The time between now and the 2022 election will be never ending when it comes to the race for Rep. Liz Cheney’s seat in the U.S. House.
Nearly six months into her second term, she’s already facing a cadre of Republican challengers after voting to impeach former President Donald Trump for his alleged role in the Jan. 6 riot in Washington D.C. That vote and her increasing criticism of Trump ultimately cost her the House GOP leadership position as Trump’s followers have gain increasing control of the GOP.
As discussion about Cheney continues to circulate at a national level, interest in the upcoming race for Wyoming’s sole seat in the House grows. That interest is going to generate the kind of dirty election rarely seen in Wyoming. U.S. House hopeful Sen. Anthony Bouchard, R-Cheyenne, was the first to feel the venom of this kind of election. Last week, Bouchard admitted to impregnating a 14-year-old girl when he was 18 and marrying her before the child was born, citing a desire to get ahead of a news article focusing on the relationship.
The Dailymail.com, the U.S. page for a UK-based tabloid, published an article about Bouchard’s past and his son, 36-year-old Tony Bouchard, who is awaiting trial in California for a series of sex-related felony charges. The article cites an unnamed “Republican operative” as a source for the information, saying Bouchard is the most flawed of the candidates seeking to replace Cheney.
‘We want this to be known about him because we need to clean the field. Five other candidates in the primary are going to split the vote in a small place like Wyoming, and Cheney is going to waltz in again,” the Daily Mail quotes the operative saying. “There needs to be one contender, and not one with the kind of skeletons this guy has in his closet.”
With the kind of out-of-state attention the 2022 race is receiving, this likely won’t be the last time we see something like this happen. We’re already seeing things we’re not accustomed to in the Cowboy State. For example, Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Florida, came to Wyoming in March to rally against Cheney prior to allegations of sex trafficking being made against him. An election bill pushed by Donald Trump Jr. to create a runoff election if candidates failed to win a majority of votes failed in Wyoming Legislature.
It’s clear the Trump-supporting members of the party see Cheney as a major threat and is pulling out all the stops to have her voted out. It’s also clear to other the Trump side of the GOP is sending a warning to others on the fence about supporting the former President -- we will come after you if you’re not with us.
For Wyoming residents, we’re going to be subjected to a political storm for the next year and a half. It will be like the election never ended.
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