"There's a new Web log for political junkies in Oklahoma -- the Oklahoma Political News Service." -- Roll Call
“A source confirms the report in the Oklahoma Political News Service that the Ethics Commission had started looking into alleged campaign donation irregularities.”Jerry Bohnen - News Radio 1000 KTOK-AM (Oklahoma City)
"Emails & documents with the Senator's personal handwritten notes are posted on the website OKPNS.com" --FOX 25 News (OKC)
“It Looks like right now, I’m getting more stuff about what’s happening at the state capitol through blogs than through the old media.” – Political analyst Scott Mitchell
It also looks like the editors and writers over at the Tulsa World and The Oklahoman are getting their news from the blogs as well. At least The Oklahomancredits blogs they lift stories from.
Okie Pundit:
We learn that the Tulsa World picked up our story on Dan Sullivan and Cliff Aldridge receiving questionable donations from an insurance company that will benefit from legislation Sullivan is carrying this year. Unfortunately, they didn’t credit us.Read more…
‘Two of them that are missing up on that board are OKPNS as well as the McCarville Report, both good at covering what’s going on at the state capitol. That increasingly has been their role as the capital press corp has been decreasing in size – and that is a bad thing.”
Last Friday’s Your Vote Counts show with host Scott Mitchell did a segment on the Oklahoma blogosphere. Congratulations to the following blogs that were mentioned on air:
We were especially honored to be mentioned in the same breath with the McCoffeville Report Online McCarville Report Online. Not bad for a discredited blog, huh Mike?
With President Obama’s first state of the union address scheduled for tonight, we thought we’d take you back to a “Your Vote Counts” show from May of last year discussing the president’s first 100 days. Also talked about on this episode was a controversial loan Senate Pro Tem Coffee received – from a then unnamed source – to pay his delinquent tax obligations.
Okie Pundit dissects the Fallin/Brogdon race for the Republican nomination for governor. News 9’s Scott Mitchell gives his analysis of the overall race for governor.
After receiving positive feedback for our last examination of a race that was over before it began, we’re placing the spotlight on another primary destined to end up heavily lopsided.
Congresswoman Mary Fallin vs. State Senator Randy Brogdon for the Republican gubernatorial nomination. Fallin is serving her second term as the Congressional Representative for Oklahoma’s 5th District, prior to which she served three terms as Lieutenant Governor. Brogdon has represented the Owasso area in the State Senate since 2002.
As always, money is a very important factor in a campaign, especially on a statewide level. A successful candidate must be able to purchase enough media points to generate name identification, win supporters, and motivate them to vote. Here are the rounded fundraising figures through the last filing period in October. Read more…
Excerpts from this morning’s radio edition of “Your Vote Counts” on AM 1520:
VOTER ID:
“What is so wrong with proving who you are.” - Randy Renner
“Solution looking for a problem. The voter system in Oklahoma is one of the best in the country.” - Rep. Morrissette
“There’s the nonsense of this argument. How would we know if there is voter fraud since we don’t require I.D. now?” - Rep. Terrill
SEN. COFFEE:
“Should Glenn Coffee resign his position as leader of the Senate?”
“No he should not. Before this ever became a story, Glenn Coffee manned up and paid his taxes that were due.” – Rep. Terrill
“We have heard resolution after resolution to stop out of state travel by members of the state house of representatives. My friends on the right won’t hear it.” - Rep. Morrissette
Excerpts from this morning’s radio edition of “Your Vote Counts” on AM 1520:
“He just took a crisis and turned it worse.”- Scott Mitchell
“It boggles my mind. No wonder so many Republicans are pushing tax cuts!” - Randy Renner
“His credibility is a little bit damaged. If he seeks the AG, I think that could be problematic.”- Rep. Randy Terrill
“Barack Obama’s recovery program is going to save the State of Oklahoma and the state Republicans from their fiscal mismanagement.”- Rep. Richard Morrissette
Like Jake and Elwood, it appears another successful act may be getting back together, and there’s a distinctly Oklahoma angle to the story. Today’s Washington Post reveals that the old “Harry and Louise” team is gearing up for another health care reform ballet, and the name of an Oklahoman that played a key role in the first battle is surfacing once again.
President-Elect Obama noted in today’s press conference that “sound policy” on items such as health care will be necessary to fix the nation’s ailing economy. No doubt there will be much debate on precisely just what “sound policy” is, and the Goddard-Claussen team will no doubt be involved in defining that term.
So what is the Oklahoma angle? It was 1993 that an unknown Oklahoma company was drafted by the Goddard-Claussen team to run advocacy operations. It was News9’s political analyst Scott Mitchell that worked alongside Ben Goddard and Rick Claussen to design the advocacy and grassroots programs that defeated the Clinton health initiative and subsequent attempts at the state level throughout the 1990’s. Mitchell later added trial consulting to his firm’s menu, becoming an expert in pre-trial publicity and advising some of the nation’s top lawyers on the public aspects of legal cases, becoming the first public affairs/media consultant in America to teach Continuing Legal Education (CLE) on strategies in the “Court of Public Opinion.” With Mitchell on the National Board of Directors of DC-based Community Health Charities, the nation’s top patient charity organization, rumors are flying the life-long Oklahoman will be heavily-recruited to join the new Goddard-Claussen team in DC.
Regardless, as President–Elect Obama re-assembles many of the same people that advanced a government takeover in the early 1990’s, it sounds as if yet another retro-band is getting back together, and unlike the recent Republican effort, this band knows how to win.
Developing…..
Flashback Video: Harry and Louise on Hillary Clinton’s health plan (1994)
The “Your Vote Counts” gang discusses the week in politics on the Sunrise News program with Ken Johnson & Randy Renner. YVC can be heard every Wednesday morning at 7:45.
Content disclaimer: Oklahoma Political News Service content posted by users does not represent the opinion of Oklahoma Political News Service. OKPNS makes no representations as to the accuracy or validity of this third-party content and is not liable in any way for the use of or reliance upon such content. Whenever possible, such information is marked with the name of the source. No content herein has been authorized by any candidate or political party.
So what is the Oklahoma angle? It was 1993 that an unknown Oklahoma company was drafted by the Goddard-Claussen team to run advocacy operations. It was 
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