Commentary

Gov. Brad Henry’s responsible, bipartisan leadership has checked a sometimes misguided, Republican-controlled Legislature, which has consistently presented him with bills that would do nothing to move the state forward. Henry, one of the most popular governors in the state’s history, has done so with judicious vetoes and bill signings. He helped bring about political compromise […]

What a difference a decade or so makes. Thirteen years ago, Kim and I left New Orleans for Norman. I wanted out of Tulane University. The University of Oklahoma offered me a chance to start over, and so we set off from one economically depressed capital of the oil patch to another. In the summer […]

The debate over school consolidation continues in Oklahoma, but consolidation is hardly the financial panacea presented by its proponents. School consolidation is often a sign that a small, rural Oklahoma community is no longer viable and must give up its schools, but that doesn’t mean state leaders should give up on these places. Sometimes, the […]

While recession rages around us and now encroaches upon our borders, according to the latest tax revenue numbers from Oklahoma State Treasurer Scott Meacham, one corner of the state’s economy is booming. Sales tax revenue was up $14.6 million from last year, according to the April report. Second Amendment merchandise and accessories may be part […]

Several of the Oklahoma County officials campaigned on bringing a more professional manner, tone and demeanor to the circus that was Oklahoma County government. Have things at the courthouse really changed, or have the elected officials learned the political lessons of the past? Let’s look back a few years: Commissioner Stuart Earnest faced Stan Inman, […]

In November 1972, 82-year-old historian Angie Debo, preaching in her home church in Marshall, took for her topic the “unholy power of what Eisenhower called the ‘military industrial complex.’” According to her biography, “Angie Debo: Pioneering Historian,” by Shirley A. Leckie, despite 30 years serving as a lay minister, that particular sermon did not go […]

A decade ago, Oklahoma decided to create a biotech industry. The area south of the Capitol has become home to a nationally recognized group of scientists who are finding cures for diseases, solutions to health problems and doing collaborative research with the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, the Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation and a […]

Mary Fallin is running for governor, and the 5th Congressional District is once again open. The consequences are many, as political ambitions again get released and posturing starts. The fires of ambition are burning brighter and earlier than usual in an Oklahoma campaign season. The Democrats’ best bet, former Corporation Commissioner Jim Roth, likely won’t […]

Women’s medical privacy rights could be threatened and the state’s growing bioscience industry would have suffered under new pro-life legislation in Oklahoma. House Bill 1595, which has passed the House and Senate, would require doctors to submit detailed information on each abortion they perform to the Oklahoma Health Department, which would put the information on […]