Interest in House seat grows
A second Republican has announced his intention to run for a House seat that will be up for election this year.
Jeff Ledford of Hobart said today he will seek the House District 55 seat held by Rep. Ryan McMullen. McMullen, D-Burns Flat, has been appointed state director of rural development for the U.S. Agriculture Department. He intends to leave his House post this month; the governor has 30 days after McMullen resigns to set a special election.
Todd Russ, a Republican and a member of the Cordell City Council, said last week he will seek the House seat.…
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Why the state wants you cooking, heating and driving with gas
Figures released today by the State Treasurers office aren’t pretty, and basically the message Scott Meacham had for state agencies was: look for more ways to cut your budget.
Many state agencies are already grappling with a six percent budget cut this budget year which began July 1. Revenue collections for the fiscal year that ended June 30 showed that collections were down $434.7 million below the previous year and $427.8 million or 7.2 percent below the estimated figures.
Estimates are made in February.…
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Cordell's mayor to seek McMullen's seat
A special House election later this year is shaping up to be a battle between two members serving on Cordell’s city council.
Cordell Mayor Alex Damon, a Democrat, has announced his intention to run for the House District 55 seat.
The post is held by Rep. Ryan McMullen, D-Burns Flat. McMullen has been named state director of rural development for the U.S. Agriculture Department. McMullen, elected to the House in 2004, said he will step down from his seat in the next few days.…
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Coates' truck more environmentally friendly
Sen. Harry Coates, R-Seminole, is making his 2006 Ford F150 a little more environmentally friendly. Coates has converted his pickup from gasoline to liquefied propane gas.
Thanks to a little help from his friends at Oklahoma Liquefied Gas. His truck will now run primarily on liquid propane gas.
“LPG is the choice for an affordable, convenient alternative fuel for people not interested in purchasing a new vehicle,” Coates said.
Coates’ truck is now a bi-fuel vehicle that will operate primarily on propane, but will also have the convenience of switching to gasoline if the need occurs.…
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Huckabee uses part of state visit to raise money for GOP candidates
Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, showing up at Oklahoma Christian University in borrowed cowboy boots, used part of his visit Sunday to the Sooner State to raise money for Republican state and congressional candidates.
Huckabee, leadoff speaker for the I Debate camp taking place this week at Oklahoma Christian, left a couple hours later for a fundraiser for his political action committee, HuckPAC, at the AT&T Bricktown Ballpark. Hosts included U.S. Sen. Jim Inhofe, R-Tulsa, former Gov. Frank Keating, Oklahoma City Mayor Mick Cornett and former state Sen.…
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Askins serves pancakes at fundraiser
Lt. Gov. Jari Askins will be a celebrity server for the Salvation Army’s “Home Energy Aid Week” Pancake Breakfast Friday from 7 a.m. to 9 a.m.
Askins will be among the community leaders serving breakfast as part of the “Home Energy Aid Week” Pancake Breakfast at the Masons’ Myrtle Lodge, 125 SE 89th St.
Proceeds will go to citizens in need of utility assistance; tickets to the all-you-can-eat breakfast may be purchased for $5. Last year, $57,000 was raised for Oklahoma citizens’ utility bill relief.…
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Sen. Crain and the smell test
Does anybody else find it interesting that Sen. Brian Crain is now working for the Tulsa County’s Treasurer’s office? Maybe it’s just press. According to the Tulsa World, Crain, a Tulsa Republican, sponsored legislation in 2005 that allowed county treasurers and assesors to hire their own general counsel.
The World reported on July 5 that :
“In 2007, the law firm Crain was associated with — Boone, Smith, Davis, Hurst & Dickman — was contracted to represent the Treasurer’s Office in all bankruptcy proceedings for a fee of $3,000 a month, $1,000 of which went to the state senator.…
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Life after the White House
Former President George W. Bush gave Oklahomans a peek at what life is like after serving eight years in the White House.
Bush, who spoke to about 6,000 Saturday evening at a Woodward rodeo arena, recalled how he flew back home to Texas after Barack Obama’s inauguration in January.
He said he was on his couch at his Crawford, Texas, ranch the next morning “lying down there, and I said, ‘Free at last.’”
His wife, Laura, heard him, he said, and told him he was free to take out the garbage and free to mow the lawn.…
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Capitol cool again
The air-conditioning system appears to be back up and running today at the state Capitol.The Capitol uses a hybrid geothermal heat pump system to cool and heat it. Chilled water from wells and a cooling tower are pumped into the Capitol to cool offices.
House and Senate office executive assistants are back at their posts this morning after they were told to leave at noon yesterday because of the lack of air conditioning. Temperatures in some offices soared to about 90 degrees.…
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Candidate announces for McMullen's seat
It didn’t take long for a candidate to step forward for a western Oklahoma House seat that will be vacated later this month.
Todd Russ of Cordell said today he is running for the state House District 55 seat now held by Rep. Ryan McMullen.
McMullen, D-Burns Flat, was named last week as the new state director of rural development for the U.S. Agriculture Department. McMullen said he would step down from his legislative seat the middle of this month.…
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