Oklahoma State Senator Rob Standridge says Senate Bill 658 protects parental rights, right to privacy
Click on the headline to read the full article at CapitolBeatOK
Oklahoma State Senator Rob Standridge says Senate Bill 658 protects parental rights right to privacy8/7/2021
CapitolBeatOK Staff Report
On the heels of Gov. Kevin Stitt’s ceremonial signing of Senate Bill 658, by Sen. Rob Standridge, R-Norman, and Rep. Kevin West, R-Moore, Standridge said the bill is about protecting parental rights and the right to privacy.
S.B. 658 prohibits schools from requiring COVID-19 vaccinations and bars schools, including colleges and universities, from requiring students who haven’t received the vaccine to wear masks.
“It’s about the rights of parents over the power of government. The bill in no way restricts a parent or citizen’s right to wear a mask or take a vaccine,” Standridge said.
“It simply protects the rights of parents and citizens to decide what is best for themselves and their children. I trust parents to determine what is best for their children, just as God has entrusted them.”
Standridge said while many politicians are pushing to take away the ability for parents to make those medical choices, he’s increasingly hearing from constituents frustrated those same politicians are not addressing the undocumented aliens pouring over the southern border and the tremendous risk they pose to public health in this country.
“Every month, hundreds of thousands of undocumented aliens are illegally crossing into our country, infected with no telling how many variants of how many diseases,” Standridge said.
“People are wondering why the same all-knowing government, supported by leftist politicians and media, are saying and doing nothing to protect against the spread of disease by these non-citizens, while pushing to vilify Americans who have serious concerns about the safety and effectiveness of vaccines and masks.”
Standridge said that continued push to force medical choices on citizens and their children proves the need for Senate Bill 658.
“I encourage all citizens, especially parents, to stand strong and look out for what is best for your children, regardless of what politicians and their lackies tell you," Standridge said.
"To those education institutions in Oklahoma, particularly those funded through taxpayer dollars, they need to follow and respect the law as clearly expressed in S.B. 658. They must not mandate or otherwise coerce parents and their children to take measures, including wearing masks, against their will. These schools are funded by taxpayers, so we as taxpayers expect them to follow the law in S.B. 658 that respects citizens’ fundamental rights to choose what is best for themselves and their children.”
Oklahoma State Senator Rob Standridge says Senate Bill 658 protects parental rights, right to privacy Click on the headline to read the full article at CapitolBeatOK
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CapitolBeatOK Staff Report
Oklahoma City – Having raised $773,432.26 in the second quarter of this year, Governor Kevin Stitt is well-positioned for a strong reelection drive.
His campaign had $1.2 million in cash on hand at mid-year, giving him a powerful edge over all present and potential opponents in both parties.
According to a press release from his campaign staff, “During Governor Kevin Stitt’s time in office, he has fulfilled a number of campaign promises.” In addition to sharing the campaign’s cash data (https://ift.tt/3lGjgUG ), the late July release touted positive advances based directly on his 2018 campaign promises.
These include steps that have:
• Reformed the structure of State government to hold more agency directors accountable to the will of the people.
• Raised teacher pay and invested in education at historic levels while enacting reforms to the funding formula to focus tax dollars on the students.
• Posted Oklahoma’s checkbook online, raising Oklahoma’s ranking of online budget transparency from #46 to #7 in one year.
• Enacted criminal justice reform, calling for and signing into law the nation’s largest communication of individuals in prison for non-violent offenses and quickly driving down Oklahoma’s incarceration ranking from #50 to #46.
• Signed every pro-life bill sent to his desk, to include legislation that immediately outlaws abortion should Roe v. Wade by overturned and bans abortion at the detection of a fetal heartbeat.
The press release sent to CapitolBeatOK.com and other news organizations announced the return of Donelle Harder in April, “as campaign manager for the re-election.”
Concerning Harder’s place in the effort, Governor Stitt said, “Donelle is a trusted strategic advisor who has been with us from the very beginning.”
For herself, Harder said in a statement, “Gov. Stitt has brought a business approach and outsider perspective to State government that has proven to be a resounding success in leading a turnaround for Oklahoma. It’s no wonder recent polling has identified Kevin Stitt as the most popular elected official in the State.”
She concluded: “We look forward to a strong re-elect effort as we build statewide momentum for another 4 years of conservative leadership focused on government accountability and economic growth.”
Note: Pat McGuigan contributed to this report.
Oklahoma Governor Kevin Stitt's campaign touts funding achievements, announces Donelle Harder’s return to management Click on the headline to read the full article at CapitolBeatOK
Patrick B. McGuigan
Oklahoma City – There are some news stories that make a person ask: “What’s up with that?”
Here are a couple of examples.
Tres Savage of NonDoc.com, an online news service, is a fine reporter, careful in his approach to his chosen profession. During the latter years I worked from a cubby-hole office in the state Capitol newsroom, I grew to respect his seriousness and methodical approach to news about politicians and policy.
In the age of COVID caution, I’ve not seen him often -- but I read his work and that of his reporters every day.
In a July 23 story about Governor Kevin Stitt’s appointment of Tulsa attorney John O’Connor as state attorney general, Savage referenced something that those who cover our government know is happening, but for the most part lack specific data to cite in our reporting.
Savage avoided sensationalism and stuck to the swirl of information, including with this nugget:
“Numerous criminal investigations involving public entities and public officials ... are ongoing, and O’Connor may ultimately have to make decisions on matters of potential public corruption, although some of the cases are under investigation by federal law enforcement agencies.”
Early last year, when the state Supreme Court found unconstitutional a state law (Senate Bill 608) concerning regulations on access of distributors to name-brand liquor and wine. It was a case that pivoted on the meaning of the words “may” and “shall” – the sort of decision that delights legal eagles, and can frustrate even intelligent non-lawyers.
In that story, Savage referenced one critic of the 5-4 decision – state Representative Chris Kannady, an Oklahoma City Republican.
Savage reported (italics below):
“It’s obvious that it’s still a contentious issue since the court is divided,” Kannady said. “It’s not the first time I’ve disagreed with the court, and it probably won’t be the last.”
Asked if he thought political drama surrounding S.B. 608 had spurred the FBI to look into how political contributions are made and how legislative business is conducted in Oklahoma, Kannady said he believes the FBI was looking at proposed legislation that he was not involved with.
“I’m not going to comment on that. I’m not worried about it,” Kannady said. “And I don’t think that was the only thing that was tied to. There were other issues and bills that I had nothing to do with that were tied into that.”
Kannady is the first person to discuss the FBI’s investigation on the record. Others have discussed the matter on background with NonDoc.
As the great Paul Harvey, whom it was my pleasure to print (and occasionally edit) early in my career, used to say, “Stay tuned, for News!”
Note: This analysis first appeared in the August 2021 print edition of The City Sentinel newspaper in Oklahoma City.
Something that made an inquiring mind ask: ‘What’s up with that?” Click on the headline to read the full article at CapitolBeatOK
Joe Dorman, Oklahoma Institute for Child Advocacy
OKLAHOMA CITY – The Oklahoma Institute for Child Advocacy held our annual Heroes Ball on Friday, July 30. The event was special this year.
We held the first (that we know) simulcast nonprofit event in Oklahoma for a program of our size from two separate fantastic venues. We had great crowds at the Skirvin Hotel in Oklahoma City and the Greenwood Cultural Center in Tulsa.
Encore Events ran the broadcast live with masters of ceremonies at each venue setting up the speakers who were prerecorded. Not only were we able to get back together, but we also had a Zoom for people to watch from home. Special thanks go to Randy Cassimus with Harmony Media for masterfully editing the speeches and keeping us on schedule.
Among the prestigious awards is our annual Anne Roberts People’s Choice Award; we had a record number of online votes for it this year. The State Department of Education swept the awards with SoonerStart winning the organization award and Melissa Ahlgrim, Director of Reading Sufficiency, winning the individual advocate.
Other heroes for children honored were Chad and Charis Richison; Bob and Jean Harbison; frontline workers at state, county, and tribal health departments for their heroic vaccination work; the producers for the “Tulsa Burning” documentary; as well as the Honorable Judy Eason McIntyre and the Honorable J.C. Watts.
An event such as this takes months of planning and dedication to execute. This was done by our outstanding team of OICA board members and employees, along with selfless volunteers who help with this each year.
This event, especially in the middle of a pandemic, is difficult to make happen I appreciate everyone who had a hand in seeing this be successful in our fifth time to hold the Heroes Ball. I especially want to thank the health department workers who attended and set up a vaccination station to provide COVID-19.
I also need to thank each of our honorary banquet chairs: the former Congressman J.C. Watts, former Congressman Dan Boren, and Senior Vice-President Mary Blankenship Pointer with Frontier State Bank. Our board event chair, MJ Barton, also dedicated a tremendous amount of time to helping pull things together for the event, and auctioneer Bailey Ballou from Elgin helped us sell several items to help secure extra dollars.
OICA did everything we possibly could to ensure safety was our utmost priority. We limited attendance at both in-person venues and provided masks for people at our check-in, along with the encouragement to wear them. I only took mine off while giving my closing speech and when taking a few pictures with people at the end.
I have had COVID-19 and I certainly do not want to go through that experience again, nor do I want to see any of our guests contract it. Please keep masking and if you have not gotten your COVID-19 vaccination yet, please consider doing so to protect those around you.
OICA now shift our focus to assisting with First Lady Sarah Stitt’s “Back to School” event by providing backpacks through the OK Foster Wishes program.
We have begun planning for our virtual Fall Forum, which will shape our legislative agenda for 2022. Please go to oica.org to learn more about how you can be a part of our work.
About OICA: The Oklahoma Institute for Child Advocacy was established in 1983 by a group of citizens seeking to create a strong advocacy network that would provide a voice for the needs of children and youth in Oklahoma, particularly those in the state’s care and those growing up amid poverty, violence, abuse and neglect, disparities, or other situations that put their lives and future at risk. Our mission statement: “Creating awareness, taking action, and changing policy to improve the health, safety, and well-being of Oklahoma’s children.”
‘And a good time was had by all ...’ – OICA’s Heroes Ball is in the books Click on the headline to read the full article at CapitolBeatOK
CapitolBeatOK Staff Report
As a part of a unique Corporate Work Study Program, Cristo Rey Oklahoma City Catholic High School (Cristo Rey OKC) will celebrate Draft Day on Friday, August 6.
Cristo Rey OKC’s Draft Day matches students to an employer for the upcoming school year. The Corporate Work Study Program offers an opportunity for students to understand the value of hard work while helping stabilize high-turnover positions, reduce burnout in full-time staff and bring community engagement into workplaces.
“The local businesses we’ve partnered with provide an opportunity for our students to earn their tuition, gain valuable work experience and begin developing in-demand skills that our workforce needs today,” Cristo Rey OKC President Chip Carter said. “Our school focuses on closing the growing gap between education and our workforce by preparing our students for their future careers with hands-on experience. That opportunity for experience is possible through or Corporate Work Study Partners.” (https://ift.tt/3A4S9qm)
Cristo Rey OKC opened its doors in August 2018 and is one of 38 nationwide schools that make up the Cristo Rey Network. (https://ift.tt/2Ypxlc3 )
The Corporate Work Study Program includes several Oklahoma City businesses from a variety of industries such as Love’s Travel Stops and Country Stores, Integris, The Boldt Company, Chesapeake Energy, and more. A full list can be found at https?//cristoreyokc.org/work-study .
“When a business becomes a Cristo Rey OKC Corporate Work Study Partner, they are provided with a team of four students that work on alternating days to cover one full-time equivalent position,” Carter continued. “Since our students are employees of Cristo Rey OKC, they are on our payroll. Therefore, we handle taxes, workers comp, the Department of Labor and other employer issues, while businesses receive reliable and productive employees at a highly-competitive rate in return.”
Assuming the role of an employee-leasing agency, the Corporate Work Study Program has streamlined the process for employing students. Through a fee-for-service contract, paid quarterly, annually or monthly by the Corporate Work Study partner, our students are employed through the Corporate Work Study Program and assigned jobs at our individual partners. Students work in a four-person, job-sharing team to fill one full-time equivalent position during standard daily business hours, Monday through Friday, for the entire academic year. Academic schedules are structured so that students work without ever missing class.
Corporate Work Study applications and donations are accepted year-round to help support the mission of Cristo Rey OKC and its students. Businesses interested in becoming a Corporate Work Study Partner or donating can visit CristoReyOKC .
The returning class of senior (grade 12) students will be the first graduating class at Cristo Rey Oklahoma City Catholic High School .
About Cristo Rey Oklahoma City: Cristo Rey OKC Catholic High School is an independent Catholic school that educates young people of limited economic means to become men and women of faith, knowledge, purpose and service. A member of the national Cristo Rey Network of 38 schools, Cristo Rey OKC combines rigorous academics with real-world work experience, seeking to prepare their students for success in college and life. As part of Cristo Rey’s unique Corporate Work Study Program, students work one day a week in professional settings, earning a majority of their own tuition.
Cristo Rey Oklahoma City students drafted to work with local businesses Click on the headline to read the full article at CapitolBeatOK
Steve Fair
The Holocaust, also known as the Shoah, refers to the killing of over six million European Jews during WWII by Nazi Germany.
Approximately two thirds of Europe’s Jewish population was killed between 1941-45. It remains one of the most brutal, depraved acts in human history.
In order to readily identify Jews, the Germans required them to wear a badge in the form of a yellow star of David. The badges were printed on coarse yellow cloth and were a garish yellow.
Last week, the OKGOP Facebook page had a post comparing Oklahoma business owners who are requiring their employees to be vaccinated before they come back to work as being required to wear a yellow star. A yellow star was photoshopped in the post to read “unvaccinated.”
The post encouraged readers to contact Lt. Governor Matt Pinnell and ask him to call a special legislative session to address private employer vaccine mandates. Governor Kevin Stitt is out of the country and when he is not in the state, the Lt. Governor is the state’s top elected official. By Sunday, the post has been commented on 2,500 times and shared 1,000 times.
Some took offense at the post.
Roberta Clark, the executive director of the Jewish Federation of Greater Oklahoma City said, “It’s sad and ironic that anyone would draw an analogy from one of the largest recorded genocides in the 20th century with public health attempts to save lives.”
In a combined statement, several elected officials -- Governor Kevin Stitt, Lt. Governor Matt Pinnell, Senators Jim Inhofe and James Lankford, Congressman Markayne Mullin and Oklahoma Senate President Pro Tempore Greg Treat said: “It is irresponsible and wrong to compare an effective vaccine- developed by President Trump’s Operation Warp Speed- to the horrors of the Holocaust. People should have the liberty to choose if they take the vaccine, but we should never compare the unvaccinated to the victims of the Holocaust.”
Three observations:
First, no individual should be mandated to take or excused from taking the vaccine by government.
That is an individual choice. There is a significant percentage of the U.S. population who are hesitant and have resisted taking the vaccine. They have a right to not take it and not be harassed by the vaccinated or the government.
Conversely, those who take the vaccine have a right to take it without being harassed by the unvaccinated or the government. Each person should make up their own mind regarding the vaccine. Government has done enough by making the vaccine available.
Second, private business owners have a right to require employees to take the vaccine.
Republicans believe businesses should not face regulations/restrictions on their business. If a business owner is trying to keep his business viable and believes mandatory vaccinations are necessary to accomplish that, it is their right to require it.
Businesses must be pragmatic. They can be charitable, but they are not a charity. If they don’t remain profitable, they don’t stay in business and in turn don’t create jobs. Requiring employees to be vaccinated may put an employee in a tough situation. If they feel that strongly about not being jabbed, they may have to find another job.
Third, there should not have been a comparison between the Holocaust and being unvaccinated.
The Jews in Europe were exterminated/murdered/slaughtered. The worse the unvaccinated in Oklahoma would face is the possibility of losing their job. That’s not the same.
Opinions vary on the vaccine. Some believe the government is injecting poison into people. Others believe the government is injecting a microchip that will be used in the future to track people. Still others believe the vaccine is the solution to returning to a normal life. Take the shot or not -- it’s your choice.
But business owners should also have a choice. They must be afforded autonomy, freedom and liberty to operate their business without government interference, to remain viable. That is a fundamental Republican principle.
NOTE: Steve Fair is conservative commentator whose essays often appear at CapitolBeatOK.com, an independent, non-partisan news organization based in Oklahoma City, and in The City Sentinel newspaper. Fair is Chairman for the Oklahoma Republican Party in the state’s Fourth Congressional District. Steve can be reached by email at [email protected]. His blog is stevefair.blogspot.com.
Vaccine: Take it or Leave it! Click on the headline to read the full article at CapitolBeatOK
CapitolBeatOK Staff Report
Oklahoma City – Goodwill Industries of Central Oklahoma (Goodwill) will host its inaugural “Work the Runway” fashion show from 6-9 p.m. on Friday, Aug. 20. The fashion show fundraising event will celebrate the 85th anniversary of Goodwill and years of transforming Oklahoma lives since the nonprofit was founded in 1936.
(https://okgoodwill.org/ )
“Our mission is to help people overcome challenges to employment,” Goodwill CEO Jim Priest said. “The Work the Runway fashion show is just one way we are celebrating our 85th anniversary. We are proud of the work we’ve done and look forward to continuing our efforts to provide Oklahomans with the resources they need to get back on their feet.”
Goodwill employees and local social media influencers will come together to showcase and model different styles of outfits found at a local Goodwill store. The interactive fashion show will feature music by DJ’s Carte Blanche and an art display showcasing recycled items.
There will also be a fashion boutique with high-end items found at Goodwill’s central Oklahoma stores. Items include an Epiphone electric guitar, vintage camera and Coach purse, to name a few. The event will benefit Goodwill employment services, including the new mobile Job Connection Center.
Over the past 85 years, Goodwill has helped Oklahomans overcome challenges to employment by providing job training and skills to those in need. The Job Connection Center and Goodwill Career Pathways Institute give many community members free access to training in computer skills, money management, job applications and more. The new mobile unit will travel throughout central Oklahoma, enabling more people to receive these resources.
Oklahomans are invited to attend Work the Runway at the Oklahoma Contemporary located at 11 NW 11th St., Oklahoma City, OK 73103 .
Limited quantities of individual tickets can be purchased at (https://worktherunway.com/ ).
Additionally, there are multiple sponsorship opportunities available.
Presenting sponsors for this event are Whitten Burrage Law Firm and Mathis Brothers Furniture and additional sponsors include Jones PR, Complete Alarm Technology Systems, Enable Midstream Partners, Immediate Care OK and Insurica.
To learn about Goodwill and its mission, please visit (https://okgoodwill.org/ )
(This story first appeared at The City Sentinel newspaper website, here: https://www.city-sentinel.com/2021/07/goodwill-industries-of-central-oklahoma-to-host-fashion-show-for-85th-anniversary/ .
About Goodwill Industries of Central Oklahoma: Goodwill Industries of Central Oklahoma is a community-based, nonprofit agency in Central Oklahoma with one outlet store, 24 retail stores and 17 attended donation centers and a Job Connection Center throughout 37 counties. Goodwill is a sustainable social enterprise that funds job training programs, employment placement services and other community-based programs by selling donated clothing and household items. To find a Goodwill location near you, use the online locator at okgoodwill.org.
Goodwill Industries of Central Oklahoma to host Fashion Show for 85th anniversary Click on the headline to read the full article at CapitolBeatOK |
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