Wyoming
Former US Sen. Malcolm Wallop: The Wyoming Rancher Who Helped Save Israel
An award-winning journalist credited the late President Ronald Reagan with saving Israel last weekend with the missile defense systems the United States built in the 1980s.
Wall Street Journal columnist Daniel Henninger praised the defensive effort in his Wednesday piece titled “Ronald Reagan Just Saved Israel From Iran’s Attack.” He also poked fun at President Joe Biden who, despite beaming over the effort’s success, was a critic of the defense project that led to it.
And that project — nicknamed “Star Wars” — owes its success to a Yale-educated rancher from Wyoming.
Sen. Malcolm Wallop, R-Wyoming, was an early leader of the Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI), a program to build weapons that could intercept and destroy ballistic missiles before they reached their targets.
He introduced the first of several amendments to the Defense Authorization Bill in 1980, which led to a provision of law directing the U.S. secretary of defense to build space laser weapons.
Wallop’s original plan was to build space lasers. As far as the public knows, the program didn’t yield space lasers. It did build an arsenal of ground-, air- and sea-based missile interceptors, which Israel quickly gained permission to develop alongside the United States.
“By universal acclamation, the hero of last weekend was Israel’s missile-defense systems,” Henninger wrote, referencing Iran’s 300-munition attack on Israel on April 13, which American and Israeli defense systems largely thwarted.
Everyone Deescalate
Reagan was campaigning for the presidency in 1980 and making bold statements about improving national defense and the failures of President Jimmy Carter’s peace efforts with the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR).
Three years later, March 23, 1983, Reagan publicly introduced the SDI program in a televised speech, calling it a tool for “free people (to) live secure in their knowledge that their security did not rest upon the threat of instant U.S. retaliation to deter a Soviet attack.”
But “behind closed doors,” Reagan also heeded politicians and bureaucrats pushing for arms control, the notion that nations can deescalate their arms development and adhere to weapon-limiting treaties, according to Wallop’s 1987 book “The Arms Control Delusion,” which he co-wrote with his staffer, international relations expert Angelo Codevilla.
Appointees who touted themselves as the D.C. establishment “called upon their raw bureaucratic power” and pressured Reagan to choose between their de-escalation strategies, and the host of unknown reactions the USSR could have to the development of robust American missile defense system, Wallop wrote.
Prodding The President
So Reagan vacillated between deescalating with the USSR (thereby limiting the United States’ defense production) and bolstering the Star Wars program.
Wallop was an outspoken critic of the president’s indecision. He coauthored a 1986 New York Times opinion piece with Rep. Jack Kemp, R-New York, blasting the president for “reportedly” offering to defer deployment of any American defenses against Soviet missiles for another five to seven years.
His book criticized the president for treating Star Wars like a research program or a bargaining chip, rather than an immediate response to the USSR’s daunting aspirations. He accused the president of “sugar-coating” his messaging to keep both the arms controllers in Washington, D.C., and the American people happy, while ignoring the realities of what war with the USSR would mean.
“The administration has consciously put off the time when Americans would have protective weapons, and … it has increased the chances of those weapons not working right,” Wallop wrote. He ridiculed the idea that mere treaties could influence Soviet behavior.
The Soviets contended between 1983 and 1985 that SDI was a threat to the USSR’s security, and that it was too expensive a program for the Soviets to keep pace in their own arms development.
Cold War Ends
Wallop was so intent on keeping Star Wars in place that he hopped from the influential Senate Finance Committee in early 1989 to the Armed Services Committee, where he remained into 1992, Wallop’s former chief of staff, Rob Wallace, told Cowboy State Daily on Thursday.
It was an unheard-of leap from the powerful Senate committee to a lesser one. Wallace called it a reflection of how serious the senator was about American defense systems.
“That probably reflects the time he was most worried about the commitment of the administration to the (SDI) initiative,” said Wallace.
SDI did stretch U.S. finances, but it contributed to the end of the Cold War, according to the Besa Center.
The Soviet Union could not keep up its arms race with the U.S., and it ultimately collapsed in the end of 1991.
Biden Not Safe From Criticism Either
Henninger’s column teases the current president, contrasting Biden’s recent praise of America’s role in shooting down Iranian missiles against Biden’s open mockery of Star Wars.
Biden insisted in a 1986 speech that Star Wars was reckless and irresponsible, and threatened arms-control agreements buttressing American security.
Wallop’s book also criticizes then-Sen. Joe Biden, D-Delaware, as a meddlesome defender of USSR interests who coaxed politicians into looking the other way when the Soviets broke international de-escalation pacts. Biden dwelled on technical aspects of those compacts to keep the U.S. from holding the Soviets responsible for their arming-up, Wallop wrote.
“Senator Biden has strongly expressed the wish, no doubt sincere, that he not be taken as the Soviet Union’s defender,” wrote Wallop. “But how else can one characterize his invitation not to be alarmed by activities that are clearly threatening to Americans, but that might possibly be shielded by some technicality?”
He Didn’t Buy MAD
Wallace remembers his former boss as “instrumental” in the SDI effort, as did another former Wallop chief of staff, retired Wyoming Supreme Court Justice Bill Hill.
Wallop pushed SDI so hard because he didn’t buy the strategy of mutual assured destruction (MAD), Wallace said.
Mutual assured destruction is the idea that if a nation launched nuclear missiles at another nation with nuclear capabilities, the stricken nation would counter-strike and inflict casualties and destruction so massive that no one would dare launch nuclear missiles in the first place.
“Malcolm thought, ‘That’s a really dumb idea,’” Wallace recalled.
The late senator’s book compares mutual assured destruction to some politicians’ technocratic hubris. Because a MAD fallout is almost incomprehensible, entertaining it logically made arms control even more tempting for some, he wrote.
The United States should not develop counterstrike weapons that could take out a quarter of the Soviet land mass, he wrote, adding that powerful defense systems were not only more effective at preserving humanity, but more ethical.
Wallop died at his home near Big Horn, Wyoming, in 2011 at age 78. The New York Times eulogized him as “a leading conservative light in Washington.”
Contact Clair McFarland at clair@cowboystatedaily.com
Clair McFarland can be reached at clair@cowboystatedaily.com.
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Wyoming Sun Bucks is a net gain for children, families
Dear Casper,
Rep. Ken Pendergraft’s recent column opposing the Sun Bucks program raises concerns about cost, but it does so in a way that risks giving readers an incomplete picture.
It is true that the Department of Family Services requested approximately $3.5 million for startup and operations. However, that figure represents a combined state and federal investment, split evenly. Wyoming’s share is half of that — and more importantly, those dollars are not intended to purchase food directly. They fund the administrative framework required to deliver federally funded benefits to eligible children.
Those responsibilities are not trivial. They include verifying eligibility, processing applications, maintaining technology systems, preventing fraud and ensuring benefits are accurately distributed. Without that infrastructure, the program simply cannot function, and no child would receive assistance.
The initial startup cost of $1.6 million covers one-time expenses such as building the IT system, setting up application processing, contracting with the EBT vendor that issues and loads benefit cards, and establishing temporary staffing and support systems to serve families statewide. This is not “an office for one person,” but the foundation of a program designed to reach roughly 32,000 children.
Once operational, the ongoing cost to Wyoming is estimated at about $483,000 per year in state funds. In return, the program would deliver approximately $3.84 million annually in federal food benefits to Wyoming children. That is a significant net gain for families across the state.
While the article emphasizes administrative expenses, it overlooks the scale of the benefit those costs unlock. The question is not whether administration exists — it must — but whether the outcome justifies the investment. In this case, a relatively modest state contribution enables millions in direct food assistance to flow into Wyoming communities.
Reasonable people can debate the role of government programs. But that debate should be grounded in a full accounting of both costs and benefits. When viewed in that light, the Sun Bucks program is less about bureaucracy and more about whether Wyoming chooses to participate in a federally funded effort to help ensure children have access to food during the summer months.
Mike Thompson, Chairman of the Department of Family Services Oversight Council
Evansville
Wyoming GOP endorsement of candidates
Dear Casper,
I have read about the plans for the Wyoming Republican party to endorse specific candidates in the upcoming primary election. It is my understanding that the state law currently prevents the Wyoming Republican party from officially endorsing a candidate. I agree with the party’s position that this is not in keeping with the party and its members’ First Amendment right to free speech.
However, I think that the party should be careful in exercising this right. As the purpose of the primary election is to select the candidate that the majority of the registered Republican party members feel is best suited for the position, it feels like there could be a conflict of interest in explicitly endorsing a specific candidate without receiving the input from all of the registered members of the party.
Without seeking the input of the entire Republican electorate, how will the party itself provide a fair and accurate endorsement of a candidate? I certainly hope that the party leadership is not intending to offer an endorsement on behalf of the entire party based simply on what they (the leadership) might believe. To offer such an endorsement without seeking the input from all of the party members would be anti-democratic and would invoke Orwellian images of the party which, rather than listening to and responding to the input from the party members, would tell the party members what they should think.
If the members of the party leadership wish to offer an endorsement, they should do so as individuals and should not presume to speak for the entire membership of the party, at least not before the entire Republican electorate has had a chance to provide input regarding a party-level endorsement.
To circumvent this problem, I would recommend that the Republican party hold a vote among all of its registered members to determine whom the party ought to endorse. Maybe we could hold an event where polling places are established, where party members can go to indicate their preference for that endorsement. This would provide a fair and democratic method to ensure that the Republican party’s endorsement reflects the will of the party members.
I think that there might be an event similar to what I have described scheduled for Aug. 18. Maybe the party could do more or less the same thing for their endorsement event — or just wait until then.
Carlos Buckner
Casper
Related
The 2026 Wyoming High School boys’ soccer season is close to its finish. Only three weeks remain. 4A teams will conclude the regular season, as they jockey for positions going into next week’s regional tournaments. Meanwhile, 3A schools have this week and next week left in the regular season. They are trying to reach the top four of the league standings, as those are the teams that qualify for the state tournament in two weeks.
WYOPREPS WEEK 8 BOYS SOCCER SCHEDULE 2026
Three matches this week feature ranked opponents squaring off. Sheridan will host Thunder Basin on Friday. In 3A on Saturday, top-ranked Cody is at No. 5 Mountain View, and four-rated Torrington goes to No. 2 Buffalo. Just like the ladies, you have some rivalry matches on the schedule with Rock Springs-Green River, Jackson-Star Valley, and Thunder Basin-Campbell County. Wednesday will bring new soccer rankings. This is the boys’ schedule for Week 8. Schedules are subject to change.
TUESDAY, MAY 5:
CLASS 4A
Final Score: #2 Sheridan 2 Campbell County 1 (conference match)
Final Score: Riverton 3 Natrona County 1 (conference match)
CLASS 3A
Pinedale at Rawlins – postponed to May 11 – changed to May 9 for boys’ match only!
WEDNESDAY, MAY 6:
CLASS 4A
Laramie at Cheyenne Central – postponed to May 9
Cheyenne South at Cheyenne East – postponed to May 9
Read More Soccer News from WyoPreps
WyoPreps Boys Soccer Standings on 5-4-26
WyoPreps Week 7 Boys Soccer Scores 2026
WyoPreps Coaches and Media Soccer Polls 4-29-26
Nominate a Boys Soccer Player for WyoPreps Athlete of the Week
WyoPreps Week 6 Boys Soccer Scores 2026
WyoPreps Coaches & Media Soccer Polls 4-22-26
WyoPreps Boys Soccer Standings on 4-20-26
WyoPreps Week 5 Boys Soccer Scores 2026
WyoPreps Coaches & Media Soccer Polls 4-15-26
WyoPreps Week 4 Boys Soccer Scores 2026
WyoPreps Week 3 Boys Soccer Scores 2026
WyoPreps Week 2 Boys Soccer Scores 2026
WyoPreps Week 1 Boys Soccer Scores 2026
THURSDAY, MAY 7:
CLASS 4A
Final Score: #1 Jackson 8 Star Valley 2 (conference match)
Final Score: #4 Thunder Basin 3 Campbell County 1 (conference match)
Final Score: Rock Springs 2 #5 Green River 1 (conference match)
FRIDAY, MAY 8:
CLASS 4A
Final Score: Cheyenne Central 6 Cheyenne South 0 (conference match)
Final Score: #2 Sheridan 3 #4 Thunder Basin 1 (conference match)
Final Score: #2 Kelly Walsh 6 Riverton 0 (conference match)
Final Score: Laramie 3 Cheyenne East 1 (conference match)
Final Score: Evanston 2 Natrona County 2 – TIE (conference match) – Red Devils scored with 1 second left for the draw.
CLASS 3A
Final Score: #4 Worland 1 Rawlins 0 (conference match) – Kobe Bradshaw scored the GW goal on a PK in the 1st half.
Final Score: Douglas 2 Torrington 2 (conference match) – Shootout = Torrington wins 4-3!
Final Score: #1 Cody Lyman (conference match)
Final Score: #2 Lander 3 Pinedale 0 (conference match)
Final Score: Powell 1 #5 Mountain View 0 (conference match) – Gianrey Dallesandro with the GW-goal, assisted by Ethan Frame.
Final Score: #3 Buffalo 1 Newcastle 0 (conference match) – forfeit win for the Bison.
SATURDAY, MAY 9:
CLASS 4A
Laramie at Cheyenne Central, 11 a.m. (conference match)
Evanston at #2 Kelly Walsh, noon (conference match)
Cheyenne South at Cheyenne East, noon (conference match)
Riverton at Natrona County, noon (conference match)
Rock Springs at Star Valley, 1 p.m. (conference match)
CLASS 3A
Pinedale at Rawlins, 11 a.m.
#1 Cody at #5 Mountain View, noon (conference match)
Powell at Lyman, noon (conference match)
Torrington at #3 Buffalo, 2 p.m. (conference match)
#4 Worland at Douglas, 2 p.m. (conference match)
Final Score: Rawlins 1 Newcastle 0 (conference match) – forfeit win for the Outlaws.
Cheyenne Central vs. Cheyenne East HS Softball 2026
The Indians faced the rival Thunderbirds on April 15, 2026
Gallery Credit: David Settle, WyoPreps.com
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