My Vision for Wyoming:

I am concerned, as you are, about the future for our children, for our families, and for Wyoming. I want the direction for Wyoming to be forward -- not backward, not stand still – and as Governor I will move our State forward. I am asking for your support to be Wyoming’s next Governor and for your vote.

The job of Governor is an executive position. My years of service as the presidentially-appointed United States Attorney for Wyoming, making the tough decisions regarding life, liberty and property, were executive service on the highest level. I prosecuted child sex offenders and busted up drug rings, making Wyoming communities safer. I became well-versed on national and state security issues by serving on the U. S. Attorney General’s Anti-terrorism Task Force. I strongly advocated for victims of crime. I testified before the United States Senate Committees and chaired a multi-state unit focusing on illicit drug trafficking. From my service as U.S. Attorney, I have years of hands-on executive leadership with proven results. This background has given me the executive training and experience needed to do the job you expect from your governor.

I view coming from the private sector as a necessary experience and, in fact, the experience Wyoming citizens expect of the next Governor. I am a small business owner. With my wife Carol, I own a farming/ranching business in southeast Wyoming. I create jobs in the private sector, sign the front of paychecks, and know what small businesses need to flourish and what challenges small businesses face.

I believe public office should be about getting in, getting the job done and getting out. Public service is about service to the State, not a career for oneself. We need more people in public office who will devote themselves to making tough decisions that affect the next generation, not the next election. To me the job of Governor is about making those tough decisions that affect the next generation. As Governor, I will do that. I will address the challenges we face head-on. I am not a career politician.

Private business, particularly small business, drives creation of jobs and capital, not the government. Individual states, not Washington, D.C., provide the fuel, food and water that sustain our country. No state provides a greater combination of energy, food, water and hard workers than Wyoming, and our voice should be as strong as our contribution. We should lead not follow.

At times it seems the federal government treats Wyoming as a colony with a great big park, with a great big fuel pump. I want self-determination and a greater voice in our future. As Governor, I will make sure Wyoming interests are protected by standing up to the federal government.

There are numerous issues that demand attention. We are fortunate to live where we do. But we must move forward – plan and set goals so that we and our children can always say we are fortunate to live in Wyoming. We need to create more jobs. We need to jump-start our economy.

Wyoming is the only state that is a major producer, and has world-class reserves, of every energy mineral. We need a comprehensive policy for their optimal development. We have water resources that are left unused and thus unprotected. Wyoming’s agricultural products are internationally recognized for their quality. Our ability to produce them must be protected and enhanced. Our travel and tourism industry contributes much to our State and merits strong support.

We have work to do in the areas of improving the quality of life for Wyoming families and communities, providing the best education possible for our children, protecting gun rights, our state’s rights and private property rights, improving technology, maintaining our transportation infrastructure. We also have to protect and promote the wonderful outdoor recreation opportunities, like hunting and fishing, we enjoy in our State -- we should never take them for granted. And, we have social issues, such as an aging population and suicide, an illustrative list only, which need to be addressed.

These issues are important to Wyoming’s future. They are core issues that have to be addressed at the state level, in our counties, in our towns, and around our kitchen tables. I have led an issue-based campaign from the start. I led all other gubernatorial candidates in publishing a detailed platform statement, which I did not poll or test before issuing and which I am now taking the opportunity to update. I have developed a clear vision for moving Wyoming forward that always puts Wyoming first.

Here is what I see for Wyoming’s future, issue by issue.

Best,

Matt Mead