Johnson County Democratic Party
Monthly Meeting
March 1, 2022

Call to Order:

Greg Haas called the meeting to order at 6:00 pm by Greg Haas, Chair.

Attendance in person: Greg Haas, Jim Shell, Suzi Black, Sharon Case, Dudley Case, Mary Van Auken, Kay McCormick, Lorajane Kessler, John Sherwood, Kate Sherwood, Linda Wilson, Lois Petersen, Vikki Chenette

Secretary Report:

Lois Petersen made a motion to approve the minutes from the February 1 meeting and Suzi Black seconded the motion.

Treasurer’s Report:

Suzi Black reported the checkbook balance and the amount that is earmarked for flowers for William McIntyre’s funeral and for the William D. McIntyre Memorial Scholarship fund.

Chair Announcements:

Greg Haas did not have any chair announcements.

Modification of the Agenda:

Greg Haas announced that in order to finish the meeting by 7:00 pm, so that members could get home to watch the State of the Union Address, he was going to put off until the next meeting the following agenda items:

1. Chamber of Commerce – Lois Petersen
2. Platform/Position Paper – Greg Haas
3. Tourism Association is hiring

Greg asked if anyone objected to this change in the agenda. No one objected.

William D. McIntyre Memorial Scholarship:

Greg Haas said he talked to Bill’s wife, Dixie, on the phone and she said there was a lot of animosity towards Democrats in Kaycee and that she didn’t want a scholarship recipient to have that animosity directed towards a student for applying for and receiving a scholarship sponsored by the Democrats. As a result of his conversation with Dixie he said there are three possible options to take with respect to the scholarship.

1. Make a donation to the Hoof Prints of the Past Museum in Kaycee of the $350 we have in the treasury, since Bill McIntyre was very active in this museum.
2. Have a scholarship sponsored by the Johnson County Democrats that would not use William D. McIntyre’s name.
3. Set up an organization independent from the Johnson County Democratic Party to organize and operate the William D. McIntyre Memorial Scholarship.

Suzi Black made a motion to have the JC Dems donate $350 to the Hoof Prints of the Past Museum in Kaycee in Bill’s name and set up a scholarship committee to work on organizing and operating the scholarship fund. Vikki Chenette seconded the motion. After some discussion the motion passed unanimously. Dudley Case said that he has an inactive non-profit 501(c)(3) corporation that could be used for this scholarship program.

Lois Petersen, Vikki Chenette, Lorajane Kessler and Dudley Case volunteered to be on the committee.

Call to Committee for SCC (March 26 at 1:30 pm via Zoom):

Greg Haas said that the JC Dems get 4 votes at the Democratic State Central Committee meeting. Voting by proxy is allowed, so if one of the four members who can legally vote at this meeting cannot attend the meeting, they may designate another member to vote for them. Because of Bill McIntyre’s death there is one opening for a JC Dems member to attend this meeting and vote. Greg said he would check to see which four members among the JC Dems members can legally vote at this meeting.

County Convention:

Greg Haas said that the Wyoming Democratic Party will allow the county conventions to be held in person or online (e.g. Zoom) or by a combination of in person and online. Greg Haas said it is too much trouble to set up a hybrid meeting (in person and online). Greg Haas made a motion to hold the county convention in person. Lois Petersen seconded the motion. After some discussion to motion passed unanimously.

The state party told Greg Haas that the county convention must be held In April and that we need to set a date for the convention. After some discussion, Vikki Chenette made a motion to hold the convention on Saturday, April 23 between 10am and Noon. Linda Wilson seconded the motion. The motion passed unanimously.

Greg Haas stated that normally three committees must be set up to organize and operate the convention: 1) Platform and Resolutions Committee 2) Ballot and Credentials Committee 3) Bylaws Committee. Greg Haas said that forming a Bylaws committee would not be necessary since we use the State Party Bylaws for the convention. Greg Haas then asked for volunteers to serve on the other two committees. Greg Haas and Linda Wilson volunteered to serve on the Platform and Resolutions Committee. Mary Van Auken, Suzi Black, Vikki Chenette and Dudley Case volunteered for the Ballot and Credentials Committee. Dudley said he was chair of this committee for the 2020 convention and had the paperwork for this committee.

Training Report:

Dudley Case said he attended the Zoom training course entitled Wyoming Candidate Information Session on February 9. Sarah Hunt and Nina Herbert conducted the session. Dudley reviewed the highlights of the session and stated that the session was recorded for anyone who missed the session. One important point covered was that Federal, State and County offices are partisan. City, town and special district offices are non-partisan and precinct committee positions are partisan. Deadlines, campaign logistics, fundraising, voter contact, public appearances, resources, and costs were all covered during the session, which lasted for about one hour. The presenters gave links to the Wyoming County Commissioners Guide, the Wyoming Candidate Guide, which includes filing fees, the Wyoming Clerks Guide, and Wyoming 2022-2023 Election Calendar.

Adjournment:

Greg Haas adjourned the meeting at 6:55 pm.

Johnson County Democratic Party Meeting
March 1, 2022 at 6:00 PM <<<— Time changed to accommodate the POTUS State of the Union Address
Bomber Mountain Civic Center, Rm 108

Agenda

6:00pm Call to order

6:04pm Minutes & Money & Chair Announcements

6:08pm Business, old and refreshed

William D. McIntyre Memorial Scholarship

Training report – Dudley

Chamber of Commerce – Lois

Platform/Position Paper – Greg

6:38pm New Business

County Convention – Greg

Call to Committee for SCC (March 26 at 1:30PM via Zoom)

Tourism Association is Hiring

6:52pm Announcements from the Floor

Upcoming Meetings

Other?

6:59 Adjourn

You can click here to read the original.

An open letter to Senator Lummis

Feb 15, 2022

Senator Lummis, when you ran for office, you promised to fight for the people of Wyoming. You said you were one of us: a gritty, hardworking, roll-up-your-sleeves and get the work done kind of person. You said you would bring Wyoming values to Washington.

So you can imagine our surprise when you simply didn’t show up to work today.

When did not working become a Wyoming value?

There are days when we’ve all wished we didn’t have to go to work; we’ve all looked at what needed to be done and wanted to throw up our hands and walk away. But normal people have bills to pay, have jobs to keep, have responsibilities and decency and values.

Wyomingites are facing a lot right now, and need someone fighting for us. President Biden and congressional Democrats are working hard to address things like inflation, and key to that is having a full and confirmed Federal Reserve Board. Yet on the very day that was set to happen, you were MIA.

Economists agree the nominees are qualified; they are experienced and leaders in their fields. You’ve decided that’s not good enough for you, even though you’re not an economist.

Instead of showing up to fight for what you believe in – instead of working to find a solution – you decided to leave Wyoming behind and pull a stunt. It’s one thing to disagree; it’s another to simply refuse to do your job.

In any other career, you would have been fired. Your campaign slogan has been, “All Wyoming, all the time.”

Frankly, you’re looking and behaving a lot more like DC nowadays.

Johnson County Democratic Party
Business Meeting
February 1, 2021

Meeting was called to order at 7:00 pm by Greg Haas, Chair.

Attendance in person: Greg Haas, Jim Shell, Lois Petersen, Suzi Black, Mitch Black, Sharon Case, Dudley Case

Treasurer’s Report:

Suzi Black reported the balance in the bank account, that there is a check from Act Blue that has not been deposited yet. Also, the amount remaining from donations that were received for Bill McIntyre’s funeral flowers.

Greg Haas said he will ask Dixie if she needs help with any of the funeral expenses.

Old and New Business:

Electioneering/Campaigning – Greg Haas said the Wyoming Democratic Party has set up three training sessions for potential candidates: February 2 at 7:00 pm, March 10 at 11:30 am, and April 6 at 7:00 pm.

Wyoming Democratic Legislative Watch Committee – Greg Haas stated that the Wyoming Democratic Party is setting up its annual Legislative Watch Committee. The committee tracks bills during the legislative session and works with the Wyoming Democratic Party staff to create Action Alerts, mobilize activist, and help hold our legislators accountable. The committee is looking for volunteers. If you would like to volunteer, please contact the Wyoming Democratic Party. The deadline for volunteering is February 10.

Redistricting – The Wyoming Democratic Party is looking for volunteers to write letters to the editor about the Wyoming Legislature’s redistricting plans. Please contact the Wyoming Democratic Party if you are interested in volunteering.

JC Dems Platform/Position Paper – At the December 7 meeting the six priority issues that were identified in the platform were: vaccines, women’s health, gun rights, voting rights, racism and climate change. Greg Haas volunteered to pull out those sections of the platform which best apply to these issues and to put together an outline of the topics to cover under each of these issues when we talk to JC Dems members.

Chamber of Commerce – Lois Petersen said she is interested in the JC Dems joining the Chamber of Commerce so that the party can get some free advertising thru the chamber. The Republican Party is already a member of the chamber. Jim Shell made a motion for the party to investigate joining the Chamber of Commerce, including what the annual membership fee is. Suzi Black seconded the motion. After some discussion the motion passed unanimously.

William D. McIntyre Memorial Scholarship:

Greg Haas presented to the members the four documents that he and the scholarship committee created in connection with this scholarship, namely, the Scholarship Application, Committee Guidelines and Rules, Roster of Scholarship Committee Members, and Donation Form.

Greg then reviewed each form and asked for the members comments and input on each form.

The group decided that for now no logo and/or photo of Bill McIntyre would be put on the forms. Also, that the application and supporting documents and any donation checks would be mailed to the William D. McIntyre Memorial Scholarship rather than to the Johnson County Democratic Party but using the party’s P.O. Box. Greg said he will make the necessary changes on all the documents.

It was also decided that the giant reusable check to be presented to scholarship winners would have the title William D. McIntyre Memorial Scholarship.

Dudley Case made a motion to approve the scholarship documents as presented by Greg Haas with the changes agreed to at the meeting. Motion was seconded by Suzi Black. Motion was passed unanimously.

Announcements from the Floor:

Lois Petersen announced that there will be a seminar entitled Investing in Solar Energy for your home, farm and business sponsored by the Sheridan County Democrats and the Wyoming Solar Energy Association on Wednesday, February 16 at 7:00 pm.
Lois Petersen announced that there will be a Zoom presentation entitled America at a Crossroads presented by Jonathan Greenblatt with Madeleine Brand on Wednesday, February 2 at 5:00 pm. This presentation is being sponsored by Jews United for Democracy and Justice. Jonathan Greenblatt is the author of the book “It Could Happen Here – Why America is Tipping from Hate to the Unthinkable and How We Can Stop It”. The book can be ordered on Amazon and other booksellers. You may sign up for the presentation at the sponsor’s website: http://jewsunitedfordemocracy.org.

Johnson County Democratic Party Meeting
February 1, 2022 at 7:00 PM
Bomber Mountain Civic Center, Rm 108

Agenda

7:00pm Call to order

7:04pm Minutes & Money & Chair Announcements

7:08pm Business, old and refreshed

William D. McIntyre Memorial Scholarship

Electioneering/Campaigning Click to register for webinar. Three upcoming sessions.

Legislative Watch Committee Click to join the team.

Redistricting Click to sign up to testify.

Chamber of Commerce

Letter Writing

Platform/Position Paper Top Five Priorities

7:52pm Announcements from the Floor

Upcoming Meetings

Other?

7:59 Adjourn

We will hold a work session on Dec 7, 2021. We’ll start early this month; meet at 6pm*. Stay as long as you’d like. If you can’t make it at 6pm, feel free to stop in at 7. I think there’s more than one hour of work to do!

We’ll spend some time working on elements of the position paper and also cards/communications for contacting precinct residents.

P.S. There’s good info about the Diego Rivera Mural (pictured above) to be found at the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art.

The 7 o’clock time is in conflict with the Buffalo High School xmas music concert.

Apparently This Was Canceled

I’m calling this one the “Fresh Dem Spesh Sesh”

Today (Friday) at 6pm.

They’re not posting the URL until it goes “Live”. I’ll try to update this post when I know the link. Or you can check @WyoLegDems on Twitter or Facebook.

Johnson County Democratic Party
Guest Speaker/Business Meeting
November 2, 2021

Meeting was called to order at 7:05 pm by Greg Haas, Chair.

Attendance in person: Mitch Black, Lois Petersen, Sharon Case, Dudley Case, Greg Haas

Attendance online: Vikki Chenette, Ted Hanlon

Secretary Report:

Minutes from October 5 do not need to be approved since it wasn’t an official business meeting.

Treasurer’s Report:

Mitch Black gave the report for Suzi Black. Mitch reported current bank account balance including recent donations.

Chair Announcements:

Greg asked if anyone had names of possible candidates for elective offices. Lois Petersen said she has put together a list of names of potential candidates.

Greg proposed having an election or candidate committee meeting to discuss potential candidates. Mitch and Lois volunteered to be on the committee. Dudley Case suggested that the precinct committee people should be on the committee. Greg Haas said that we should try to get as many precinct committee people on the ballot as possible.

Introduction of Guest Speaker:

Greg Haas introduced the guest speaker, Ted Hanlon, who spoke on Precinct Committee Seats. Ted is from Laramie County and is a precinct committeeman. Ted is a native Wyomingite and has a passion for precinct committee people.
Ted said if we don’t get two people from each precinct to be precinct committee people then we will lose elections. We need to canvass Democrats and find people willing to serve as precinct committee people and then have them sign up for training.
He suggested for the 2022 election we should concentrate on getting precinct committee people on the ballot, because organizing at the local level is really important for winning elections. We can use Vote Builder to get the contact information for Democrats so we can contact them. Ted recommended the book “Plunket of Tammany Hall” to find out how to organize to win elections.
Ted suggested sending postcards to all Democrats in a precinct and he showed an example of such a post card. He said it might cost $150 to $200 to print and mail the postcards. Ted said that mini grants might be available for paying this cost. Then after the postcards are sent out you would need to go door to door to talk with Democrats.
Ted also suggested having social events for the precinct people to help make it fun for people to be precinct committee people. These events would help foster a sense of community. Lois Petersen described the social event that the JC Dems and Sheridan County Dems ran during the summer. Greg Haas suggested small quarterly social events in the county or a precinct.
Ted said we need a ground game at the precinct level over a number of years to be successful and we can’t count on the National or Wyoming Democratic Parties to do this for us.

Platform/Position Paper on Top Five Priorities:

Dudley Case suggested health care in Johnson County as a priority. Vikki Chenette suggested economic issues since coal plants are closing and people are losing their jobs. Vikki Chenette volunteered to write a draft paper on a few platform issues that are important in Johnson County.

Announcements from the Floor:

Mitch Black bought some books to hand out such as, “On Tyranny”, “Plot to Destroy Democracy” and “Our Endangered Values”.

Upcoming Meetings:

December 7 in Room 108 of the Bomber Mountain Building. Craig Cope will be speaking. Lois Petersen said she will write one or two sentences on Craig’s topic and send it out to JC Dems.

January 4, 2022 will be a business meeting.

Adjournment:

Greg Haas adjourned the meeting at 8:10 pm.

Johnson County Democratic Party Meeting
November 2, 2021 at 7:00 PM
Bomber Mountain Civic Center, Rm 108
Also on Zoom! Register first, please!

Agenda

7:00pm Call to order

7:04pm Minutes & Money & Chair Announcements

7:08pm Business, old, but new again

2022 Election:

Candidates, Trainings, Offices

Precinct Committee Seats w/Guest Ted Hanlon

Platform/Position Paper Top Five Priorities

7:52pm Announcements from the Floor

Upcoming Meetings

Other?

7:59 Adjourn

Johnson County Democratic Party
Guest Speaker/Business Meeting
August 3, 2021

Meeting was called to order at 7:00 pm by Greg Haas, Chair.

Attendance in person: Linda Wilson, Jim Shell, Dudley Case, Sharon Case, Bill McIntyre, Suzi Black, Greg Haas, Vikki Chenette

Secretary Report:

The June 1, 2021 minutes were adopted without any changes.

Treasurer Report:

Greg Haas reported that he hasn’t gotten the income and expense numbers on the Kearney Hall event yet, so he will call the Sheridan County Democratic Party. There were more than 100 people at the event. The JC Dems did get a thank you card from the Sheridan County Dems for our $200 donation towards the event expenses.

Suzi Black reported that there is $1,971.67 in the bank account.

Chair Announcements:

Greg Haas reported that he attended the Wyoming Democratic State Central Committee meeting. A number of initiatives were discussed at the meeting. First, there was a discussion about creating a resolution to enable the Wind River Reservation to have county rights. They would need to form their own caucus, if they chose to do that instead. Second, there was discussion about voter registration and the need to help high school seniors and people released from prison to register to vote. Third, there was an offer to help people become Notary Publics. There is now a test to become a Notary Public. Fourth, there was discussion about helping county Democrats with goal setting. Fifth, there was discussion about having listening sessions to which state senators and representatives would be invited. Sixth, there was discussion about finding candidates for future elections. Seventh, there was discussion about getting Democratic precinct committee people onto the primary ballots. Eighth, there was discussion about changing the Democratic State Party Bylaws’ language away from gender binary language. Ninth, there was an announcement that Democratic Party staffers are now unionized with the International Association of Electrical Worker (IAEW). Tenth, there was recognition that this year’s budget exceeds projected revenues. Eleventh, there was an announcement that Wyoming met all the criteria for a red state such that the Wyoming Democratic Party could receive extra election monies.

Greg Haas will work on finding out the filing date for precinct committee people to get on the primary ballot.

Dudley Case reported that tomorrow, August 4th, there will be election judge training in the County Courthouse at 9:00 am and 1:00 pm. Suzi Black and Dudley Case will be attending the 9:00 am session.

Old Business:

The Kearney Hall event was previously discussed under the Chair Announcements.

New Business:

The special election will be held on August 17th. According to a new law that went into effect on July 1, 2021, all voters will need to present a photo ID. Voters can vote between now and August 17th by absentee ballot or by voting in person at the courthouse.

Greg Haas asked for a volunteer to be present at the testing of the voting equipment on Friday, August 6th at 9:30 am at the courthouse. Dudley Case volunteered.

Greg Haas led a discussion of the special election sales tax increase, including where members heard about and read about the election issue. It was the general opinion of the group that the JC Dems should not take a position on this election issue.

Jim Shell announced that he and his wife would hold a potluck dinner at their house on Friday, August 27th from 5 to 8 pm. Their address is 224 S. Lobban Avenue, which is near the movie theater.

Bill McIntyre said that the next JC Dems luncheon would probably be held in October.

Adjournment:

Linda Wilson made a motion to adjourn, and Suzi Black seconded the motion. Motion passed and meeting was adjourned at 8:12 pm.