In August, Wyoming voters named the economy, the war in Iraq, national security and high fuel prices as their top concerns.

Then September happened.

"This has turned the election into a one-issue election," pollster Brad Coker said.

Sixty-five percent of Wyoming voters - without prompting - named the economy as the top national issue, according to a poll commissioned by the Casper Star-Tribune.

Two months ago, 36 percent of local voters cited the economy, followed by Iraq at 17 percent, national security at 15 percent, and high fuel prices at 14 percent, said Coker of the Washington, D.C.-based Mason-Dixon Polling & Research.

No more.

The mortgage crisis and the Wall Street meltdown pushed all other issues into single digits, according to the poll conducted Oct. 13-14. A total of 625 registered Wyoming voters likely to vote on Nov. 4 were interviewed statewide. The poll has a margin of error of plus or minus 4 percentage points.

Wyoming voters' concerns mirror those nationwide, Coker said.

Yet Wyoming isn't a center of finance, a hub of foreclosures, or an axis of unemployment, declining income and personal worth.

In fact, the state government - with another projected budget surplus on the way - and most of citizens continue to enjoy an economic boom.

So why the gloom?

"Even if it's not hurting people, it's in their heads," Coker said.

Wyomingites still have retirement funds, pensions, college funds and other investments shredded by events in Washington, New York and global marketplaces, he said.

So they have a stake in the fix and saying who's at fault.

Bailout blues

That could work in favor of Republicans, Coker said.

In September, the Bush administration asked for and received from Congress - with Republican U.S. Sens. Mike Enzi and John Barrasso opposing the majority of their colleagues - a $700 billion bailout for the Treasury Department to buy troubled assets from financial institutions. Republican U.S. Rep. Barbara Cubin voted with the Bush administration.

Wyoming is among a handful of states that opposed the bailout, Coker said.

Forty-three percent of voters opposed the bailout, 33 percent supported it, and 24 percent were undecided.

Of those opposed, 51 percent were Republicans, 25 percent were Democrats, and 44 percent were independents.

Of those supporting the bailout, 46 percent were Democrats, 27 percent were Republicans, and 37 percent were independents.

A slim majority - 52 percent - were either very or somewhat confident about the long-term benefit of the intervention, and 42 percent were either not too confident or not confident, with 6 percent not sure.

The somewhat confident voters split sharply along political lines: 66 percent of Democrats, 36 percent of Republicans, and 51 percent of independents.

Likewise, 27 percent of Democrats were either not confident or not too confident about the bailout, compared with 49 percent of Republicans, and 23 percent of independents.

Blame game

While the financial anguish is shared, the blame is not.

Voters diverged on party lines about what system was at fault:

* The lending practices at the government-backed Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

* Or the business practices of banks and brokerages on Wall Street.

Statewide, 38 percent of voters blamed Fannie Mae/Freddie Mac, 22 percent blamed Wall Street, and 30 percent weren't sure.

Among themselves, 43 percent of Republicans blamed Fannie Mae; 16 percent blamed Wall Street; and 29 percent blamed both.

Among themselves, Democrats were split with 29 percent blaming Fannie Mae, 32 percent blaming Wall Street, and 31 percent blaming both. Independents were similarly split.

Taking the blame game a step further, voters identified which party was at fault:

* The Bush administration and Republicans who supported deregulation in the financial industries.

* Or the Democrats in Congress who opposed increased regulation of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

Statewide, 43 percent blamed Congress and the Democrats, 32 percent blamed Bush and the GOP, and 19 percent blamed both.

Party-line differences were even sharper.

Ten percent of Democrats blamed Congress, 71 percent blamed Bush, and 17 percent blamed both.

Sixty-two percent of Republicans blamed Congress, 12 percent blamed Bush, and 18 percent blamed both.

The question of blame seems simplistic, said University of Wyoming political science professor Jim King.

But the question isn't about the technical aspects of regulation or high finance, but rather which party is at fault because policies follow from whichever party is in charge, King said.

Both … and

There's plenty of blame to go around, said Betty Christie of Diamondville.

"They were all asleep at the switch," Christie said.

Wyoming is doing better than other states, but she's not holding her breath about the boom-bust cycle, she said. "We just get hit a little later."

While she will change party registration to vote in primaries, she's leaning Democratic and favoring a house-cleaning, she said. "I'm just anti-incumbent."

The economy is a concern, but voters need to look beyond that to who can best deal with foreign policy, Collins said.

Likewise, Republican Mike Collins of Casper blamed both the Congress and the Bush administration for the financial crisis, he said.

However, Collins believes the Democratic-controlled Congress deserves more attention because Democrats pushed for the lenient regulations allowing Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to issue more risky loans, he said.

He's one of the voters who listed national security, and not the economy, as the top concern, he said.

The two issues are connected, though, Collins said. "Part of the problem with the economy is we have no control over our borders."

Whether dealing with national security or an economic recovery, Collins said the nation needs more integrity.

"Nothing happens in a vacuum," he said. "Nobody has the guts to stand up for what's right."

Tom Morton at (307) 266-0592, or at Tom.Morton@trib.com.