Here are excerpts from recent editorials in Oklahoma newspapers:
The Journal Record, May 23, 2016
A courageous veto
Gov. Mary Fallin on Friday did one of the best things she’s done since taking office. She vetoed a ridiculous bill that would have cost Oklahoma taxpayers tens of thousands of dollars and added to the congestion in the court system.
It was not a run-of-the-mill veto. Fallin put down Republican Sen. Nathan Dahm’s bill that would have made performing an abortion in Oklahoma a felony punishable by three years in prison and permanent revocation of a doctor’s medical license. The bill passed on a 33-12 vote in the Senate with no debate on Thursday; it passed 59-9 in the 101-member House on April 21.
Abortion has been the crusading issue of the Republican Party since at least 1980, the year after Jerry Falwell founded the Moral Majority. 1980 was the year a whole section on abortion first appeared in the party’s platform. In the ensuing decades, it has become platform-assisted political suicide for Republican politicians to say, do or vote for anything that could mar the finish on the Religious Right’s anti-abortion freight train. It has not mattered, especially in Oklahoma, whether a proposal made any sense at all; if it had an anti-abortion stamp, Republicans were obligated to support it without compromise.
Dahm authored his bill with the express hope that it would be challenged on constitutional grounds, wend its way to the U.S. Supreme Court, and ultimately overturn Roe v. Wade.
Fallin’s anti-abortion credentials have been strong. Since taking office in 2011, she has signed at least six anti-abortion bills that were later declared unconstitutional. In vetoing this one, Fallin said the bill was too vague and that under its terms doctors could not be certain what medical circumstances would be considered necessary to preserve the life of the mother.
It does not matter which side of the abortion argument one holds dear; this was a quixotic bill that would have cost the state a lot of time and money only to be tossed out by the courts. The Senate’s only physician, Rep. Ervin Yen, called the bill insane and voted against it.
We are weary from the onslaught of legislators whose votes are cast with only the next campaign brochure in mind. We applaud Fallin and Yen, as well as Sens. Anderson, Barrington, Crain and Halligan - the four other Republicans who had the political chutzpah to put policy above politics.
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The Oklahoman, May 18, 2016
Gun-toting Oklahoma lawmakers need to obey the law
Members of the Legislature, particularly the conservatives who control both chambers, never miss a chance to criticize President Barack Obama for doing what he can to get around laws he doesn’t like. Yet many apparently are guilty of the same behavior, as it pertains to carrying weapons at the Capitol.
Under state law, guns are not allowed in the Oklahoma Capitol. Those who work in the building or visit must empty their pockets before passing through security screening devices similar to those used at airports. A person who sets off the alarm is subject to additional scrutiny with a wand.
Unless, it seems, that person is a legislator who simply refuses to be screened, perhaps because he or she is carrying a concealed weapon.
The Associated Press reported last week that several Oklahoma lawmakers routinely blow through the Capitol’s screening area and don’t stop when they set off the alarm. Although none of those interviewed by the AP admitted they were carrying a weapon, some of their colleagues said there’s no doubt they are.
Rep. Mike Shelton, D-Oklahoma City, said several members have acknowledged that they’re carrying a weapon, and that, “I believe at any one time, there may be seven or eight members of the House who are armed.” Republican Rep. Sally Kern of Oklahoma City also said a number of colleagues have admitted to being armed. “I won’t name names, but I know for a fact that they do,” she said.
It’s particularly galling that those who are breaking the law don’t have the fortitude to stand up and admit it (the offense is a misdemeanor punishable by a fine). One day recently, an AP reporter watched six Republican House members set off the alarms during a 30-minute period, and none of those who were asked about it would admit they were armed.
What members will do is talk about constitutional rights. Sen. Ralph Shortey, R-Oklahoma City, said flatly, “If a legislator wants to carry a firearm in the Capitol, I think they have a constitutional protection to do that.” But state legislatures also have the power to pass laws that deal with firearms or other constitutional issues; and those laws are expected to be followed by all members of society. Oklahoma is one of 47 states that, citing public safety concerns, ban firearms in the statehouse.
Sentiments expressed by Rep. Lewis Moore, R-Arcadia, who opposes screening of legislators, underscore the hubris that can afflict members of the Legislature. The Highway Patrol troopers who work at the screening stations, Moore told AP, “are supposed to know who the House members are.”
No, what those security officers are supposed to do is man their station and hold every person to the same standard. Instead, an OHP supervisor said guards are sometimes hesitant to stop those who pass through if they appear to be lawmakers.
A man whose wheelchair was wanded after it set off the alarm no doubt spoke for many Oklahomans when he told the AP, “I think we should all have to play by the same rules.”
The free passes at the Capitol screening posts need to end. And lawmakers who are carrying weapons at the Capitol need to follow the law, or be willing to pay the price for not doing so.
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Stillwater NewsPress, May 22, 2016
The three-ring Legislature
We would like to call it political theater, but that would allude to an artful performance. Circus might be more appropriate.
While faced with a $1.3 billion budget hole we get calls to impeach a lame duck president because of who can or can’t go to the potty at school. We get an anti-abortion bill (freshly vetoed) that would definitely not hold up in federal court. We got deadlock on the cigarette tax increase proposal.
A bit of gridlock is understandable. But this is time to compromise. Democrats held the cigarette tax hike hostage in an effort to get a different plan in place for an expansion of Medicaid. Mad that federal money was left on the table, more money was left on the table.
It isn’t just one side of the aisle wasting time and money. Trying to impeach the president from the state Capitol is as useless as trying to pass an unconstitutional anti-abortion bill. Abortion, whichever side you come down on it, isn’t the issue. The issue is that this bill would never have stood up to federal scrutiny, and it’s a little late for futile measures. It’s a little late to try and create legislation for the sole purpose of daring people to vote against it for political posturing.
If it’s your re-election you’re worried about, prove that you can use common sense to push legislation across that will keep bridges from collapsing, nursing homes from closing and teachers from bolting.
The latest we’ve been told is that, yes, a budget can be expected this week.
That may be true, but with only five days left in the session that hardly leaves it open for much inspection.
You can bet that it will leave a lot of folks unhappy, but maybe that’s the goal: if nobody wins the game, you can’t blame it on the referees.
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