Wyoming History In The Making: Chess moves at the department of education, Apriil 8-9, 2014

Earlier this week Wyoming's Attorney General announced that the State would be willing to stipulate to the unconstitutionality of all of SF104 save for five relatively minor matters, and also allow Superintendent Cindy Hill to return to work while these were being litigated out.  The following day Hill, who has been complaining that the Governor's office has been blocking her efforts to return to work declined, thereby keeping her own self from returning to work.  Late yesterday the Governor's office reacted with surprise.

I must say that while I generally abstain from commenting on these matters, her decision was exactly what I predicted.  It's also a mistake as it lends credence to her opponents feelings that she's an unyielding absolutist.  The remaining issues are indeed minor and she could have resumed her duties nearly immediately.

Of course she's also presently a candidate for the Governor's office, and by remaining out of office she's free to campaign. I don't know that this figures into her reasoning, I doubt it, but it will undoubtedly occur to others who will point it out, to her detriment, later on.

It's also evidence of the growing split in the State's GOP, which is now sharply divided in some county's between Tea Party supporters and the traditional GOP.  Recently two counties censured Governor Mead, an extraordinary event in the State's history.  Only the fact that the state's Democratic Party is so weak as to be nearly a non player in most elections will keep this from being a factor in the general election, but it is suggestive of a maxim that when a political party has no real opposition, it begins to split into more than one party itsefl.