMER: I think freedom is the most immediately important issue facing Wyoming today. In the legislature, we’ve seen some lawmakers trying — and often succeeding — to chip away at some freedoms we Wyomingites take for granted. They’ve been chipping away at a woman’s right to make her own reproductive health choices and a community’s right to keep schools, council chambers, and other sensitive areas safe. A caucus that named itself “freedom” pushes an extremist agenda that threatens many of the freedoms of individuals and families that don’t accept the “Freedom” Caucus’ narrow viewpoint. I will fight to retain those freedoms for everyone.
Wyoming has historically been supported by the fossil fuel industry, which has powered the nation while funding Wyoming schools and other government functions. But the U.S. and other countries are shifting to renewable energy sources. How should Wyoming respond to this shift?
CRUM: I’m for all energy, but I’m not against any energy either. So I think we need to continue to promote our fossil fuel industry — it really isn’t fossil fuels, because they’re not fossils — but our natural resources and use them efficiently and cleanly, and our coal is the big driver. There’s enough coal here for 100 more years to power America … We need to promote natural gas. We need to promote our uranium industry … We need to support alternative energy, wind, solar — but I don’t believe it’s subsidized. We don’t subsidize other energy.
SELMER: Our leaders in government and the energy sector could have chosen a different path decades ago and shown the world the right way to respond to changing economic conditions. Instead, they have denied, lied, and litigated until we seem to have no options but to continue down the wrong road. We no longer have the luxury of a smooth transition we once had, but coal doesn’t need to be burned to be useful. We don’t need to hurt energy sector workers. We do need to be honest and begin making our state less reliant on fossil fuels.
What responsibility does the state of Wyoming have to address climate change and what actions should it take in the next four years?
CRUM: If you look back over history, I think the United States, including Wyoming, have done a great job in making energy cleaner and cleaner and cleaner … However, I think we need to remember global warming started 10,000 years ago when man didn’t have a problem. We were in an ice age, and the Earth has been warming for 10,000 years. Now, does that mean that we shouldn’t be responsible and do everything we can to keep pollution down? Absolutely we should. But I think there’s probably things beyond the human being.
SELMER: Even if political realities in Wyoming suddenly changed, any actions our state could take in the next four years that might have real impact would bankrupt us and cause incredible harm to Wyoming families. What the state can and must do is be honest with Wyoming citizens and begin helping our communities become resilient to the challenges ahead. Protecting our state’s water supply and supporting local and regional food production are important first steps. Between 1948 and 1999, Laramie had an average of 24 summer days above 80 degrees. Since 2020, the average has been 56. Climate change is here.
There were efforts — some successful, others less so — to eliminate or defund certain programs at UW during the last legislative session, including gender studies courses and DEI programs. Would you support a ban on gender studies courses or on programs at UW involving diversity, equity and inclusion?
CRUM: I think education ought to be well-rounded, and we let the students make up their minds. So number one, University of Wyoming shouldn’t be an indoctrination place, and overall, I don’t believe it is … Number two, I don’t believe that we ought to fund specific programs to target specific issues that try to promote a specific idea … There are winners and losers in America, but we ought to give everybody a chance. I can’t stress that enough. Everybody should have a chance, but there are going to be winners and losers.
SELMER: No.
At the time of this question’s writing, abortion is legal in Wyoming pending the results of a lawsuit regarding the state’s abortion bans. Should abortion be legal in the Cowboy State? And should abortion pills be legal?
CRUM: I’m a pro-life guy, but I understand the state of Wyoming too, and I’m going to wait for that legal decision to come out to see … And like I say, that’s an issue where people are going to tend to get stuck on and we don’t need to get stuck there. We need to be focused on issues that we can solve and make a difference in people’s lives. We need to focus on mental health. We need to focus on emergency medical services in our community … We need to get things done for the state of Wyoming.
SELMER: A woman’s reproductive freedom should not be infringed, including the option of abortion.
Communities across the state are facing a severe shortage of affordable housing. State lawmakers are starting to look at solutions. What solutions would you propose or support?
CRUM: If we can’t provide housing for people to live in Wyoming, then we’re not going to grow this state. So housing is really important … One thing we can look at is invest that money into infrastructure in the state, helping build subdivisions … and as those lots would sell, the state would get paid back for their investment, right? It’s an investment. It’s not a gift … And we need to work on regulations from the state point of view, that we encourage development, not hinder development … We don’t need to be telling each city and county what to do.
SELMER: Like many others, I think all options should be on the table at the start of this conversation. Tax incentives, zoning changes, and other measures that free up abandoned or outlying lots all have potential. Land is abundant in Wyoming and intelligent use of it should help relieve this problem.
The city of Laramie adopted health and safety standards for rental units in early 2022. Those rental regulations have come under fire and could eventually be preempted by the state. Should local communities like Laramie be able to set their own rental regulations?
CRUM: I don’t believe in price caps, salary caps, rental caps. And that never works. The way we can help with that is promote what we just talked about. It’s a supply and demand issue. If you have enough quality housing, that landlord will have to fix that property if he wants to rent. If he chooses not to fix it, it won’t rent. But the issue is providing more quality housing for people to live in, not putting caps or regulations on people.
The house needs to be safe … carbon monoxide detectors make sense, and they cost a few dollars to put in … If the owner of a building has the ability to do it themselves, they ought to have the ability to do it themselves. They shouldn’t have to go hire somebody to do it for them.
SELMER: I don’t believe renters should be made to suffer because some believe unsafe and substandard housing is better than none at all. Of course, landlords who like to say “shut-up or leave” to their tenants oppose the right of Wyoming communities to regulate their bad behavior.
The state of Wyoming recently outlawed gender-affirming care for transgender youth; it also passed a parental rights bill requiring schools to out transgender students to their families, even if those families will not be supportive. Do you support these new laws and would you support any more laws addressing LGBTQ+ issues?
CRUM: I support families and I support parents. And parents have a right to know what their children are doing — whether it’s in school, whether it’s the doctor, or whether it’s this issue, whether it’s what they’re doing at 6:30 at night — a parent has the right to know what their child is doing. Period. If there’s something illegal going on with the parent — a parent’s abusive or beating the child — then there’s laws in place already to take care of that. But for a parent to be denied what is happening with their child, I’m totally against that. … That’s how I’ll vote … The parent has a right to know. It doesn’t matter what the issue is.
Do you support the ban on gender-affirming care for transgender youth?
CRUM: I can’t speak to that. That’s a medical issue, and I need to learn more.
SELMER: It’s amazing that, on the one hand, the legislature would demand the right of parents to be informed of any confidential conversation a student might have with a mental health professional, while on the other hand denying those parents the right to make healthcare decisions for that student that might protect their mental health and prevent suicide. In my opinion, taken together, these bills show an intent to harm the LGBTQ+ community, which is part of every Wyoming community. I consider myself an ally of the LGBTQ+ community and will defend their rights.
At the time of this question’s writing, the Wyoming Education Association is suing the state for its alleged failure to adequately fund public schools. Should school funding be increased or are there other changes you would make to the state’s school funding model?
CRUM: We need to support our schools and make sure they have the funding that they need to educate our students. I think we need to look at how we can do it efficiently though; I sometimes wonder why teachers get paid one thing, and administrators get paid multiple times [that]. I certainly understand getting paid a little bit more, but several multiples — we’ve got to look at efficiency … We live in the Equality State; we need to make sure every student has that chance to be successful. As we get into specific bills, that’ll be where I’m at.
SELMER: Our local school boards across the state should be given the resources necessary for maintaining the excellent quality of our schools. Maintaining fiscal responsibility is also important and Albany County has shown it takes that responsibility seriously. Our state’s model for school funding needs to be studied carefully and changes made. What those changes might be will come only from careful study and consideration.
And to cap it off, a big picture question: What is the appropriate role of government?
CRUM: Government is to provide the basic necessities in the community. It’s not to tell people how to live, and we need to provide fire and police and emergency services, water, sewer, streets — some of the very, very basics of life … What we need to do is be out there to promote and make sure everybody has the opportunity to be successful, not to hinder success, but to make sure regulations and rules and opportunities are there for everybody to be successful.
SELMER: We are the government. It is our power of the people to act collectively, for our own good, and for that of our community. Government overreach should always be avoided, especially in regards to our personal and bodily rights. But when I see “limited government” ideas being pushed, especially when the pushing is done by billionaire businessmen, I see a threat to our collective ability to maintain our freedoms and to manage our own affairs.
Crum's denial of human induced climate change is very concerning. The western fires get worse and worse.
How can Gary Crum make the comment that the United States does not subsidize the fossil fuel industry? What about the Intangible Drilling Cost Deduction and the Credit for Clean Coal Investment?