1. Representation an Illusion
2. Is Your Legislator Conservative? Part 4
3. VAXXED Back for One More Night
4. Program July 27: Libertarians on the Ballot
5. Help the Teegarden Campaign for Senate
1. Representation an Illusion. We do not have representative government in Oklahoma, only the illusion of it. You are not represented at the Capitol. The man or woman whom you elected to propose policy on your behalf actually has no power to do so because all the legislative power in the state is concentrated in the hands of the Senate President Pro Tem and the Speaker of the House of Representatives.
Senate and House leadership meet in secret caucuses and in private offices to decide which bills to hear and which bills to kill. Anything our elected officials want to accomplish on our behalf can be buried by the Pro Tem or the Speaker. Every session is replete with examples; here are two from the 2015 session.
First, government at every level has means and methods of stealing private property. Senator Kyle Loveless has worked tirelessly over the last year to educate the public about the abuses of civil asset forfeiture, and he proposed legislation to protect private property from seizure by law enforcement without due process. His efforts were thwarted by Senate leadership. His proposals never got a hearing.
Second, we have parents longing for a choice in education. We have students eager to learn. We have good teachers who want to be free to teach and to be compensated fairly. A state-run monopoly in education is the reason parents cannot choose the education they want for their children. Poorly-managed, over-staffed, and over-administered school districts are the real reasons teachers cannot be compensated as they deserve. The solution is to create the biggest free-market in education this nation has ever seen, to see every neighborhood and every family as a potential customer and client for every teacher. When we give parents the money, the power, and the choice, we will see an explosion of creative, effective, and efficient schools in every neighborhood in Oklahoma. A large coalition of conservative Republicans shares this vision. They proposed a well-vetted, financially-viable Education Savings Account program, but the Pro Tem and Speaker refused to hear it. These leaders do not share the vision, and they hold all the power.
Power works to keep and grow power. The position of Pro Tem is no exception. Senator Brian Bingman certainly worked hard during his tenure as Pro Tem to consolidate the power of this office. Check out
this story in
The Oklahoman which references Bingman’s involvement in a Political Action Committee to recruit, fund, and elect new senators who would be faithful to his leadership. Notice he even hired a current senator to ramrod the project. Can we ever wrest the power from these positions? Can we ever be represented? There is a way, and we will discuss that in future updates and meetings.
2. Is Your Legislator Conservative? Part 4: Individual Rights. The best way to tell whether a legislator’s policy corresponds to his espoused principles is to look at the
Oklahoma Conservative Index. This is a comprehensive scorecard which rates our legislators’ implementation of the principles of good government. It is created by
The Oklahoma Constitution newspaper in conjunction with OCPAC. You can reference the latest scores for your
senators here and your
representatives here.
Part four of our series looking at Conservative Index issues will examine Individual Rights. Last week we began with the premise that you are not owned by the state. You were not born with a Social Security number or Federal Tax ID barcode on your foot. The state may act like it owns you, but you were born free. As owner of your body, you have the unalienable right to decide what goes into your body. If you are a parent or guardian, you have the right to decide for your minor children what goes into their bodies.
Statists and collectivists, however, view humans as natural resources owned by the state. They are working at every level to take away parental rights, destroy local sovereignty, and control populations in every meaningful way. One of the greatest manifestations of these efforts is the move toward mandatory vaccination. Thankfully, Senator Yen’s vaccine mandate was defeated in committee, and we are still free to reject vaccination in Oklahoma if we choose.
However, we are seeing a tendency among medical practitioners to encourage customers to purchase products without fully informing them about the risks of the products. Although Sen. Yen’s vaccine mandate was defeated, grassroots activists wanted to secure parental rights to informed consent in Oklahoma law. The Oklahomans for Vaccine and Health Choice PAC advanced the Parental Rights Immunization Act which would have required healthcare providers to give parents a portion of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention study “Epidemiology and Prevention of Vaccine-Preventable Diseases,” along with information on the National Vaccine Injury Compensation Program.
The bill passed the House and Senate, but Gov. Mary Fallin vetoed the bill on April 29. She contended the legislation would have confused and intimidated consumers. Apparently, she would rather people shoot up without knowing all the risks of doing so. Ironically, we put other people in jail for doing exactly the same thing if the state does not approve of the drug. A vote in favor of the bill or to override the governor’s veto demonstrates conservative principle and policy.
3. VAXXED is Back for One Night. If you missed it in June, here's your chance. On August 16 VAXXED is coming back to OKC for just one night. Invite everyone you know, but especially your legislators and medical professionals.
Purchase your tickets HERE. All tickets must be purchased in advance online. Tickets will not be available at the door the night of the showing.
4. Program July 27: Libertarians on the Ballot. This Wednesday at noon at
Mama Roja we will hear from Robert Murphy, candidate for U.S. Senate, running against James Lankford, and from Dax Ewbank, the spokesman of the Oklahoma Libertarian Party. What does this newly recognized Oklahoma political party hope to accomplish? What are their goals? What policies do they advocate? Will any of their candidates win? We will discuss all of this and more on Wednesday.
5. Help the Teegarden Campaign for Senate. OCPAC has endorsed Amanda Teegarden in Senate District 39 (Tulsa). She is currently in a Republican primary runoff race. If you live in the OKC metro area and would like to help Amanda…
YOU’RE INVITED
Meet-and-Greet Amanda Teegarden
Hosted by Terry Pierce, former Rep. Charles Key, and Kaye Beach
July 26, 2016 – 6:30 PM
4 Oakwood Drive, Forest Park, OK 73121
RSVP to
info@amandateegarden.com
Additional Notes
- Join our Facebook group.
- Become an OCPAC member with this form.
- We currently meet on Wednesdays at noon at Mama Roja.
- The views expressed in this email are the personal opinion of John Michener and do not necessarily reflect the views of OCPAC, its leadership team, or its members.
