Bill Bleakley;News

Two candidates for public office who live in Oklahoma City are involved in races in the Tuesday election that deserve special attention for differing reasons. The first is Meg Salyer, who is a candidate for Oklahoma City’s Ward 6 City Council seat. When the filing closed for the Ward 6 seat, three candidates had filed. […]

While watching Clay Bennett’s press conference announcing the settlement of the Seattle lawsuit, it caused me to reflect on the effort he’s put into his “mission” of bringing an NBA team to Oklahoma City and how much he’s personally endured.     Bennett’s vilification by Sonics fans in Seattle once the city failed to step up to […]

The conviction of Jeff McMahan and his resignation as state auditor and inspector provides the governor and Legislature with the perfect opportunity to do away with the office. The Legislature partially did the job by stripping McMahan of his powers and duties under the Oklahoma Abstractors Law in its 2007 session. Signed into law by […]

For almost 40 years, I’ve had the opportunity to observe the state Legislature closely from a variety of perspectives. Never have I been as disappointed as I am now over the marginal ethics observed by many in our most important branch of state government. In recent years, the common good often appears to be sacrificed […]

Improving public education requires focus, dedication and perseverance, and the results are generally incremental at best. Anyone who says they can immediately turn a challenged school district around is being less than truthful. There are no magic bullets in public education, particularly in an urban setting. A school district must have the full and collaborative […]

On March 4, Oklahoma City voters will decide whether to extend the MAPS for Kids penny sales tax expiring in December 2008 for a year to fund improvements to the Ford Center and for another three months to fund a practice facility if the NBA selects the city for a team.   The first year […]

Tuesday’s presidential primary could possibly overshadow two important elections in Oklahoma City. If you live in the Oklahoma City Public Schools districts generally between N.W. 36th and S.W. 29th streets, you’ll have a school board election to consider Tuesday.   Board positions in election Districts 3 and 4 are at stake. The boundary line between […]

Burns Hargis is right on track with his leadership efforts to bring a new edge to the nation’s perception of Oklahoma City. That leadership included a belief that a major Halloween parade could showcase Central Oklahoma’s artistic and creative spirits and help hone the new edge.   As Hargis worked his way through the usual […]