A Sweetwater County district court judge will hear arguments Jan. 31 in the defamation case brought by two lawmakers against a political action committee affiliated with the Wyoming Freedom Caucus.
Rock Springs Reps. J.T. Larson and Cody Wylie sued WY Freedom PAC in July for sending text messages and mailers to potential voters claiming that the lawmakers had voted “with the RADICAL LEFT to remove President Trump from the ballot.” No such vote has ever been held by the Wyoming Legislature.
The two Republican legislators allege that the PAC knew its statements were false, and therefore made them with actual malice — a legal standard in defamation cases involving public figures or officials.
“If it was critical of my voting record, that would have been fine. I wouldn’t have said a word,” Wylie previously told WyoFile. “But this is just blatantly creating lies to try to affect the election cycle.”
Ultimately, Larson and Wylie beat Freedom Caucus-backed opponents in the primary, and both will return to Cheyenne in January for their second terms. But their attorney, outgoing lawmaker Rep. Clark Stith (R-Rock Springs) — who lost his reelection bid this year to Freedom Caucus-backed primary challenger Darin McCann — argues the PAC’s statements harmed their reputations and one of their private businesses, and forced both to spend “substantial additional sums of money” on their campaigns.
The plaintiffs filed an amended complaint on Oct. 14 to account for additional mailers sent after the initial suit and to try to strengthen their legal argument.
On Oct. 25, attorneys for the PAC asked the court to dismiss the case, arguing the suit fails to state a claim and accusing Larsen and Wylie of “seeking to punish and censor criticism of their records as legislators and to profit from their public service.”
Represented by Teton County’s Mark Jackowski and Washington D.C.-based attorney Stephen Klein, the PAC argued the mailers and text messages do not constitute defamation and “were made in the course of political campaigning, where imaginative expressions and hyperbole are at their zenith.”
Where this started
The mailers and text messages at the center of the lawsuit have their origins in the 2024 budget session, when lawmakers clashed over which of Wyoming’s elected officials should have the authority to represent the state’s interest in litigation.
Secretary of State Chuck Gray’s decision to join Ohio and Missouri’s Republican secretaries of state in filing an amicus brief spurred the discussion amongst lawmakers. The brief advocated for overturning a Colorado court’s decision to remove Trump from that state’s ballot for his role in inciting the Jan. 6, 2021 riots at the U.S. Capitol.
As a result, the Joint Appropriations Committee added a footnote to the budget limiting the secretary of state’s ability to sue on Wyoming’s behalf.
“No funds appropriated under this section shall be expended without specific legislative authorization for the secretary of state or the office of the secretary of state to initiate any litigation or participate in any litigation initiated in a court outside of Wyoming in which the state, the secretary of state or the office of the secretary of state is not a named party,” the footnote read.
Some legislators, including Stith, argued on the House floor that the footnote was about separation of powers and ensured the state’s chief executive — the governor — remained the one office with the authority to represent Wyoming in a courtroom.
Freedom Caucus members argued the secretary of state’s office needed the ability to act quickly, including Rep. Chris Knapp (R-Gillette), who brought an amendment to strike the footnote completely.
Larson voted against the amendment while Wylie abstained. Freedom Caucus Chairman Emeritus John Bear (R-Gillette) previously told WyoFile the vote over the footnote was “effectively” a vote for or against Trump being on the ballot.
“They knew what they were doing when they did it,” Bear said.
Ultimately, the footnote was dropped from the budget during negotiations between the House and the Senate.
What’s next
Larsen and Wylie weren’t the only targets of the PAC’s text messages and mailers.
Reps. Landon Brown (R-Cheyenne), Lloyd Larsen (R-Lander), Ember Oakley (R-Riverton) and Dan Zwonitzer (R-Cheyenne) were also accused of voting “with the RADICAL LEFT to remove President Trump from the ballot” in mailers sent to voters.
In July, an attorney for Fremont County’s Larsen and Oakley sent the PAC a cease-and-desist letter.
Otherwise, Larson and Wylie were the only lawmakers to pursue litigation. The two previously requested a jury trial in their filings.
In its motion to dismiss, the PAC made an alternative suggestion that the court resolve the case without a full trial — also known as a summary judgment.
Oral arguments in the case are scheduled for 1:30 p.m. on Jan. 31 in Rock Springs.
And this is why I will not support any freedom caucus member . They have learned from the best on how to succeed with misinformation and lies.