Bad border rumors highlight need for good information

Gov. Mark Gordon posted a rather amazing statement on his social media accounts earlier this month. “It has come to my attention that unsubstantiated rumors are circulating that migrants are being housed or transported to Wyoming communities with my approval and support,” the statement began. “These rumors are completely false.”

The governor went on to explain how he had not authorized any housing of immigrants here in Wyoming, as the rumors apparently alleged, and that he would not do so in the future. As well, he again voiced his support for fighting the federal government should it try to force Wyoming into the housing of immigrants and further voiced his continued support for Texas in its battle against soft federal border enforcement. 

It was an astonishing post. Not just because of its content, but also because of its necessity. 

Let me start off by saying that while I generally agree with the governor’s comments, there are other ways to approach border security that Gordon and our state lawmakers should take into consideration. 

The ongoing immigration discussion is something our country nationally, and now our states individually, continue to engage in thanks to the relentlessly unchanging problems at our southern border. The very fact non-border states like Wyoming are grappling with issues around immigration provides ample evidence to show the severity of the problem. We are feeling the effects even here. 

Indeed, in the 2024 budget session Wyoming’s lawmakers voted to send Texas $2 million to help with border enforcement, an amount that was whittled down to $750,000 in the budget negotiations to be used specifically to reimburse Wyoming state agencies aiding the Lone Star State. (A line item in the budget most of us never thought we would see in Wyoming.)

What Wyoming needs to consider is this: What does this money achieve for Texas or our nation?

This question is not asked as an artifice deflecting from what is happening on our southern border. Rather it is asked as a way to point out the pitfalls inherent in states adopting unwarranted border “slush funds” (for lack of a better phrase) for our southern states to enforce laws the federal government is constitutionally responsible for enforcing on its own. 

The people of Texas should be asking themselves how durable these funds are in terms of expanding long-term border security spending in their own state budget. 

The smart answer is not at all. 

It may be all the rage right now to send money, but that rage will turn its fickle little head to something else very soon, and the money will dry up. So then, how does short-term funding help to solve this problem for Texas or Wyoming or any state?

And more importantly, and here is my main point on this: How does this incentivize our federal government to do its job? 

It doesn’t, on both accounts.

These funds are simply a show of solidarity to states that really need, more than anything, federal action and a federal solution. The content of Gov. Gordon’s response and his ongoing support show clearly that other states take the border issues seriously, even if solutions are less than ideal. And for that he is not wrong. But Wyoming would do better to place pressure on our federal delegation to come up with real solutions now. And to work across the aisle, if necessary, to do so. 

Which leads me to my next point. A bipartisan bill was brought forward in the United States Senate just a few weeks ago and was soundly rejected by Republicans, many of whom were undoubtedly caught up in the same kind of crossfires that spurred Gordon to send out his social media post. 

Let’s call those crossfires bad actors and bad information. 

The bad actors are those who tell their supporters on a daily basis that there are serious and deadly problems at the border but then turn around and work to kill a bill that would have helped alleviate some of those very problems. This is bad faith at its worst, and those bad actors who indulge in this kind of cynical political maneuvering aren’t equipped to do the work necessary to find solutions. In fact, finding a solution will undoubtedly involve removing those bad actors from our politics. 

Like all big American problems, the solution lies, most likely, in a series of bipartisan deals that make everyone a little happy and a little unhappy, and not necessarily in that order. 

And finally, I want to talk about bad information and necessity.

Gordon is clearly up against some seriously bad information being spread broadly across our state (some of it spread by bad actors, no doubt.) Paranoia, fear, addiction to catastrophizing and outright acceptance of lies are the new enemies in American political life. 

Sadly, in many cases, those spreading the lies are split between the ones who believe it and the ones who spread it for personal gain. Many right now who demand the most stringent, upright, transparent and truthful character in their elected officials often struggle to demand the same of themselves and those they listen to on a daily basis.

But there is a larger point to express here, and that is this: In an age crowded with endless digital platforms of monetized rank punditry, apps and websites filled with malicious algorithms created to radicalize and polarize, and the presence of so many foreign bots in our digital life, it is critical we all take the time to find trusted sources for our information. 

With rights come responsibilities, and the future of what it means to be a responsible citizen is rapidly changing, but far too many of our fellow citizens aren’t keeping up. Listen, I get it, I’m old enough to remember when I received Netflix in the mail, but we all need to take responsibility for learning how to navigate this digital world. 

The nature of elected office makes many fearful of pushing back when the loudest voices in the room are those who inject lies into our political discourse like the ones Gordon tried to counter earlier this month.

Solutions like the ones needed to solve our nation’s border problems won’t happen under a cloud of misinformation and lies. The governor was right to push back, and we can all endeavor to help by supporting lawmakers who tell the truth, no matter the cost.