By Senators Cynthia Lummis and John Barrasso As we come to the end of Women's History Month, it is a perfect time for people in Wyoming to stop and reflect on our state's unique contributions to that history. More than any other state in the Union, Wyoming has made historic breakthroughs for women's rights. Time and again, we've shown that we're more than the "Cowboy State," we're also the "Equality State." Last year our country celebrated a century of women's suffrage with the anniversary of the 19th Amendment. That was an historic accomplishment for our country, yet it was one that Wyoming had already achieved long before. Women were voting in Wyoming half a century before the 19th Amendment became law. When Wyoming became a state, we made not just American history but world history by codifying that women deserved equal access to the ballot. Wyoming recognized full voting rights for women in our state constitution -- the first constitution in the nation to do so. Wyoming recognized women's right to vote even before achieving statehood. On December 10, 1869, the Wyoming Territory passed a law that women have the right to vote and to hold public office. We still commemorate this event every year as Wyoming Day. A year later, Wyoming made history again. In February, Esther Hobart Morris became America's first female justice of the peace, and weeks later Eliza Stewart became the first American woman to serve on a jury. That same year, Wyoming's Mary Atkinson became the first female court bailiff in American history. These women shifted the paradigm for the justice system in Wyoming, and set the standard for Wyoming moving forward.-- Advertisement -- Story Continues Below -- Most famously, however, in September 1870, Louisa Ann Swain of Laramie became the first woman in American history to vote in a general election. This vote was the shot heard around the world, though it would be another 50 years before the United States granted full suffrage for women. Her legacy is enshrined in the Louisa Swain Foundation which exists to promote and preserve the concepts of democracy, human rights, suffrage, justice, community, courage, and strength of character. Wyoming has a special place in women's history not just because of our consistent commitment to equality, but because of the achievements of Wyoming women. Just four years after Wyoming became a state, we elected Estelle Reel to serve as state superintendent of education, one of the first women in the nation to hold statewide elected office. She was such a success that there was even a movement to nominate her for governor at a time when women could not vote in most states. One year later, she became the first woman ever confirmed by the United States Senate when she became the national superintendent of Indian schools. In 1920, when America was finally ratifying the 19th Amendment, the people of Jackson, Wyoming were electing an all-woman city government--another first in American history. Just five years later, Wyoming elected America's first woman governor, Governor Nellie Tayloe Ross. The people of Wyoming elected her as governor to fill the seat of her husband, Governor William Ross, who had died in office. She later served five terms as the first female director of the United States Mint, becoming the highest-ranking woman in the federal government at the time.-- Advertisement -- Story Continues Below -- Women in Wyoming were a force to be reckoned with. These women ensured their successors would have a seat at the table. Wyoming women continue to make history today. Just last year, Senator Cynthia Lummis became the first female United States Senator in Wyoming history. Of course, Wyoming women have also made history outside of politics and government, as well. Grace Hebard founded the University of Wyoming library. In the early 1920s, one of America's most prominent authors was Caroline Lockhart of Cody, Wyoming. The list of groundbreaking Wyoming women goes on and on, and it continues to grow all the time. The people of Wyoming should be proud of the unique role that our state has played in the effort for women's rights in our nation, as well as the accomplishments of women here in Wyoming. Our mothers, sisters, and daughters embody the very essence of the Code of the West and the cowboy (or cowgirl) way of life. As we celebrate women's history month, let us honor all the trailblazing women who continue to step up and lead in communities across the "Equality State."

By John Barrasso On his first day in office, President Joe Biden unleashed a devastating attack on American energy workers. One of his first acts revoked the permit for the Keystone XL pipeline. Yet when it comes to Russia's Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline to Western Europe, the president is happy to give it his go-ahead. The contrast between the two projects could not be clearer. Keystone would link the U.S. with a reliable ally and trading partner, Canada, and would be built by a Canadian company using American workers. The Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline being built by the Russian state-owned monopoly Gazprom would hand strongman Vladimir Putin a geopolitical weapon. Guess which one President Biden punished? Keystone The Keystone XL pipeline would move crude oil from Canadian oil fields to American refineries. It would also improve market access for oil produced in the Bakken region of Montana and North Dakota. TC Energy, the company building the pipeline, estimated that Keystone's construction would employ more than 11,000 Americans in 2021. These workers, most of them belonging to labor unions, would receive more than $1.6 billion in wages. Instead, with the stroke of a pen, the president immediately killed 1,000 jobs and ended future hiring prospects for 10,000 more workers. With millions of Americans unemployed because of COVID lockdowns, is it a smart idea to eliminate existing jobs because they happen to be in an industry Democrats find unfashionable? President Biden's justification for killing the project, climate change, is unpersuasive. Canadian crude oil is going to find its way to U.S. markets in about the same quantities with or without the pipeline. It's just that more of it would instead come in by rail, which is more expensive, hazardous and emissions-intensive. Since 2015, crude-by-rail imports have tripled and now make up about 8 percent of the crude imported from Canada. With further increases expected, imports via rail are likely to grow unless Keystone is completed. Even the Obama administration's environmental review of the project saw this. Obama's team concluded that Keystone was best for the environment. It still is. Keystone is the single most studied piece of U.S. infrastructure ever. When completed, it will be one of the dozens of energy pipelines America shares with Canada and Mexico. The fact that President Biden has chosen to prolong the irrational campaign against this pipeline at the expense of union workers' livelihoods is a national embarrassment. Nord Stream 2 Given the president's open hostility to a domestic pipeline that enhances our energy security, it's surprising to find that the pipeline project he is willing to green-light is Russia's Nord Stream 2. This controversial pipeline would move Russian natural gas under the Baltic Sea to Germany for ultimate distribution throughout Western Europe. The continent gets 40 to 45 percent of its gas imports from Russia. Completion of Nord Stream 2 will further tighten Putin's grip on European gas supplies and extend his threatening influence. U.S. opposition to Nord Stream has been--or used to be--broad and bipartisan. Congress has passed several bills imposing sanctions on companies insuring, constructing and investing in the pipeline. In January 2021, President Trump imposed sanctions against the Russian pipelaying vessel Fortuna and its owner KVT-RUS. In 2016, then-Vice President Biden rightly called Nord Stream 2 a "fundamentally bad deal for Europe"--a view White House spokeswoman Jen Psaki recently said he still holds. Yet in a report submitted to Congress, his State Department inexplicably failed to list any new companies working on the project in defiance of U.S. law, even though information on violators is readily available. Companies previously threatened with sanctions have already deserted the project. By failing to sanction new entities involved, the Biden administration is empowering Russia to complete Nord Stream 2. In response, 40 Republican senators sent a letter to the president urging his administration to follow the law. Sadly, not one Democratic senator joined us. The president's decision to choose the Kremlin over Keystone is a slap in the face to the 11,000 American workers whose good-paying jobs vanished on Inauguration Day. After these two clumsy and costly episodes in U.S. energy diplomacy, it's reasonable to ask why the president seems more intent on saving Russian jobs than American jobs. John Barrasso, a Republican of Wyoming, is ranking member of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee and a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

Just outside of Gillette, groundbreaking research is happening. Right next to Dry Fork Station sits the Integrated Test Center. The center is a state-of-the-art facility that allows scientists to use captured carbon emissions from the power plant for research experiments. The goal is to discover brand new uses for carbon emissions -- an end-result that's good for the environment and good for Wyoming. This week, I am holding a Senate field hearing right here in Campbell County to showcase this good work. Wyoming is the leading coal producer in the nation. The vast majority of that coal comes from right here in Campbell County. Coal creates good paying jobs for the people of Wyoming and keeps lights on for the whole country. For generations, coal from Wyoming has powered America's economy. In recent years, coal and other traditional fuels have come under attack. In the name of combating climate change, liberal leaders in Washington declared a war on coal. Under President Obama, the Environmental Protection Agency went way beyond its authority and rolled out punishing regulations. The so-called "Clean Power Plan" was designed to shut down coal-fueled power plants, raise energy bills and hurt Wyoming families. The Supreme Court stopped it from going into effect. President Trump struck the devastating regulation off the books and developed a commonsense replacement. Free market innovation, not government regulation or taxation, is the solution to addressing a changing climate. Wyoming is leading the way by developing innovative solutions, which will allow us to keep using coal and, at the same time, reduce emissions. A prime example of Wyoming's world-class leadership is the Integrated Test Center. In 2014, Gov. Matt Mead and the state Legislature allocated $15 million for the design, construction and operation of the center. Officially launched in 2018, the Integrated Test Center gives research teams access to captured carbon emissions, so they can develop new uses for it. Teams at the site are developing fuels, plastics, and new building materials -- all from carbon dioxide that would otherwise be released up the smokestack. The University of Wyoming is also leading the country in studying how to store carbon dioxide underground. By simply injecting the gas into the earth, it can be permanently stored in deep rock formations. In a process called enhanced oil recovery, carbon dioxide is used to flush out oil from wells with declining production. When this process is complete, the wells are sealed, and the carbon dioxide remains permanently stored deep underground. Enhanced oil recovery allows us to make use of our abundant coal reserves, increase the amount of oil that we can get from our wells, and significantly reduce emissions -- all at the same time. As chairman of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, I have introduced legislation to boost the kind of research taking place around the Dry Fork Station. The Utilizing Significant Emissions with Innovative Technologies Act, or USE IT Act, will make it easier for researchers to get started. The USE IT Act has broad bipartisan support. Republicans and Democrats agree carbon capture technologies have tremendous potential for reducing emissions. The USE IT Act has already passed the Senate and is now awaiting a vote in the House of Representatives. I want to see the legislation become law this year. By converting carbon emissions into valuable and marketable products, we can help address a changing climate and boost Wyoming's economy at the same time. That's why I am hosting a Senate field hearing at the Integrated Test Center on Aug. 19. We will hear from leading experts about ways we can leverage and support the work happening at the Integrated Test Center and around Wyoming. I look forward to meeting with researchers about their work to transform carbon into valuable goods as well as to inject it underground. By supporting innovation, Congress can make significant strides towards addressing a changing climate. We can have a growing economy and clean air. Wyoming is leading the way in carbon capture research and development. It's time Washington follows our lead. U.S. Sen. John Barrasso is chairman of the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works.