New senator from Wyoming: John Barrasso (R)

Because of the June 4 death of Sen. Craig Thomas (R), Wyoming's governor had to appoint a replacement until a November 2008 special election. As noted here previously, under Wyoming law, even though Gov. Dave Freudenthal is a Democrat, he had to appoint someone from Thomas' party, in this case the Republicans.

So welcome to Sen. John Barrasso. Looks like he's a pretty traditional wingnut (meaning "batshit fundie far-right whacko"):

Barrasso also left no doubt that he will be a conservative voice in Washington.

"I believe in limited government, lower taxes, less spending, traditional family values, local control and a strong national defense," the orthopedic surgeon and state senator from Casper wrote in his application.

He said he has "voted for prayer in schools, against gay marriage and have sponsored legislation to protect the sanctity of life."

Just what we need -- another fundie on Capitol Hill.

Was this really the best Freudenthal could do? After all, he had his choice of three, and he picked Barrasso over Cheyenne attorney Tom Sansonetti and former state Treasurer Cynthia Lummis. What's wrong with them?

Hi, I'm Assistant Attorney General Tom Sansonetti. I'm in charge of the Environment and Natural Resources Division here at the Department of Justice, under the leadership of Attorney General John Ashcroft. Coming to Washington D.C. from the West, some of my fondest memories are of times I have spent recreating outdoors with my family and appreciating the value of our nation's natural resources.

Cynthia [Lummis] was raised on her family ranch in Laramie County. She attended Trinity Lutheran School and Cheyenne public schools before graduating from the University of Wyoming with a bachelors degree in Animal Science in 1976 and a bachelors degree in biology in 1978. In 1979, Cynthia was elected to the Wyoming House of Representatives - the youngest women ever elected to the Wyoming Legislature. She returned to the University of Wyoming for her law degree, which she received in 1985. She clerked at the Wyoming Supreme Court, practiced law in Cheyenne, and served a total of fourteen years in the Wyoming House and Senate, concentrating on natural resource and taxation issues. Cynthia completed her Legislative service in 1994, and chaired Governor-elect Geringer’s transition team. She continued to work in the Governor’s Office for two more years, primarily on natural resource issues. Cynthia also served as the interim Director of the Office of State Lands and Investments.

Not sure why Lummis wasn't selected ... but I guess we should be grateful we didn't get Sansonetti ... who worked in the Justice Department of John Ashcroft.

UPDATE (1:59 pm 6/22/07): According to the article linked above, Barrasso does plan to run in the 2008 special election.

UPDATE (3:16 pm 6/22/07): Commenter bo at Eschaton has a plausible theory on why Gov. Freudenthal picked a batshit fundie rather than a seemingly normal person like Lummis:

The process was, the Republicans selected three candidates, and the Governor (Democrat) got to select one. Defeatability would be a highly desirable characteristic. ;^)

And dirk gently in the comments to this post says basically the same thing, thereby proving yet again that Blast Off! shares with Eschaton the smartest commenters on the intertubes.