Just because you have money, doesn't mean you are smart...

'We'll see whether you can really buy a governor's race'

GOP megadonor Foster Friess faces a tough primary to be Wyoming's next governor.

By DANIEL STRAUSS

Millionaire megadonor Foster Friess has spent more money, racked up more national endorsements and blanketed the airwaves more aggressively than any other Republican in Tuesday's Wyoming governor’s primary.

It might not be enough to win.

Friess may be a household name in conservative fundraising circles, but he started his surprise bid for governor largely unknown in Wyoming compared to the other leading candidates: state Treasurer Mark Gordon and businessman Sam Galeotos. Friess’ carpet-bomb ad campaign has helped, with the latest polling showing Friess deadlocked with Gordon and Galeotos lurking just behind. But Galeotos has crowded the “outsider” lane in the primary, and Friess’ start-from-scratch career in state politics, after focusing on national issues as a donor, may be too big an obstacle to overcome.

“He's got plenty of jack and he's using every cent of it. Every cent of it,” said former Republican Sen. Alan Simpson, who is supporting Gordon. “We'll see whether you can really buy a governor's race.”

Friess has been the biggest spender on advertising, pouring in over $1.1 million into the race, outstripping $984,000 in ad spending from Galeotos and more than doubling the roughly $443,000 spent by Gordon. Even more of Friess’ money poured into on-the-ground campaigning, seeking to make up for a lack of infrastructure compared to a candidate like Gordon, who had laid groundwork for his gubernatorial bid for years.

“He's basically traveled to anywhere he can land his G5 [jet],” said Bill Novotny, who served as the campaign manager for outgoing Gov. Matt Mead. “He has an army of paid staffers to augment the lack of political organization or organic support.”

Friess has not lacked for national support. Former Sen. Rick Santorum has endorsed him — Friess spent millions supporting Santorum’s 2012 presidential bid — as has Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) and groups like the Family Research Council and the Tea Party Patriots. Donald Trump Jr. also weighed in on Friess’ behalf, sparking speculation about whether President Donald Trump might weigh in with a late endorsement. Friess uses Trump’s campaign ad-maker, Jamestown Associates, and donated $100,000 to the president’s fundraising committee in 2016.

But Trump has stayed out of uncertain primaries in the past, rather than risk an endorsee going down, and multiple campaigns said they haven’t gotten a straight answer on whether the White House would weigh in before the unpredictable primary. Polling has been scarce, but early numbers showed Friess at the back of the pack, before his heavy spending put him in contention for the nomination alongside Gordon and Galeotos, according to a recent survey from the Trafalgar Group.

Galeotos’s resume also appeals to some in the same way that Friess has hoped to win supporters. Both candidates lean heavily on their background in business and pitch their understanding of economics. Tucker Fagan, the former chief executive of the Wyoming Business Council and a former chief of staff to ex-Rep. Cynthia Lummis, pointed to Galeotos’s background as “a CEO of major companies” that makes him a change agent in the eyes of voters.

"It could go one of three ways — all depends on turnout levels," said Liz Brimmer, an unaligned Republican strategist. "And it could be tight enough that candidates may wish their scores of out-of-state consultants could vote. The numbers of them may be bigger than some Wyoming small towns!"

"Foster's on the rise," said Jack Speight, a former Wyoming Republican Party chairman who's backing Gordon. But Speight noted that even the most recent polling showed a divided electorate still picking from a wide field of candidates.

"They’re having some issues with deciding who will make the best governor,” Speight said.

Friess has pitched himself as a cost-conscious businessman and social conservative in his late ad barrage. One focused on spending and transparency. Another ad focused on Friess fighting "leftists" on abortion rights and donating money to groups advocating "for mental health and school safety instead or more gun control" after the school shooting at Stoneman Douglas High School in February. And a third featured testimonials from supporters explaining their support.

"We believe the connections Foster has made over the years doing political advocacy, fighting for Second Amendment rights, healthcare reform, getting people together to try to stop school shootings is a really great opportunity for the people of Wyoming," said campaign spokesman John Spina, adding that Friess as governor would streamline the permit process and deregulate "certain sectors of the economy."

"These are all things that the Trump administration has agreed with and has done itself,” Spina added.

Another issue in the primary has been Friess’ money itself. Those funds put him in the middle of a hotly contested presidential race in 2012 and made him a go-to national media quote — Friess apologized in 2012 after telling MSNBC that women in “my days” put aspirin “between their knees” for contraception — but attorney Harriet Hageman and others questioned Friess’ residency and accused him of buying the election in a recent debate.

“Wyoming is not for sale,” Hageman said, according to the Casper Star-Tribune.