With the November election fast approaching, some political candidates are scrambling to play all their cards, though not without controversy. Case in point is the openly gay Wyoming Republican congressional candidate Reid Rasner, who is facing a wave of mockery online after promoting a campaign slogan that places Wyoming first, America “always,” and Israel “forever.”
The online outrage occurred earlier in September when Rasner posted the slogan on his social media accounts, particularly finding virality on Facebook. In the post, Rasner shared his rather controversial three-line campaign message: “Wyoming First. America Always. Israel Forever,” along with an accompanying graphic merging the Wyoming, US, and Israeli flags.
Rasner followed it with an explanation aimed at America First conservatives: “America First does not mean America alone. We stand with our greatest ally,” the Wyoming Republican clarified. The message quickly drew attention from commenters who questioned how an explicitly “America First” campaign could simultaneously emphasize an unwavering commitment to Israel.
Some commenters even accused the state of Wyoming of paying tribute to Israel, with one social media user asking, “How much does Wyoming pay to Israel?” Another commenter zeroed in on the apparent contradiction, writing, “How you gonna have ‘Wyoming first’ and ‘Israel forever’ in the same phrase.” Others took a more sarcastic approach. “Where in Israel is Wyoming?” one Facebook user quipped, while another flipped the joke around by asking, “Where in Wyoming is Israel located?”
The reaction appeared to be particularly brutal in terms of laughs. Some users pointed out how Rasner’s post had received “23 people liked, 1,500 laughs,” at their time of writing, adding, “Good one Reid!” Another commenter simply wrote, “The reaction ratios is brutal.” Currently, Rasner’s post sites at nearly 50,000 reactions, with only 1,000 likes, 5,000 angry reactions, and 42,000 laugh reactions.
More Backlash for the Wyoming Candidate?
The backlash comes as Rasner has already attracted considerable attention during his political career. The 42-year-old financial adviser ran for Senate in 2024, winning 24 percent of the vote in his Republican primary challenge to John Barrasso, and later mounted a campaign for Wyoming’s only House seat. He has also positioned himself as a staunch Trump Republican or, as some would consider, a MAGA supporter, complete with the red MAGA cap.
Despite his affiliations, Rasner has become a controversial figure within Wyoming Republican politics, including over a series of defamation lawsuits against people he says falsely accused him of sexual misconduct. One of those cases was settled, while other litigation has continued. Rasner has argued that the accusations have damaged both his reputation and political career.
His sexuality has also become an issue in Republican politics. Rasner has described himself as a conservative Republican while taking positions on transgender issues that are even further to the right than Trump’s, according to reporting cited in the supplied background. For now, however, it is Rasner’s six-word foreign-policy declaration that has captured the internet’s attention.
