With Halloween fast approaching, the "culture police" at many Oklahoma colleges are publicly shaming and perhaps punishing students and faculty for their choices of costumes at social events and even in dorm life.
  Oklahoma College Republican leaders notified SoonerPolitics of the new 'advisories' published at the University of Oklahoma
  Here's the official statement:

   Oklahoma's economy is every socialist's worst electoral nightmare.  Just when liberals desperately try to sell the voters a prescription for more govt. intervention and welfare spending, the jobs are so plentiful that employers are paying wages and incentives they never expected to offer.
The pessimists in who ruled the last few legislative sessions did succeed in finally raising massive new taxes, based on old recession era economic forecasts. But the visionaries who refused to support the highest tax hike in state history ended up being accurate in the predictions that Oklahoma will have a record surplus even without the $500 million in new taxes imposed on Oklahoma's job creators.
  State Treasurer, Ken Miller released his latest economic report, showing that August & September were huge months for the Oklahoma economy. Double digit growth and employment rates of over 96% are terrible news for liberals in both the Democrat & Republican party (oh yes! there are several liberal Republicans).
​  Can Drew Edmondson and his fellow liberals compete during these boom days?  Only if he and his allies can sell us heavy doses of class envy, financial fears, and fake shame about fake crises.   

 The Democrat party of the past 10 years has increasingly moved from a position of solidarity with Israel & a Judeo-Christian value, to a pro Arab & pro Islam agenda.
This issue reached a very obvious optic moment in the 2012 Democrat National Convention when The Democrat Governor of Ohio presented an amendment of affirmation of God and Jerusalem as the capitol of a united Israeli state.
  The Quadrennial party conventions have become far less of a representative assembly of the party grassroots membership, and have essentially become a 4-day infomercial for the presidential nominee. The process uses every action from the podium to signal a message they hope the nations voters will identify with.
  That carefully scripted narrative collapsed when the Ohio governor and ordained Methodist minister came to the floor microphone to tweak the document of the platform committee that he chaired. It was determined from focus group research that the Democrats needed to be seen as more respectful of faith and in solidarity with the plight of Jews in their homeland of Israel.
  When his move to amend the already-passed party platform was given a floor vote, the chair declared from the podium that the motion needed a 2/3 vote of support for the motion. 

  International media outlets are telling a different story than many US Cable News Services have described.
  Reuters says that 4500 Hondurans have returned to their homeland. 
  Estimates vary significantly on the group’s size, which has morphed as some migrants return home and newcomers join. At least 150 migrants travelling separately were detained by Friday near Guatemala’s border, a Mexican official said.
  More than 1,700 people in the convoy have applied for asylum, while others have returned home, according to Mexico’s government. The Honduran ambassador said on Friday the group officially had 3,500 members. Other estimates go much higher.

“We think it’s very important that every person in the caravan knows these benefits, so that they stop putting their safety at risk crossing these roads,” said federal police commissioner Benjamin Grajeda.
  But it seems several others are joining the mass caravan, and it's becoming more of a young male group, and losing most of the 'family' image it may have once had.
Read the full story at Reuters.

  When the voters of Oklahoma mandated that patients can legally be treated with Cannabis, the Oklahoma State Health Dept. was mandated to come up with emergency rules to structure the marketing and distribution. those rules stipulate that until October 26th mature cannabis is prohibited. 
  So now it's up to the licenced Oklahoma growers and processors to harvest, dry, and package the first crops and get them to the licensed dispensaries.
  Imported cannabis medicines are illegal to sell as are crops from non-licensed producers.
  Dispensaries and growers have strict 'seed-to-sale' reporting mandates which are due monthly to the Medical Marijuana Authority.
  Testing and standardizing of products is still an initiative of the marketplace, until the legislature can find consensus on a new statute about what essential tests must be done. 

   Very little will be noticeable to Oklahomans because licensed growers are going to wait until crops are optimal, before they begin to harvest. 

  Have you ever found yourself in a conversation with a fellow Oklahoman, and started hearing references to elections and politicians you've never heard of? 
 So have we. And to tell you the truth, it's great to finally start reading up on some of the wild times that Oklahoma has had in the political arena. 
  The most important reason to be well versed on past elections and issues is that they tend to be cyclical. The same battles we fought 30 years ago are right back in front of us now.
  In other situations we have traded extremes in one ditch and now find ourselves in the opposite ditch.
SoonerPolitics teamed up with Survey Monkey to create a series of trivia quizzes about Oklahoma's unique political history. 
We hope you find this first quiz to be fun, but challenging. But more than that, we hope it helps you appreciate the uniqueness of our Sooner State.

  Now his nephew(Drew) seeks to become the oldest.  Drew's father & uncle were raised in a home which was enamored with politics. They became a force in Muskogee County at a time when Muskogee was a major economic force in Oklahoma. 
  J Howard became an attorney and advanced as a prosecutor in his late 20s & early 30s. Then he ran for governor and won at age 33. He was sworn in on a January day in 1959. That year there were only 3 Republicans in the State Senate and only 9 Republicans in the State House.
  J Howard was generally a failed and disrespected kid, in the eyes of the Oklahoma legislature.  He was an ardent enforcer of liquor prohibition during the time when the Oklahoma voters overwhelmingly voted to end the decades-long ban on liquor.
  Within 2 years at the Governor's office  J Howard was hated and rendered politically impotent.
  He did not run for a 2nd term in office. But that was nothing new. No Oklahoma governor had ever succeeded in gaining a second term.  Still in his mid 30s, J Howard was already a 'has been' and he was likely going to go from 'king' to a backroom role as kingmaker.
​ In 1958, Oklahoma Democrats had almost killed off Republicans in state govt. in 1958, But in 1962, Oklahomans elected Republican Henry Bellmon as the next governor.

  The newest technologies have vastly changed the way citizens can impact government policies and services. Much of this is very positive and those who adapt & innovate are benefitting from greater access and impact in the legislature, administrations, and with all the agencies of federal, state and local government.
  To that end, a citizen advocacy coalition is providing all Oklahomans with training on how to utilize the powerful tools in your own pocket, purse, or night stand. Here's their press release:

Oklahoma's constitution is 108 years old. It has it's problems and we citizens have amended it more than 150 times. But there is a current state question we should reject.  The title of SQ798 says that;

  When Democrat Gov. David Hall was convicted of felonies, removed from office, and went to prison; the people were confident in the lieutenant governor they had voted for. George Nigh was elected separate from Hall and enjoys a high regard for independence and integrity.
  Nigh was not a crony of Hall and was free of the tainted image that Hall had become known for. Oklahomans then elected Nigh to 2 additional terms as governor.

  Successful business leaders have long desired to try their hands at government service. Most of them fail to even win their initial race. Such was expected to be the fate of Kevin Stitt.
  But a 'midnight miracle' happened on June 26th & he edged out the sitting lieutenant governor to enter the runoff election against the favorite, OKC 4-term mayor, Mick Cornett.
  Sure, Stitt put a fortune of his own family wealth into the race. But he earned that wealth by succeeding in the mortgage financing industry... again, by marketing and serving the needs of American homeowners. 
   Stitt is not some carpetbagger or social media celebrity. He's a son of a central Oklahoma church pastor and lives a very common Oklahoman working class narrative. He is full of a willingness to push himself to excellence. He has shown a genuine skill at communicating to a broad range of social classes, lifestyles, generations, and ethnicities.
  Stitt is true to the Republican message of government reform and productivity.  He believes in lean and agile agencies which can adjust to a variety of economic conditions in the state.  As a master in the service industry,  he expects our state agencies to be service-oriented and focused on providing assistance to the state's residents.

  This week, there was yet another attempt to discredit the judgeship of James Caputo.  This one involved Mike Hunter & the Oklahoma Attorney General's office.
  Caputo says that on Tuesday of this week he was called to his chambers to meet with an asst. attorney general and another unnamed associate of the AG's office. 
They demanded Caputo's "immediate resignation".  The AGA claimed to have evidence that incriminates the judge in a prostitution sting.  The AGA said that he would use the AG's office powers to keep the allegations secret and unprosecuted IF the judge would simply bow out of the election and resign immediately.
  Caputo insisted that a full investigation is required and he is certain he would be exonerated by such a due process.
  The judge and his secured personal attorney, Clark Brewster, narrated a story that the AG's office was only interested in getting rid of the judge immediately, and not at all about securing the truth.
   But last spring there was yet another narrative coming from Oklahoma City. That narrative included the Secretary of State who was running for the seat Judge Caputo currently occupies. James Williamson repeatedly told SoonerPolitics that Judge Caputo is a sexual harasser.

  Medical Patients won a landmark ruling in Oklahoma District Court on Wednesday when Judge Patrick Pickerill granted full relief to the plaintiff, a medical cannabis retail dispensary owner and went much further by also prohibiting the city from predatory fees and requirements which violate patient privacy laws.
  The statutes passed by the entire state's voter base just last June, has explicit language to keep municipalities from making special ordinances on this medical treatment. 
  If the patient and dispensary have proper certification by the Oklahoma Dept. of Health, then the healthcare is to be treated no differently than Oklahoma's current pharmacies and the patrons they serve.   The only local stipulation is that dispensaries remain 1000 feet from the doorway of schools.
  Pickerill ruled that Broken Arrow has no legal grounds to limit medical marijuana business activities.
 "The Court finds that, as a matter of law, Oklahoma cities are precluded from adopting regulations, zoning overlays, fees or other restrictions as to the medical marijuana business activities authorized by Oklahoma’s Medical Marijuana Act, 63 O.S. sec. 420A, et seq. (“Act”), and that Broken Arrow’s Ordinances 3540 and 3542 as revised and adopted on September 18, 2018 were restrictions adopted by Broken Arrow that are not permissible under the Act," Pickerill wrote.

  This weekend we saw the successful release of an American clergyman from a Turkish prison. Pastor Andrew Brunson was whisked away as soon as he walked out of Turkish jailors and flown to a US military installation in nearby Germany. From there he was given a medical exam and then put on a flight to the US where President Donald Trump asked him & James Lankford to come to the White House for a Saturday welcoming celebration.
  The effort for Brunson's release started years ago when a failed coup was followed by a paranoid crackdown by the strongman president, Tayyip Erdogan.  Any foreigner was viewed with suspicion, especially in the aftermath of several "Arab Spring" revolutions which are globally attributed to the Barack Obama administration's foreign policy of Hillary Clinton.
  In June, the Turkish opposition media, AHVAL, puts it this way;

  With many polls announcing dramatic swings in battleground states, Oklahoma remains solidly poised for consistent OKGOP control. 
  Last cycle all the congressmen won by wide margins. This time around there is only one district which even drew any speculator's interest. 
  Congressman Steve Russell is more than 10% ahead of Democrat Challenger, Kendra Horn.
  Other states are seeing some bleeding, especially in battleground suburban metropolitan districts, such as Minneapolis, Pittsburgh, and Cleveland.
  In the US Senate, Republicans now have 50 seats considered safe and have opportunity to gain 6 more battleground slots which Democrats are defending. Oklahoma has no US Senate race this cycle.
  Oklahoma's closest watched race is the governor's mansion. Political newcomer, businessman Kevin Stitt is sounding the refreshing Reagan-Republican talking points that the Republican legislature all but abandoned in the past 2 years.  Stitt was playing catch up until the August 28th runoff. But by labor day he established a 3 point edge. September saw him continue his effective messaging and he doubled the margin to 6 points in the most recent SoonerPoll.