Action In Oklahoma Politics

A couple of reality stars in Oklahoma

Our old friend Tom Guild is running for the Oklahoma City congressional seat, going up against right-wing freshman Clyde "Steve" Russell. And although the Fifth District is the least red in Oklahoma-- PVI is R+12 and Obama scored 41% against both McCain and Romney-- it's a steep climb. But not an impossible one. 

Last time, the DCCC insisted on running a silly Republican-lite character, Al McAffrey, whom Russell pulverized 95,557-57,721 (60.1-36.3%). Since then, though, local area Democrats had some great news. When they ran Cyndi Munson, an actual progressive instead of a laughable DINO, for the state legislature, she beat wingnut Chip Carter in a seat no one remembers a Democrat representing. It was formerly Oklahoma Governor Mary Fallin's seat, and Fallin and the entire Republican Party establishment campaigned for Carter. But Munson beat him 53.7-46.3% by offering Oklahoma voters a real choice other than Republican ideology rather than a DINO me-too attitude. Her platform included LGBT equality, women's choice and repealing a tax cut for the rich which will take effect on January 1.

Munson's new district is fully within the 5th Congressional District in which Tom is running. And like her, he is running on the kind of platform any progressive-minded voter anywhere in the country would be proud to back. Yesterday he sent us a guest post, which I want to share with you. If you'd like to help his grassroots campaign get up and running, you can contribute through ActBlue here.

How The Worm Turns-- The Garden Skunk Trumped Up Edition
by Tom Guild

The Donald visited Oklahoma. I joined the local Dump Trump Brigade that demonstrated at the State Fair. Supporters and the Morbidly Curious listened to Trump’s remarks at the bandstand on the fairgrounds. Trump called the government “incompetent”… but it has never declared bankruptcy. Trump called his fellow Republican presidential candidates “lightweights”…they didn’t inherit hundreds of millions of dollars like the Trumpster did. Trump called U.S. policies “stupid”…but his “plan” to bomb the oil fields in Iraq to defeat ISIS is irrational and bizarre. Trump called negotiators for our country “hacks”…but he is the one who had Roger Stone on his payroll and guiding him politically for countless years. Stone was a pariah and discredited in the “real world” of politics decades ago.  Stone puts the “h” in political “hack!” Granted his competitors for the presidency didn’t have the opportunity to negotiate their companies out of bankruptcy multiple times like the Trumpster and his high priced bankruptcy attorneys did. The fact that Trump has been the frontrunner in the GOP presidential nominating demolition derby for nearly two months speaks volumes about those who comprise the Republican base. What it says about them can’t be shared in polite company.

In the spirit of the Donald, enough about Trump, let’s talk about Trump. To prove his qualifications for the highest office in the land, and with his degree from Wharton School of Business, I pose to him the following question, “What color was George Washington’s White Horse?” hint, hint… Willie Robertson of Duck Dynasty fame was on hand to “endorse” the Donald at the Oklahoma State Fair. Ask Willie to answer the following question, to make sure he is “qualified” to endorse the Donald.  Who is buried in Grant’s Tomb?

Don’t Cry for Me TeaPartina (apologies to Madonna and Antonio Banderas)!! The Donald’s Fellow Tea Party Member and my opponent, Rep. Steve Russell (CD5-OK), now laments the loss of John Boehner as speaker. Never mind that the ruthless, restless, and reactionary Tea Party ran Boehner out of town. Russell opined about Boehner, “I have the utmost respect for him and the job he has done… (Republicans) see the largest majority since Calvin Coolidge.” And they can’t get anything constructive done in the U.S. House! Thanks for mentioning Coolidge, Steve. Coolidge best represents the mindset of today’s Tea Party Caucus… circa 1923-1928. They give reactionaries a bad name! When Coolidge died, Dorothy Parker sardonically said upon hearing the news, “Coolidge dead! How can they tell?”

In the Spirit of Don’t Cry for Me Teapartina, Kentucky Clerk Kim Davis is changing parties! She is changing to the Republican Party!  She claims she has been “abandoned by Democrats in her crusade against same-sex marriage.” OMG Kim! You have been abandoned by America, including a majority or near-majority of Republicans nationwide. Don’t let the back door of bigotry bump you in the bum on your way out!

A friend of mine who teaches political science at Darton College in Albany, Georgia says that Kevin McCarthy, the heir apparent to John Boehner as GOP Speaker is “notorious” in his home district and we should wait until the vetting begins. That’s not comforting to hear, but I’m getting the popcorn and RC Cola ready for the show. The show must go on!!

Leading state legislators, the ones who have dug a $1+ billion hole for the Oklahoma state budget, are insisting that Medicaid for Oklahoma’s aged, blind, and disabled be partially privatized. This was tried before (unsuccessfully) and will disrupt the lives of many dependent on the program. I cringe as we wait for the political ruling class to run this segment of Medicaid into the ground, like they have everything else they have touched, since gaining power in Oklahoma a little over a decade ago.

It is no wonder after reading this edition of How the Worm Turns that I report to you, with a heavy heart, that Oklahoma has the second highest rate of serious mental illness of the 50 states.  However, Oklahoma spends less per capita than all but 5 states, at a measly $56.22 per capita. Republican elected officials always say after mass murders or assassinations of Labor Commissioners that they are committed to spending more for mental health care. If rhetoric were platinum bars, our state would be rich beyond imagination!

That’s How the Worm Turns!