Palin for President!..or not!

"And though it's honorable for countless others to leave their positions for a higher calling and without finishing a term, of course we know by now, for some reason a different standard applies for the decisions I make."

Can someone remind me exactly who it was that didn't finish a term and then ran for President?

Democrats Boots Made for Walking

Nick's Law



LOOK!!!
The State Senate passed SB 135 with overwhelming bipartisan support today, granting much needed relief for autistic children and their families.
SB 135 will increase the number of trained specialists to treat autism spectrum disorders while allowing the open market to adjust coverage based on the demand of services.
Isn't that nice? I need to write a thank you note.

Dear Oklahoma State Senate,
Thanks so much for passing this! It gives me a warm fuzzy feeling just thinking of all the trained specialist Oklahoma will have--That my insurance company WON'T pay for!!
Thanks so much for caring about our children. Thanks so much for caring about the parents that voted for you. I'm sure we'll all be voting for you again next election. Hey, and maybe all those trained specialist that can't find a job, cause no one can afford to pay them, cause insurance won't cover services, maybe they will vote for you too!
I am just so excited about this "much needed relief" that I can't afford--- I think I'll walk outside and scream.

Thanks again,
Idabel Mommy

Obama is Special!

People ask what our comment is on the Obama Special Olympic comment... since we voted for him and we have Special Olympic kids.

But most of all - because our comments matter to the people! ..we got an award to prove it.

First, we would like to invite President Obama to Stillwater Oklahoma, to the Special Olympic games to compete with our athletes. We'll even let President Obama choose the event he'd like to compete in. Then we'll comment on his comment.

RALLY FOR AFFORDABLE HEALTH CARE, END TO HEALTH INSURANCE INDUSTRY ABUSES

Join us April 1 at 1 p.m. at the state Capitol's South Plaza
A coalition of consumer, patient and advocacy groups, including OKWatchdog, has a rally planned April 1 at 1 p.m. at the Capitol to draw attention to the need for affordable, quality health care in Oklahoma and stop health insurance industry abuses.
We need hundreds of people to come to the rally so that legislators will understand that we're paying attention, and health insurance companies calling all the shots is unacceptable.
Please visit http://www.okhealthcarereform.com/index.html for more information and to RSVP. Or RSVP by clicking HERE.

Belle would post something like this if she was here...but she's not :(

Ditch Democratic Delegate Eldridge Bill

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

The Barbie Ban Bill, proposed by Democratic Delegate Jeff Eldridge (D) Lincoln County, says such toys influence girls to place too much importance on physical beauty, at the expense of their intellectual and emotional development.
"I just hate the image that we give to our kids that if you're beautiful, you're beautiful and you don't have to be smart," Eldridge told West Virginia news station WOWK.

My 8 year old daughter plays with Barbie dolls. She is both beautiful and smart. She participates in beauty pageants and she's on the superintendents honor roll. And my daughter wrote you the following letter Mr. Eldridge.

Dear Democratic Delegate Jeff Eldridge,
Why is barbie made in China instead of the USA?
Why are the factories needed to make barbies not built here in the USA?
Why are the parts needed to make barbie not made in the USA?
Why are thousands of jobs being sent overseas when we need them in the USA?
Why is a Democratic Delegate telling me, an 8 year old girl, what I need when he doesn't know what the country needs?
Someone with your intellectual and emotional development should know what this country needs. I really hate the image you are giving me and my friends, that you don't have to be smart to be in politics.

Sincerely,
Xxxxxxxx Xxxxxxxx

Limp Oklahomans

Umm..this wasn't what I was looking for.. but it looks interesting.

Democratic senators are questioning why insurance companies can cover the treatment of erectile dysfunction and not autism.
"We have been told by Republicans that it is not fair for those who do not have autism to have to pay for coverage for those who do," said Sen. Tom Adelson, D-Tulsa.
"Why is it fair for those who do not suffer from erectile dysfunction to pay for those who do in the form of higher premiums? I would think most Oklahomans would rather have their premiums cover children with autism, rather than people with erectile dysfunction."

Oh... here's what I was lookin for.. the Votes on HB1312.
10 Nay votes on HOUSE BILL1312 Nick's Law; requiring insurance coverage for autism DO PASS - FAILED
9 Yea votes on HOUSE BILL1312 Nick's Law; requiring insurance coverage for autism
DO NOT PASS - PASSED

Umm..You would think "most Oklahomans" would rather have their premiums cover children with autism, rather than people with erectile dysfunction. But I bet it all depends on how many Oklahomans have children with autism and how many Oklahomans have erectile dysfunction.

Maybe someone should ask "most Oklahomans"..Do you have a kid with autism?..
NAYS: 10
Faught
McNiel
Peters
Key
Liebmann
Moore
Sullivan
McDaniel
Ownbey
Steele

..or do you have a limp dick?
YEAS: 9
Faught
McNiel
Peters
Liebmann
Moore
Sullivan
McDaniel
Ownbey
Steele

My mind goes limp sometimes. Does insurance cover that? Surely the House passed that bill.

401K Nightmare!

Ever dream about retirement?

What the french!

Ever dream about retirement?

Hello and welcome to Wal*Mart.

Hello and welcome to Wal*Mart.

Hello and welcome to Wal*Mart.

IOU $787 billion

Dear Oklahoma Republican Legislature

Thanks so much for throwing this out.

Obama and Inhofe Honeymoon Over

Politico : It was a love affair that could never be, President Barrack Obama and congressional republicans.

“It lasted about two days,” quipped Sen. Jim Inhofe (R-Okla.), when asked if the honeymoon was over.

Why so soon?

Because, he said, conservatives are just “not receptive” to Obama’s agenda.

Yet even Inhofe, a true-believing conservative who represents a state in which Obama lost every county, is unwilling to take after his former colleague.

“He is very likable, he presented himself very well, and he seemed to want to be inclusive,” Inhofe said in a brief interview following Obama’s meeting. “But if the product is anything like we think it’s going to be, it’s not one that is going to be sellable to conservatives.”

For House Repubicans, Zero is the Loneliest Number

WASHINGTON (AP) -- In a swift victory for President Barack Obama, the Democratic-controlled House approved a historically huge $819 billion stimulus bill Wednesday night with spending increases and tax cuts at the heart of the young administration's plan to revive a badly ailing economy. The vote was 244-188, with Republicans unanimous in opposition despite Obama's frequent pleas for bipartisan support.

FiveThirtyEight has a good post up on this...almost as good as the comments.

GAWD! I love politics! Nothing better to get your blood pumping first thing in the morning.

Fair Pay? Oklahoma votes Nay!

We've overcome a big hurdle in the fight for fair pay. The House passed both the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act (HR 11) and the Paycheck Fairness Act (HR12) on January 9, and today the Senate voted to advance the Ledbetter Fair Pay Act, a key bill in the fight against pay discrimination. The motion passed by a vote of 72-23. The next step is a debate, followed by a vote on the bill itself. Unfortunately, during the debate, opponents of the bill may try to weaken it with unnecessary amendments.

Please take a minute to call your Senators and urge them to pass the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act as it stands.
How did your Senators vote?
Oklahoma: Coburn (R-OK) Nay - Inhofe (R-OK) Nay

If your Senator voted YES:
Call the Capitol at 202-224-3121 and ask to be connected to your Senator's office. Tell the person who answers the phone in your Senator's office that you're a constituent who wants to thank the Senator for voting in support of moving the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act forward and you hope the Senator will support the bill without amendments.

If your Senator voted NO:
Call the Capitol at 202-224-3121 and ask to be connected to your Senator's office. Tell the person who answers the phone in your Senator's office that you're a constituent who is disappointed that the Senator voted against moving the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act forward, and you urge the Senator to reconsider his/her opposition to the bill.

8 days

8 days to get your nominations in for Okie Blog Awards.

And 8 days to get your mouth ready to say...

"Don't let the door hit you in the ass on the way out!"

Goodbye Joe the Plumber!

Hello Joe the War Correspondent!
Seems Joe will be going to Israel to cover the Gaza War for Pajamas TV.
He wants to let Israel's "'Average Joes' share their story."

All we can say to that is.. GOODBYE JOE!



toledoblade.com
msnbc.msn.com

Political Dance Off

My kids keep beggin me to post this, so here it is.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wzyT9-9lUyE

Michelle Obama Dress

We don't understand all the negative comments made about Michelle Obama's dress. If your a mother you know why she chose it. One child wanted to wear black and one child wanted to wear red ......and they wanted momma to match. So Michelle did what any good momma would do...she wore both colors. Also, she wanted to match our blog colors..thanks Michelle for thinking of us.

President Obama

McCurtain County Oklahoma 2008 Election Results

All Oklahoma results are here http://newsok.com/election/results/?group_id=1
McCurtain County Voted 4 Republicans and 3 Democrates
McCurtain County - Personal Property Tax and Ad Valorem Tax Adjustments
For this measure - 5249 - 56.7%
Against this measure - 4013 - 43.3%

All Judges Retained

How McCurtain County Voted:
(R)McCain - 7744 - (D)Obama - 2,792
(R)Miller - 2,488 - (D)Ellis - 7,785
(R)Farley - 4,391 - (D)Bailey - 5,748
(R)Inhoff - 5,139 - (D)Rice - 3,819 - (I)Wallace - 557
(R)Wickson - 3,177 - (D)Boren - 6,404
(R)Cloud - 4,800 - (D)Gray - 4,763
(R)Murphy - 4,887 - (D)Roth - 4,867

County Question - Yes-5,249 - No-4,013
State Question 735 - Yes-7,330 - No-1,956
State Question 741 -Yes-5,137 - No-3,920
State Question 742 - Yes-7,420 - No-1,887
State Question 743 - Yes-6,366 - N0-2,848

County Question?

County Question
Proposition

Shall the household goods of the heads of families and certain livestock employed in support of the family located within McCurtain County be exempt from personal property taxation and adjust the ad valorem millage rate to make up for revenue lost due to the tax exemption?

FOR THE PROPOSITION - YES < -
AGAINST THE PROPOSITION - NO < -
DUH I DON'T KNOW WHAT THIS MEANS - ? < -

Oklahoma voters, in 1992, passed a constitutional amendment giving counties the option to abolish taxes on household furniture and livestock. Fifty-nine of the state’s seventy-seven counties have abolished the tax. The tax is figured based upon the value of the home. Entities such as schools that benefit from the tax should not lose revenue. If the proposition passes, the millage rate will be adjusted to make up for revenue lost due to the tax exemption. Homeowners would save money while businesses and public utilities would see a slight increase.

Example: Say tax on a $100,000 home is $899 and the personal property tax is $96 ($899 + $96 = $995) . If the personal property tax is eliminated, then the tax on the $100,000 home would increase to $911, but the homeowner would save money due to the elimination of the personal property tax ($995- $911 = $84).The remainder of the lost millage would be picked up by the utility companies and commercial property.

The People's Judge

Oklahoma voters will decide whether to keep nine judges on the benches of three state appellate courts. Under a retention system through which no Oklahoma judge has ever been voted out of office, three Oklahoma Supreme Court justices, two judges on the Court of Criminal Appeals and four members of the Court of Civil Appeals are up for consideration. Each judge appears on the ballot without an opponent and without affiliation to any political party. Each judge needs 50 percent plus one vote to stay in office under a yes-no retention system. If any judge is rejected by voters the governor will pick a replacement.

Supreme Court Justices are:

John Reif, Tom Colbert and Joseph Watt.

Gov. Brad Henry appointed Reif to the Supreme Court in October 2007. Prior to that, Reif, 57, had been a member of the Court of Civil Appeals since 1984. He is a former Tulsa County special district judge.

Colbert became the first black justice on the high court when Henry appointed him in 2004. Colbert, 58, previously was a member of the Court of Civil Appeals. When Gov. Frank Keating selected him for that spot in 2000, Colbert became the highest-ranking black judge to serve on a state court in Oklahoma.

Watt, 61, joined the Supreme Court in 2002. Gov. David Walters appointed Watt, who had worked as general counsel for Walters. Watt is a former trial judge in Jackson County in southwest Oklahoma.

Court of Criminal Appeals are:

Gary Lumpkin and Charles Johnson.

Lumpkin, 62, and Johnson, 77, both joined the appeals court in 1989, based upon appointments by Gov. Henry Bellmon.

Lumpkin, the current presiding judge, is a former prosecutor and trial judge in Marshall County in southern Oklahoma.

Johnson had a private law practice in Ponca City prior to joining the state's top court on criminal matters.

Court of Civil Appeals are:

Jane Wiseman, Jerry Goodman, Keith Rapp and John Fischer.

Wiseman, 61, was a Tulsa County judge for 28 years before Henry named her to the appellate bench in 2005. She was sworn in as a special district judge in 1977 and became a district judge in 1981.

Goodman, 69, has been on the intermediate appeals court since 1994. When appointed by Walters, he was the governor's chief operating officer and Cabinet secretary of policy and management. Goodman previously had a Tulsa law practice.

Rapp, the court's current chief judge, has been on the appeals court since 1984. Rapp, 74, is a former district judge for Tulsa and Pawnee counties.
Fischer, 60, was appointed to the appellate court in 2006. He is a former assistant state attorney general, and he had a private law practice in Oklahoma City. Based on guidelines involving appointments to unexpired terms, Fischer faces the prospect of another retention vote in 2010.