Articles
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Law & Principles, Culture & the Family
Abortion ruling renews focus on state judicial appointments
A recent ruling by the Oklahoma Supreme Court, which controversially declared that the Oklahoma Constitution provides a right to abortion under certain circumstances despite the constitution containing no language regarding abortion, is prompting renewed focus on how Oklahoma justices and judges are selected and appointed.Ray Carter | March 27, 2023
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Law & Principles, Culture & the Family
Oklahoma Supreme Court abortion ruling points to the need for judicial reform
The Court seems to be leaving room for a complete and unfettered right to an abortion in the future. Because while the Court refused to find one of the abortion laws unconstitutional. Both chambers, which consider themselves very pro-life, may want to reconsider whether the process we currently use to select jurists is worth preserving—even if changing the status quo upsets their friends at the Oklahoma Bar Association.Ryan Haynie | March 24, 2023
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Law & Principles, Culture & the Family
House votes to ban men from women’s prisons, shelters
Men could not be placed in women’s prisons or allowed in women’s domestic-violence shelters, or similar facilities, even if the male identifies as a transgender female, under legislation approved by the Oklahoma House of Representatives.Ray Carter | March 23, 2023
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Education, Law & Principles
OCPA praises AG Drummond for shutting down school discrimination
Oklahoma Council of Public Affairs President Jonathan Small today praised Attorney General Gentner Drummond for his efforts to prevent illegal discrimination against private-school students in athletic competitions.Staff | March 23, 2023
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Education, Law & Principles
Senate votes to move school-board elections to November
Saying the extremely low voter turnout in odd-timed spring elections has often untethered school board members from the parents they are supposed to serve, members of the Oklahoma Senate have voted to move those elections to the November general-election ballot.Ray Carter | March 23, 2023
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Law & Principles
Support for driver's license bill makes sense
Americans should be angry about the failures of politicians in Washington, D.C., but at the same time, we should enact workable public policies at the state level like HB2114 and SB669, which would create a way for people who file taxes but are illegal aliens to receive an Oklahoma drivers license.Jonathan Small, Trent England & Ryan Haynie | March 14, 2023
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Education, Law & Principles
Senate votes to reform state scholarship program
Members of the Oklahoma Senate have voted to streamline the process for children to qualify for the Lindsey Nicole Henry Scholarships for Students with Disabilities (LNH) program and to also expand the program to homeless children.Ray Carter | March 13, 2023
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Education, Law & Principles
Effort to prevent union coercion advances
Oklahoma schools would be required to make certain, on an annual basis, that teacher employees want to continue having union dues withheld from their paychecks under legislation approved by the Oklahoma Senate.Ray Carter | March 13, 2023
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Law & Principles
Black lawmakers say nondiscrimination measure is racist
In an Oklahoma state Capitol press conference, a group of black Democratic lawmakers derided as racist a law that prohibits teaching that members of one race are “inherently superior” to another race.Ray Carter | March 9, 2023
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Law & Principles
Oklahoma state lawmaker censured for harboring fugitive at Capitol
By an overwhelming margin, members of the Oklahoma House of Representatives have voted to censure state Rep. Mauree Turner for harboring a fugitive who was involved in an assault on a Oklahoma Highway Patrol trooper.Ray Carter | March 7, 2023