Judge Says Edmondson Doesn’t Have to Give Deposition

TULSA, Okla. (AP) A federal magistrate sides with Attorney General Drew Edmondson’s argument that he shouldn’t be deposed for his lawsuit against poultry companies.

Judge Sam Joyner also ruled, however, that Edmondson’s office should answer questions from poultry companies about evidence that is to be used in the case.

Joyner says since Edmondson is representing the state of Oklahoma in the lawsuit, the state is the true party, not the attorney general.

Simmons Foods is one of 13 poultry companies being sued over poultry waste use in the Illinois River watershed. It and other companies believe Edmondson should be considered a witness because he said the amount of phosphorous dumped on the ground in the watershed annually is equivalent to the waste of more than 10 (m) million people.

Joyner agreed with the poultry companies’ argument that Edmondson’s office had given evasive or incomplete answers to a series of pretrial requests for information.

Edmondson’s office has 30 days to further answer questions from one company regarding the evidence.

Judge Says Edmondson Doesn’t Have to Give Deposition

TULSA, Okla. (AP) A federal magistrate sides with Attorney General Drew Edmondson’s argument that he shouldn’t be deposed for his lawsuit against poultry companies.

Judge Sam Joyner also ruled, however, that Edmondson’s office should answer questions from poultry companies about evidence that is to be used in the case.

Joyner says since Edmondson is representing the state of Oklahoma in the lawsuit, the state is the true party, not the attorney general.

Simmons Foods is one of 13 poultry companies being sued over poultry waste use in the Illinois River watershed. It and other companies believe Edmondson should be considered a witness because he said the amount of phosphorous dumped on the ground in the watershed annually is equivalent to the waste of more than 10 (m) million people.

Joyner agreed with the poultry companies’ argument that Edmondson’s office had given evasive or incomplete answers to a series of pretrial requests for information.

Edmondson’s office has 30 days to further answer questions from one company regarding the evidence.

Bill Banning Elected Officials from Appearing in PSAs Clears Committee

Legislation preventing elected officials from using appearances in public service announcements (PSAs) as free campaign TV time passed a committee vote Monday.

House Bill 1451, by Rep. Rob Johnson, would ban elected officials from appearing in PSAs during election years in which they are up for re-election. The measure passed a vote of the House Rules Committee Monday and now moves to the House floor.

“This practice essentially allows incumbents to have free campaign commercials,” said Johnson (R-Kingfisher). “Basically, if an elected official has a buddy who’s putting together a PSA, the official can appear in it, reaching hundreds, if not thousands of people at no charge to his or her campaign. It borders on being unethical, and certainly gives incumbents an unfair advantage. Rarely can a challenger afford such an opportunity.

“Public service announcements certainly serve a valuable purpose, and this bill is in no way an attack against them,” Johnson added. “We just want to remove this unfair advantage for sitting elected officials.”

If passed by the Legislature and signed into law, HB 1451 would be in effect for the 2008 elections, in which at least all 101 of Oklahoma’s House seats and 24 of the state’s Senate seats will be up for grabs.

House Bill 1804 Scheduled for Hearing in House Judiciary Committee

House GOP will advance “most meaningful immigration reform in the nation”

House Republicans leaders said today they will advance the nation’s most meaningful immigration reform law this week when a House committee takes up House Bill 1804, an omnibus reform measure.

“Our immigration reform effort is about upholding Oklahoma’s rule of law and respecting immigrants who come to our country legally,” said Speaker Lance Cargill (R-Harrah). “We must do more to make sure that Oklahoma’s social safety net is not strained to the breaking point by illegal immigration.”

Rep. Randy Terrill, author of House Bill 1804, the Oklahoma Taxpayer & Citizen Protection Act of 2007, said the measure is scheduled to be heard by the full House Judiciary Committee on Wednesday, Feb. 28 at 4:30 p.m. in room 412-C at the State Capitol. The measure is a key part of the House GOP’s Safe Families platform in the Year of Ideas Agenda.

Terrill said that on Feb. 28, in addition to the bill’s presentation in committee, representatives from the Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR) will also demonstrate a key element of House Bill 1804, the federal status verification system, called the Basic Pilot Program. The demonstration will take place at 9 a.m. in room 512A at the State Capitol.

Basic Pilot uses federal databases to determine work eligibility. Oklahoma would be among the first in the nation to enroll in the program, and employers would be required to use the database system to confirm employees’ legal status.

“Our federal government hasn’t stopped illegal immigration, so it’s up to states to lead the way,” said Terrill (R-Moore). “This is about respect for our nation’s laws and our state’s laws. If you have one broken window in a neighborhood and do nothing to repair it, you’ll soon have a neighborhood full of broken windows. That’s the situation we have with illegal immigration. As a nation we have looked the other way and ignored the problem for too long.”

The Washington, D.C.-based Immigration Reform Law Institute (IRLI) calls House Bill 1804 the most meaningful immigration reform bill in the nation. The IRLI says that, if enacted, HB 1804 will be the most significant single step that any state has taken in this area.

“This is an excellent piece of legislation that carefully balances critical enforcement obligations with respect for the dignity and privileges of U.S. citizens and legal alien residents,” said Michael Hethmon, general counsel for the IRLI. “House Bill 1804 gives workers, law abiding businesses, and the taxpayers who fund Oklahoma public services the protection they need against unfair competition.”

Democratic Party Infighting Now Comes to Oklahoma

Democratic Party infighting took center stage on the national stage last week. Presidential aspirant Sen. Hillary Clinton called for Sen. Barak Obama to apologize for disparaging remarks made by an Obama contributor towards the Senator and her husband. The over-reaction by the Clinton campaign was coupled with a report that Sen. Joseph Lieberman is considering changing parties due to his party’s position on the war. Now it seems that same intraparty squabling is occuring withing the ODP as well.

In another “can’t see the forest for the trees” piece, The Tulsa World reports that Attorney General Drew Edmondson claims Claremore Sen. Sean Burrage had a “conflict of interest” when he voted last week for a bill declaring that animal waste is not hazardous. Sen. Burrage’s law firm has had Tyson Foods as a current and former client. The attorney general is correct in his assertion of a conflict of interest, but his action of throwing a fellow democrat under the bus on behalf of the poultry suit; and the World still ignoring alleged charges of corruption and harrassment within the attorney general’s office, only produces more questions of conflicts of interests between the World and the attorney general.

Chairman Pryor used the Utilitarian philosophy for damage control in an aptly named post today called, “The Greater Good” on the ODP blog:

“Oklahoma Attorney General Drew Edmondson has repeatedly taken the position that his job is to protect the citizens and resources of our great state — his position is a personal conviction and is inherent in his constitutional oath of office.

I am very pleased that his walk matches his talk and that he continues to pursue every option available to protect our water resources for the greater good of the people of Oklahoma.

Let’s make sure that anyone who personally benefits from or directly represents the poultry producers does the right thing and abstains from this vote on the floor….”

Richardson Receives Endorsement From Insignificant Democratic Activists

Demookie.com co-owner Calvin Reese (Right) pictured with “psuedo political consultant” Ron Black last summer.

From McCarville Report Online:

“Democratic presidential candidate Bill Richardson gained the support of three prominent Democratic bloggers and activists in Oklahoma today…

“Calvin Rees, Tim Reese and Jane Luttrell of DemoOkie.com lined up behind Richardson Friday. “Richardson is right for Oklahoma” said Calvin.”

“Tim Reese, of the blog said, “Richardson should be very popular in Oklahoma. His experience as Secretary of Energy gives him insight into stimulating domestic production of oil and gas which makes us less dependent on foreign oil.”

With the Reese Bros. endorsement of Bill Richardson – who is aiming to become our first Hispanic president – Richardson won’t have to worry about racist, stereotypical caricatures of himself appearing on their website anytime soon.

Any guesses on how quick Richardson’s people are going to flee from this unsolicited endorsement once we send this post to them?

An Open letter to Gov. Henry From Co-President Pro Tempore

Dear Governor Henry,

In light of your public frustrations over losing a bill that was part of your agenda, I wanted to take the time to send you a copy of a recent article I wrote. I hope it will be a framework for constructive dialog and a productive, successful session. You see, I don’t define “bipartisanship” as just agreeing to see everything your way and voting for a measure because you think it is the right thing to do. I don’t believe bipartisanship is compromise, as some people would suggest, especially if it means compromising my own principles just to get agreement. I do believe bipartisanship means to collaborate (to work jointly with others in an intellectual endeavor). I feel like you and I began such an effort when you invited me to your office to get my assistance on this measure and two others that had been sent to the Rules Committee. In an effort to work in good faith, I agreed to reassign one of those bills to another committee. Senator Morgan reassigned the other two. Two of the three measures made it out of committee with bipartisan support and are headed to the floor for consideration by the full Senate.

I certainly understand your frustration. When you served as a member of the majority in the Senate, those of us in the minority watched most of Governor Keating’s agenda items die in committee. In fact, every one of us in the minority had to live with our own bills being killed in your committee and others. I learned as a member of the minority that you have to let those things go. It taught me to not take it personally, but rather to work to get the issue done in other ways – often in a Democrat authored bill. As a regular victim of your veto pen, I have had to relearn this lesson many times. This taught me not to worry about getting the credit, but rather to focus on the policy over politics.

I didn’t see Governor Keating complain when you and members of your party killed his agenda items. Instead, he worked hard to find common ground, as he would walk up to the fourth floor to meet with legislators to reach a solution together. As I pledged to you when we met recently in your office, I am committed to just such a process.

Senator Morgan and I have worked hard to keep an atmosphere of civility in these first three weeks as we deal with a most unusual and delicate situation in the Senate. So far it has worked very well. We have encouraged our members to avoid unnecessary partisan rhetoric and to try to make our power-sharing agreement work. The Senate works differently under these circumstances. You have repeatedly and publicly criticized some of the new procedures we have implemented, such as placing bills that can’t get bipartisan agreement in the Rules Committee and the calling of committee caucuses to avoid rash decisions that could lead to conflict if members have questions about the new procedures. I hope you will begin to understand that even though you haven’t heard of these measures being done in the past, they were developed in a bipartisan manner to get the work of the people done. Senator Morgan and I both recognized the difficulty of this task and that it would likely result in fewer bills becoming law. That is why we are trying to focus on the things we can agree on and not the issues that will divide us. I hope you will join us in this process.

Sincerely,

Glenn Coffee, Co-President Pro Tempore

HYPOCRISY WATCH: Tulsa World Questions Cargill on Fundraising?

Paper still has head in the sand when it comes to real scandals

We almost made it through the week without the need for issuing a “Hypocrisy Watch.” Mick Hinton of the Tulsa World, has written the talking points memo for Oklahoma Democrats’ today, under the guise of “objective journalism.” The piece reports that Speaker Cargill is “summon[ing] key lobbyists” to “special meetings” outside the capitol for fundraising activities. Now usually when one thinks of a summons, you think of a court of a law and a judge mandating you appear. Was this a deliberate choice of words Mick?

We’ve copied every quote from a lobbyist in the piece. You’ll notice a familiar, recurring theme in every comment. Remember, this is every lobbyists quoted in the piece, so we’re not purposely omitting positive quotes:

“Lobbyist Bobby Stem confirmed that he met with the speaker on Tuesday at an office outside the Capitol.”

“It was the friendliest fundraising meeting I’ve ever had, and you can quote me on that,” said Stem, a prominent lobbyist during Democratic administrations.” (What would you expect from a Democratic lobbyist?)

“Stem said there was no strong-arming for contributions, although he said it was “very pro-active” with money raising emphasized in several ways.”

“One lobbyist said he felt uncomfortable going to the “un-neutral” site, while another said it was “cheesy.” Both spoke on the condition that they not be identified.”

“After leaving the office, lobbyist Jim Walker acknowledged that he had just talked with the speaker, but said “it is no different than what used to occur at the Capitol, from time to time.”

“But others said they felt compelled to comply with the speaker’s wishes. They said that has been the case in the past, but the methods were different this time around.”

Hey Mick, how about investigating the attorney general and the poultygate scandal going on “five minutes from the Capitol?” What about the Chairman of your newspaper contributing money to the AG while his paper is endorsing him. We’ll re-use the analogy we made earlier this week regarding your paper’s lazy reporting. This piece was akin to a reporter covering the Superbowl and only writing about Prince’s new shoes! What about the fact that it was held in plain view away from the Capitol? What about the angle that it illustrates the reforms Cargill is looking to initiate?

Speaker Pro Tempore Issues Terse Statement Against Fellow Member

Oklahoma House Speaker Pro Tempore Gus Blackwell (R-Goodwell) issued the following statement Thursday regarding actions on the House floor by Rep. “Lucky” Lamons (D-Tulsa) during the debate on House Bill 2100. Lamons tried unsuccessfully to amend the bill to merge the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation and the Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics with the Department of Public Safety.

“Like any lawmaker from either party, Representative Lamons is required to follow the rules of floor debate. It’s against the rules to debate something that isn’t under consideration. Representative Lamons was warned three times that he was violating the rules, but he ignored the warnings every time.

“Representative Lamons has a history of flaunting the rules. He apparently thinks the rules don’t apply to him, unlike the other 100 members of the House. This is just another example of Representative Lamons disrupting regular order when he is unable to manipulate the process to his advantage.

“Representative Lamons tried to amend the bill twice. Both his amendments failed. In fact, for the last 20 years, this amendment has failed consistently, both under Democrat and Republican leadership. Instead of abiding by the wishes of the majority, he continued to try and promote his own amendment in debate. But the rules require he debate the bill before the members. It’s my job to uphold the rules of the House.”

HB 2100 would create a commission to “identify and eliminate waste, duplication, and inefficiency in state agencies.” The powerful ten member commission would consist of four members of the House; four members of the Senate; one person from the private sector appointed by the Governor; and one person from the private sector appointed by the Lieutenant Governor.

The members will be charged with reviewing the policies and procedures of all state agencies once every twelve years. They’ll seek public input through hearings and will make recommendations on each agency to the full Legislature. The commission will have the power to abolish agencies if the legislature doesn’t vote to continue them.

Edmondson Accepts Contributions from Tulsa World Chairman in ‘06; Also Receives Paper’s Endorsement

Click picture too enlarge

Attorney General Drew Edmondson is apparently very popular with Oklahoma’s lazy media. Our continuing investigation into the media’s appalling silence in the “poultrygate” scandal has turned up another interesting development.

World publishing Chairman Richard E. Lorton donated $2,000 to the Edmondson re-election effort last year. Coincidentally, Edmondson also won the World’s endorsement. The AG’s republican opponent James Dunn was outraised and outspent almost three to one in the race and was soundly defeated in a landslide. (61% -39%)

Again we ask the question: Why would Mr. Lorton and KSWO executives feel so compelled to jeopardize their respective organizations’ journalistic integrity by supporting financially a political campaign that was in no danger of being defeated? You would think credible news organizations would keep an arms length distance from a candidate running for re-election, especially a candidate currently involved in a controversial lawsuit!

Are there any real Oklahoma journalists out there? Outside of the stories reporting on Edmondson performing his official duties, we would be curious to know the Lexis/Nexis search results of Edmondson’s and James Dunn’s mentions in the Tulsa World last year. Please send in confidence to our tipline.