Tag Archives: legislature

Politics

Either You are Winning the Debate or You are Losing It

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Standing in the middle of the road is very dangerous; you get knocked down by the traffic from both sides.

— Margaret Thatcher, former Prime Minister of Britain’s House of Commons

One of the biggest issues in my deep red state of Oklahoma is that liberals and progressives very often shrink from the larger, harder debate about how government should be conducted for The People. You know, us.

The recent rise of nation-wide interest in progressive thought comes from a frustration with earlier generations of liberals who maybe tried, but failed to effectively engage in the debate for those who need a voice.

We have seen a transformation over time with President Obama as he tried to take the old liberal approach of reaching out to the other side. It didn’t work. It won’t.

He is just now starting to understand that this is a debate and a contest of ideas. And he seems to understand that unless we advocate for our ideas, no one else will. They won’t be understood or heard.

I wish he had known that in 2009.

Oklahoma Liberals Have Learned the Hard Way

We have seen that here in Oklahoma, where one year after another over the last 30, liberals seemed tongue-tied when opposing corporate-sponsored Republicans. Corporate tools who call themselves “conservative” rode into office on the most bogus of claims about

  • reducing government (they haven’t),
  • getting government off our backs (it’s even more so, now), and
  • lowering our taxes (for the rich, as they raise “fees”, really use taxes, that ordinary people pay daily).

What old-style liberals found out the hard way was that strategies for trying to negotiate with conservatives so that “we all would get along” and so that “we can all be winners” didn’t work then. It doesn’t work now. All it does is buy time for the right wing, whose approach is always – and I do mean always – “What’s mine is mine and what’s yours is negotiable.”

Most importantly, that strategy conceded too many points that the public needed them to stand up for. Without knowing the other options for thinking through ideas, the bulk of uninformed voters had an “oh well” approach or showed angry resignation against those politicians who essentially betrayed the cause. Perhaps they never understood that it was a cause in the first place.

In politics, there really is no such thing as “business as usual”. Either you are winning the debate or you are losing it.

Rep. Scott Inman during the debate about extending the tax incentive for new wells. Courtesy of the Journal Record
Rep. Scott Inman during the debate about extending the tax incentive for new wells. — Courtesy of The Journal Record
The Necessary Opposition

The debate itself is important. Period.

What I mean by “the debate” is engaging the prevailing mindset and the prevailing party with the determination to not allow a temporary campaign defeat to stop the engagement at the level of ideas.

What we know from history is that groups that have started out small in a democracy can become larger and more powerful by engaging in the debate over time and insisting upon being heard.

Conservatives in general seem to understand this. So do their politicians, either intuitively or because big money donors actually listen to their think-tankers and force their puppets to listen, too.

The value of the debate itself is that more people become informed by the opposition. Most importantly, they are informed from a different viewpoint than the prevailing narrative that slick corporately-funded hired guns deliver to a lazy, compliant media.

Modern-day progressives must push to win in the debate of ideas. It does not serve our concepts or the people who need us to advocate for them if we don’t.

Will we always win? Of course not.

Will we ever win if we never try to win? Of course not.

That’s why the debate of ideas has so much value in and of itself. And debating to win in the arena of public politics and policy is critical.

Time to Participate in a Bigger Way

In earlier posts I have suggested ways in which progressives in this red state can be a part of the debate. It is time to be a bigger part of the debate in this red state.

In the post “Five Ways That You Can Have a Progressive Influence In Your Red State” I showed how you really can have positive, progressive effects on the process in a red state where the dominant Republican Party wants you to believe that you should not be wasting your time.

And since that message is often a real bummer to progressives, I wrote the post “Five Ways for Liberals to Overcome Those Red State Blues”, and posted “Decide that the Ugly Side of Oklahoma Will Note Defeat Us.”

Since pastors are often co-opted by right-wingers in their own congregations in red states, I tried to give progressives some ideas about how to counterbalance that process in this post: “Three Ways to Sway Your Red-state Pastor From Blessing the Radical Right”.

 Good Examples of Political Debate

Here are some very good examples of how liberals and progressives can be the fierce, loyal opposition to conservative control of government.

Reps Inman and Pittman speak to the 2014 Education Rally at the Oklahoma Capitol (video is trimmed to start at 9:21 mark)

From Great Britain: Margaret Thatcher – Tory (conservative) Prime Minister Vs. Neil Kinnock – Labor Leader, on Education

From Great Britain: The first ever House of Commons prime minister’s question time that was televised.

The Stand-out Group: Public School Teachers

My post tomorrow will focus on how public school teachers, generally known for their cultural conservatism, and especially in “red” states like Oklahoma, are a stand-out group who are more progressive than people think because of what they see every day in the classroom.

“Enough is enough. Somebody stand up! Get up!”  — Chuck D and Public Enemy

Education

We Repealed the Common Core – Problem Solved?

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Does eliminating the Common Core really solve our biggest problems here in Oklahoma? Far from it.

I’ve been acquainted with Governor Mary Fallin since she was my District 85 rep way back at the end of the 1980s. She only accepts temporary defeat.

Count on her to be back with the same commitments to standards, charter schools, and testing as a vector of attack on public schools.

She has signed this bill promising, “Superintendents, educators, parent, public policy officials, Superintendent of Education, employers, citizens.” But there’s one more thing that she did not mention.

Power Shift from the SDE to the Legislature

The bill that was signed provides for the legislature itself to have the power to make changes to the standards as they see fit without any recourse for the SDE or those who wrote them. This means that any number of wacky ideas can make it into the those standards once  all of those other folks work hard to develop them. Not a good scenario, is it?

Remember that the language that is being used is not just “repeal”, but “repeal and replace“. That’s right, the commitment to a centralized laundry list of standards that will be used to develop new tests is right there and being implemented today.

And it is a mistake to believe that getting rid of the Common Core standards will get rid of tests and the current administration’s commitment to using tests to measure “quality”.  At the same news conference where Fallin gave reasons for signing the bill, SDE spokesperson Tricia Pemberton said, “We’re going to have to cobble a new test together.”

Will Change of Supt. Change Anything? Maybe. Maybe not.

I have criticized Supt. Janet Barresi in earlier posts here, here and here. And so I look forward to seeing what will happen on June 24th when primaries decide which candidates each party will run for state offices.

But will removing Barresi really change anything if the new superintendent taking office next year is just as committed to arbitrary standards, high-stakes testing, and school-shaming from those tests? It won’t.

And if that person is from the Republican Party and gets their money and support, will there be a commitment to make decisions and have a process that starts with educators first, or will organizations like ALEC have a large influence because that’s what the party wants?

Let’s move away from the partying about the repeal of the Common Core and start working toward what replace means.

Questions for the Candidates

Here are some ideas for questions that should be asked at any candidate forum for State Superintendent of Schools:

1. Do you support using standards that are established by other organizations outside of Oklahoma?

2. Do you support using standardized tests graded out-of-state that measure a student’s performance only on one day of a school year?

3. Do you support expansion of charter schools from their current number and status?

4. What would you do to promote the increase of funding for education in Oklahoma?

Education

Teacher, Will Your Legislator Get a Pass Because of Just One Vote?

Having been in the Oklahoma public school classroom for 16 years, and many of those in the alternative ed classroom, I know that I am always looking for that one good thing that a student has done today.  One will do. That’s it. We teachers are just wired that way.

And so it is natural for us to see one good vote from our representative or senator, praise them for it, and give them a pass on 10 bad votes that actually work against public education, especially in funding.

But to allow our legislators to use a  one-good-vote approach and get by with it is a disservice to educational efforts in Oklahoma. It is also a disservice to the legislators. How?

Some may actually want to be more balanced in their voting, but in the absence of any other pressure, they are going to vote the way that lobbyists for those corporate interests tell them to vote.

So, the most cynical ones need to know that we are watching, and the earnest ones need to be able to point to our pressure as a way of holding off the corporate lobbyists.

Prepare for June 24th Primariesvoter line

There are several good ways to keep track of voting records when making your decision on how to vote in the upcoming primaries on June 24th.

  1. Use the tools and general information on the website for the Oklahoma Policy Institute which has a track record of providing hard information on legislative matters.
  2. The Bill Tracker tool on that website is an extremely good way to keep up with matters in the legislature when it is in session and for research in between.
  3. Use the Bill Search feature on the web site for the Oklahoma Legislature.

Just using those tools alone will allow you to keep up with how your particular legislator voted in this last session.

One Vote In Full View, Another Gets in Under the Radar

Here is one comparison that is very important to seeing if your legislator is consistent in voting for public education and public services:

Public education and the children, parents, and teachers of Oklahoma achieved a big win on House bill 2625 – 3rd Grade Retention, authored by Republican Representative Katie Henke.

It originally passed 89-6 in the House and 43-1 in the Senate. The override of Gov. Fallin’s veto passed 79-17 in the House and 45-2 in the Senate.

During the debate, Representatives Henke, Casey, and Nolan wrote an opinion piece for the Tulsa World opposing automatic 3rd grade retention for students who did not pass the one-time, one-day test. Great!

But, lurking in the shadow of all that passion of the big win, and sliding in under confusion due to the same numbers being in this bill, there was House bill 2562 – “Gross Production Tax Cut”. Here is information provided by the Oklahoma Policy Institute.

It would make permanent an incentive that had originally been given for horizontal drilling, and was set to expire next year. Now most drillers use that technique as a matter of course. After the expiration, the production tax would have moved back up to its original rate of 7%, which is the same rate used in neighboring states.

That bill, signed into law today by Gov. Fallin, offered a permanent tax break for Oklahoma’s oil and gas industry that is already flush with cash that they liberally spread around during races for the House and the Senate. It also deprives Oklahoma public services, like public education, of necessary funds in a completely manufactured crisis of funding for Oklahoma government.

The bill passed 61-34 in the House, and passed 23-22 in the Senate.

So, how did Henke, Casey, and Nolan vote?  Henke was excused from the floor that day and Casey and Nolan voted against the bill. To me that’s a good example of consistency in voting. Way to go!

How did your legislators, representative and senator, vote on these two bills?

First, you can look up who they are here.

3rd Grade Retention Votes

Click this link for the voting list for the individual legislator votes on HB2625 – 3rd Grade Retention.

(There are problems with the Senate publication of the vote on the last reading of the bill and their later override.)

Gross Production Tax Cut Votes

Click this link for the voting list in the House on HB2562 – Gross Production Tax Cut (Look for the vote on the measure itself, not the vote to make it an “Emergency” measure.)

Click this link for the Senate vote on HB2562.

No More Passes for One-time Show Votes

If they voted for the 3rd Grade Retention bill and the override of Fallin’s veto when the heat was on, good for them.

But, if they voted to give a big early Christmas gift to oil and gas donors in a bill passed at the very end of the session, then it’s time for them to hear from you. They voted to deprive public education and other services in Oklahoma of necessary funds in a time when Oklahoma’s economy is booming.

Decide now. No more passes.

Photo by TheLostOgle.com
Photo by TheLostOgle.com

 

Politics

In Oklahoma, The Problem is Not “Government” — It’s Those Who Run It

Photo credits: Fallin-HuffingtonPost.com, Barresi-okgazette.com, Pruitt-newson6.com
Photo credits: Fallin-HuffingtonPost.com, Barresi-okgazette.com, Pruitt-newson6.com

You are interviewing someone for a job and their approach is “Hey, anyone can do this. You don’t have to be very smart to do this job”. Will you hire them?  You’re a knucklehead if you do. They have already decided that the work takes no effort and isn’t really important. They will only waste your time, effort, and money.

Yet, over the last 20 years, Oklahoma voters have “hired” people with similar attitudes to fill public office. Should we even be surprised that they are wasting our time, effort, and money?

The Source of the Problem

Is it even possible for them to do a good job at running our state’s government when the core of their campaign was that “government is incompetent and won’t ever do anything right”? It’s not. Before their first day in office they are on a course of incompetence.

If they make government better or just simply work, they have proven themselves wrong. And just in case you don’t know much about politics, they don’t want to do that. Ever.

It starts with those in Oklahoma who vote. We have been campaigned into believing that the best person for us to “hire” at the polls is the one who knows the least, has the least experience at running anything, and promises to do the worst job that they can think of. Ridiculous.

Now if you are in charge of a large corporation that does not want any government policing of what you do, that’s a good deal. You will give big money to those candidates. That’s exactly what has happened over the years in Oklahoma. It has a multiplying effect in that once those incompetents get into office, your lobbyists can do all of their thinking for them, because…that’s right...they don’t know anything.

So, those politicians do what they are told. They better. There are no other options for them.

Cases in Point

The latest news is that State Superintendent of Schools Janet Barresi is making plans to use money budgeted for activities and alternative education to pay for health care premiums promised to teachers because of funding that has not been provided by the legislature. Here’s today’s news brief about it from NewsOK.com.

Rather than do what a Superintendent elected directly by The People should do –confront the legislature– she is going along with the general incompetence of the Republican dominated legislature because the handlers who control all of them want, you know,  “team players”.

Why can’t Janet Barresi run the State Department of Education like we elected her to do? She is a dentist and doesn’t know the first thing about running a classroom for a whole year, much less the entire public school effort for the state. And so, she has to follow orders of bigger corporate interests when they call. She has hired itinerant corporate education tools from out-of-state to fill top jobs just below hers because that’s what she is expected to do by those who paid big money to get her into office. She’s on the team.

Why can’t Oklahoma Attorney General Scott Pruitt do anything else but bring frivolous law suits against the Affordable Care Act at taxpayers’ expense of millions and not do much of anything else? He’s on the team.

Why can’t Gov. Fallin and the legislature stay out of the way and allow local towns and cities to set their own minimum wage if they won’t set one for the state? Why can’t they allow cities to run their own zoning ordinances? Well, even though they ran to keep big government off our backs, they create their own big government that controls us in ways that the rich and big corporate interests want us to be controlled. They are on the team.

Too Much Consolidation of Power

What early 1900s Progressives knew from experience in the century before was that The People have to keep big money from controlling every aspect of state government.

Bad government happens when it is possible for a few rich people to pay for a majority of legislative campaigns and the governor who installs lackeys throughout the executive branch. They, then, follow the orders of only a few rich people instead of The People. So, the Oklahoma Constitution calls for a large number of leaders in the executive branch to be voted on directly by The People rather than being appointed by the governor.

The problem circles back around to who votes and who we decide to vote into office. It’s people who run any government. If government isn’t working, replace those who are in charge of it.

But, those who actually vote in Oklahoma have believed the well-funded campaign line that government is the problem, and so we vote for people who don’t know anything. They then have no choice but to leave or follow orders from the lobbyists and handlers. In actual effect, we have a scenario that the writers of the Oklahoma Constitution thought they were avoiding.

The Key: More Informed, Motivated Voters Who Vote

For those of us who want reform it is a good thing that Oklahoma has put so much into making sure that voters can vote and the voting system has integrity. After all, if they believe that only certain Republicans will vote anyway, why not make it easy for them? What that really means is that we can bring change if we provide credible opposition and sound arguments. The key is getting out the vote.

It comes back around to us. How badly do we want to see change? I want it and if you are reading this, you probably want it, too.  That’s why the June 24th primaries, the August 26th run-offs, and the November 4th election all matter. Put those on your calendar now and focus!

 

Politics

Oops! The Party of Bullies Can’t Handle It’s Own Bullies

frankenstein (1)[A] flash of lightning illuminated the object and discovered its shape plainly to me; its gigantic stature, and the deformity of its aspect, more hideous than belongs to humanity, instantly informed me that it was the wretch, the filthy demon to whom I had given life. –from Frankenstein, by Mary Shelley

I know evil exists. It really scared me. –Oklahoma State Senator Cliff Branan, during a current blackmail trial against Tea Party leader Al Gerhart

Clearly, the Oklahoma Republican Party watched with glee, and did all they could in the background, to promote the Tea Party as it developed into a collection of thugs that carried out their dirty work, rallying with ugly, insulting signs and making threats to Democrats and moderate Republicans in our legislature. It was not incidental that this happened directly after the election of our first black president.

Not unlike the industrialists in inter-war Germany funding and using the rising Nazi Party to muscle in their agenda without showing their faces publicly, the Republican Party wanted to keep its respectability while hammering those who stood in the way of their corporate, totalitarian vision for Oklahoma.

That’s where the Tea Party came in. They became the bullies that the Republican Party in Oklahoma could use to their advantage when possible and disown when they created public problems for the GOP.

But just like Frankenstein’s monster, once a political group has been created, there is no assurance of future control. Senator Cliff Branan found that out last year.

According to a news report today by The Oklahoman, Al Gerhart, an Oklahoma City carpenter and local Tea Party leader, is being charged with two felonies, blackmail and violating the Oklahoma Computer Crimes Act, because of an email sent to Republican Senator Cliff Branan who lives in Nichols Hills, a posh, well-manicured city within a city surrounded by the expansive Oklahoma City.

I have to admit to being amused that Branan, who has been in the legislature for a number of years now, is frightened and incensed at getting an email threatening to dig into his personal and family members personal backgrounds to dig up dirt on him. The threat was centered on one of dozens of bills introduced every year that have something to do with defending Oklahoma against that dreaded United Nations.

I support Branan in his refusing to have his committee consider yet another wacky bill inspired by conspiracy theories. What seems strange and downright whiny is his taking yet another fired up Tea Party leader to court on felony blackmail charges.

Would Branan have the same reaction if that same email had been sent to a Democrat in our legislature? Oh, wait. Democrats and Republicans have, and still do receive identical threats every year. This is in addition to the outright threats of physical violence issued through anonymous blog posts, forum posts, and phone calls.

Many in Oklahoma City are used to hearing the random threats against legislators, both violence-centered and those of a more pedestrian nature. We are surprised that a Republican with experience like Branan would react in this way. Another legislator called to testify in defense of Gerhart, Republican Senator Ralph Shorty from Oklahoma City, said ““That’s the kind of stuff that happens all the time.”

If Branan and other Republicans are serious about stopping this behavior, it is time for them to speak up and take action when anyone is on the receiving end. Tea Party bullying is not the way that a legitimate political party does business. It’s time for the Republican Party to quit using the Tea Party as the enforcers.

But, for now, Frankenstein’s monster has turned on it’s creator. Republicans, behold your own creation and be afraid!

Politics

Decide That the Ugly Side of Oklahoma Will Not Defeat Us

Those of us who live here know that there are two sides to Oklahoma: The pretty side and the ugly side.

The Pretty Side

There is one side to life in my state that is the good side, the side that we want the rest of the nation to see. It’s kind of like your only wanting one side of your face to be photographed because, well, it’s your good side — the pretty side.

Tulsa’s enduring sophistication and beauty matched with Oklahoma City’s 20-year run of progress in developing both its new downtown skyline along with the re-purposed Bricktown into a destination entertainment district has impressed many. The various parts of rural and town life Oklahoma are some of the best places to live anywhere considering resources and the cultural variety as you move around the state.

Here in Oklakevin_durant_wallpaper_by_thehoodgirl-d5gzmzwhoma City, where I live, the rise of various neighborhood mini-centers of activity along with the rustic Bricktown matched with the excitement of Oklahoma City Thunder basketball has been a true joy. I enjoy many of these events and enjoy living in this place. It’s an amazing thing to see, since I have spent most of my life here.

It’s not that side of Oklahoma that can defeat us, though. The ugly side surely will, if we let it.

The Ugly Side

Violence-prone, deep-seated racism against blacks left over from our segregation days has been flushed back out into the open by the election and re-election of our first black president.

Women are mistreated and disregarded on many levels and in many ways, especially by a legislature made up mostly of white, conservative men who are against “big government” unless it is controlling women’s bodies. Then it is magically a good thing.

Our Republican-dominated state government is so dysfunctional that legislators cannot even agree on how to fund repair of an aging Capitol Building that has the smell of sewage from rotting pipes throughout and has to block certain entrances for fear of falling pieces hitting visitors. Welcome to our beautiful state capitol, y’all!

The deepest parts of the ugly side are actually hidden, though.

The Difference Between Natural and Man-Made Disasters

Because natural disasters so shape Oklahoma life, we have developed a tendency to see all disaster as “natural”. That provides a large smoke screen for those who have sinister motives.

2014-04-19 09.22.09For instance, if you did not know that the 1995 Oklahoma City Bombing was carried out by domestic right-wing extremists, you might not learn that from our yearly remembrances at the memorial service. Speaker after speaker will focus on remembering victims and heroes, carefully navigating around the harsh realities of who perpetrated that heinous crime. It wasn’t a tornado that caused that disaster.

Another example of naturalizing the unnatural is how legislators frame the constant cuts as necessary because of not having enough revenue while passing new tax cut measures yearly. Just today in The Oklahoman there is one story about how new measures are being passed to increase education funding that is dependent upon revenues increasing each year. If they don’t increase, then the funding increases won’t go through. Then, just on the opposite page, there is a story about how concerned some legislators are at the impact of proposed tax cuts that are likely to go through.

The slow erosion of state government and the much-needed services that it provides is by design. With unwitting support by
ideologues on the libertarian edges of the Republican Party, big money interests that stand to gain much from lop-sided tax cuts push harder each year for even more cuts, which is the central goal. The benefits to them are easily seen in the chart below and explained here.

average-tax-cut-2

The result is that GOP legislators are so confidant in the security of their positions that they don’t even try to cover up the illogical bills signed into law even when public opinion is running in the opposite direction.  Examples are a ban on local cities and towns passing their own minimum wage, and empowering local traditional utilities to add a surcharge for wind and solar energy.

Our ugly side is making it into national news more and more, though. Recently Rachel Maddow featured Oklahoma’s redness as being at the very end — no, off of the end — of a blue to red scale. We were featured as a state that has gone that extra mile to lock down the state with right-wing ideology and favors for those wealthy donors to our Republican politicians.

The Rachel Maddow Show - Ok Red State Meter - 2
From the Rachel Maddow Show on MSNBC, April 21st, 2014.

See the whole clip at the MSNBC website here.

Avoid the Man-Made Disasters – Act Now!

This is no natural disaster. It is man-made by the designs of a small, wealthy, powerful minority in the shadows. If we allow this to go on, will we have a state made up of well-educated, clear-thinking people who value logical, rather than the most illogical thinking? No, we won’t.

It’s time for us to decide that we will not allow the ugly side of Oklahoma to defeat us!

Here are some action ideas:

1. Use social media to call out publications and various forms of media that do not report or consider any other view than that of the right wing.

2. Write, call, and visit the repeat offenders at the Capitol who continue to follow lockstep with the designs of ALEC to de-fund public services and public watchdog functions of state regulation. Here is a list of Oklahoma Legislators who are ALEC trained and resourced. Good resources to help you apply pressure: OkPolicy.org and OklahomaWatch.org

3. Research which corporations are the biggest donors to the leaders of the movement to de-fund public services in Oklahoma and write to their board of directors complaining that their sponsorship of particular politicians are causing a social and educational environment that will harm them in the long run if eventually there is a brain/income drain from the state. iCitizen is an app that is available on iPhone, and Android. It is resourceful in helping you find your reps from top to bottom and showing you their major contributors.

4. Support candidates in this year’s election cycle that challenge the dominant right-wing power structure in the legislature. And support those who are brave enough to run against our well-funded governor.

5. Challenge pastors – especially yours – when they support right-wing ideology as though it is the only Christian option. It’s not. The right-wing way is not necessarily the right way.  (I’ll write more about this in a future post.)

What are some ways that you have found to oppose the weight of the right-wing machine? Please comment.

Education

Education Rally Draws Large, Enthusiastic, Angry Crowd at Oklahoma State Capitol

Gallery 2 Comments

Today more teachers, support staff, parents, and administrators turned out for the Education Rally at the Oklahoma State Capital than expected. Afterward, a majority of them patiently waited in line to go through security checkpoints and talk to legislators about Oklahoma’s being at the top of the list for education cuts.