EVANSTON — U.S. Sen. and Senate Majority Whip John Barrasso visited Evanston on Thursday, Sept. 25, for a Uinta County Republican fundraising event at the Roundhouse. With a potential government shutdown approaching, he took the stage to a standing ovation before delivering his speech.
During a meeting with county commissioners earlier in the day, Barrasso told them he learned most of the politics he knows from Wyoming author C.J. Box who wrote the Joe Pickett series and Craig Johnson who wrote the “Longmire” series.
“You can really learn a lot about Wyoming, and the west and that way of life,” he said, before quoting a statement from the character Walt Longmire: “You need to listen to people, understand their problems, and try to help them, even if they are bat-shit crazy.” The remark drew laughter from the audience.
Reflecting on Republican progress, Barrasso said conditions are improving.
“We were weak, we were poor, you could see the weakness all around the world. We were worse off, the border was open, prices were high,” Barrasso said of last year.
He credited citizens for re-electing President Donald Trump “just in the nick of time.”
Sen. Barrasso thanked veterans in the room who also received a round of applause.
He referenced the book “Hidden America” by Jeanne Marie Laskas, which highlights the unseen roles within the American workforce.
“Coalminers and cowboys,” he said. “Those are the people that put food on the table and keep the lights on.”
He said people in big cities may not fully understand the hard work performed by rural workers.
Barrasso criticized former President Joe Biden for prioritizing climate over energy that is “available and reliable.”
“Those guys wanted to get rid of the internal combustion engine,” he said. Directing the audience to think about such a thing he added, “They wanted to force electric vehicles on everybody.”
Barrasso said his party wants to shut down the border, strengthen the economy and lower prices, adding, “We want to unleash American energy.” He said domestic energy production had been shut down under the Biden administration, even as demand grew with the increased electricity needs of AI and “supercomputers.”
The senior Wyoming senator made a broad statement that energy production was down under the Biden administration, despite the United States being the largest oil-producing country in the world. It was not specified whether he was referring to transportation fuels or energy sources used to generate electricity, but he said production had declined. Data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration shows the United States has been the top oil and gas producer for the past seven years, with current oil production exceeding 13 million barrels of oil per day.
Reflecting on Wyoming’s energy production, Barrasso recalled a visit by President John F. Kennedy in the 1960s, when Kennedy spoke about the state’s soda ash. He noted that Kennedy may not have fully understood the resource but credited him for emphasizing the importance of maintaining a balance between human activity and nature’s response.
“That’s what we do,” he said. “We respect the environment; we respect the land, air and water. We use the resources that God has given us.” He said going from Kennedy’s message to Biden’s message of prioritizing climate over energy production is “dangerous and extreme.”
Barrasso discussed permanent tax cuts included in the “One Big Beautiful Bill” (OBBB), focusing on how changes to the estate tax will affect Wyoming families. He said he also calls it the “working family tax cut bill,” though it is more widely known as the OBBB.
“It was a heavy lift, but we did it despite the Democrats coming after us,” Barrasso said, referring to efforts to pass the measure. Under the bill, the federal estate tax exemption will increase to $15 million for individuals and $30 million for married couples beginning in 2025. He said the change is intended to help family farms, ranches and businesses passed down from one generation to the next.
Barrasso also paid tribute to Charlie Kirk.
“He was a wonderful, spiritual and moral leader,” he said, drawing applause from the audience. He connected with Kirk’s message of American exceptionalism, emphasizing that it should be passed on to younger generations. Barrasso said he believes it offers a stronger message than the “woke ideology that is out there.”
Speaking of the government shutdown, Barrasso blamed the Democrats.
“It would be a Democratic shutdown” he said.
Among the significant disagreement between the parties regarding the budget is the Democrats’ resistance to recent cuts to Medicaid. Republicans remain resistant to extend health care subsidies and failed negotiations have led to both parties blaming the other for the impasse. The House passed a bill to fund the government until November, but it was blocked in the Senate.
Barrasso did not go into details about the shutdown but shifted to the topic of “Trump Derangement Syndrome,” saying, “It is really unbelievable how out of focus they are. They kowtow to their far-left base. … The radical fringe of the fringe is controlling the Democratic party.”
“If we have a shutdown, it will be a Schumer shutdown,” he said. He credited Trump with working toward a stronger America but did not provide specifics about the issues connected to the potential shutdown.
He thanked the audience for the opportunity to serve and said he believes the best is still to come.
