By Ron McWhirter

We believe the most important product of this publication is our annual Oklahoma Conservative Index which rates members of the Oklahoma Legislature. We published our first scorecard in the summer of 1979, and with this summer issue we present the 48th edition of the ratings. ...

By Steve Byas

Democracy and republic are two terms that are used by many interchangeably, but they are not the same thing. On the contrary, in many regards, they are poles apart. ...

By Shane Smith

Our state is under a sustained invasion by Big Tech to place their resource-devouring data centers on our land. “Invasion” is an accurate term to describe what is happening, as large corporations descend on Oklahoma to exploit our relatively cheap electricity, water, and gullible city councils who are cajoled into entering into murky agreements with faceless megacorps, and in the process selling out their community and surrounding population for…what, exactly? ...

By Tim Bakamjian

Former State Senator Mike Mazzei finished a close second to Attorney General Gentner Drummond in the Oklahoma Republican gubernatorial primary on June 16, 2026. Drummond won 26.3% of the vote to Mazzei’s 26%, which translated to a less than 1,200 vote difference between the two. As the top two finishers, they advance to the runoff primary election scheduled for August 25th, 2026. ...

By Jason Murphey

As Oklahomans brace for a return of establishment power in the State Senate, there’s one wildcard factor that could change everything. Those who have given in to the doom and gloom surrounding the potential return of establishment Senator Lonnie Paxton to preside over the State Senate are overlooking one very important factor – a wildcard that simply isn’t being properly analyzed. ...

By Allan Wall

July 4th, 2026 was the 250th anniversary of the adoption of the Declaration of Independence, 250 years ago. I hope that all the readers of the Oklahoma Constitution had a good Independence Day. Two hundred and fifty years is a quarter-millennium, making the USA the 23rd oldest nation-state in the world. Oklahoma was not one of the 13 English Colonies that became the USA, so we don’t have Revolutionary War battlefields in Oklahoma. However, as State #46 in the United States of America, ...

By Bob Linn

The appearance of Gentner Drummond as a public figure reminds me of the anti-Christian shift in thought Machiavelli (1469-1527) brought to the political world in 1513. In his brief commentary of Niccolo Machiavelli’s The Prince, author and professor W. B. Allen wrote an article in a 1997 Yale University Press publication that explains Drummond’s stand against historic Western thought. He wrote: “It is remarkable that so many of the architects of modern politics find Machiavelli’s Pri...

By John Michener

I recently received an article from a pro-life apologist who tried to make a positive case for continuing to protect women who choose to kill their offspring by abortion. Here are the author’s key claims in her own words: “[T]he vast, vast, vast majority of women who have abortions…don’t have the level of culpability or knowledge necessary to make it just to prosecute them for having abortions.” “Given the cultural knowledge in the U.S. as it is today, I don’t believe it would b...

By David Deming

There is late news from the US Supreme Court. Last June 30, the Court granted certiorari in Viramontes v. Cook County and Grant v. Higgins, consolidating challenges to gun bans in Connecticut and Cook County, Illinois. After years of frustration and denials, the Supreme Court has finally agreed to review and decide if state and local bans on semi-automatic rifles, such as the AR-15, are constitutional. ...

By Aiya Kelley

As I wrote in last quarter’s article, one of the most important responsibilities we have as citizens is participating in the electoral process. At that time, my focus was on encouraging people across our state to get out and vote. Since then, the primary elections have taken place, and we have now moved into the runoff season. Once again, Oklahomans find themselves with the opportunity – and the responsibility – to help determine who will represent our communities for the years ahead. ...

By Ron McWhirter

We dodged the bullet with the failure of State Question 836 to reach the Oklahoma ballot. The proposal would have dramatically changed the way elections are conducted in Oklahoma. It would have replaced the current “closed primary” system – where only the members of a political party can vote to select the nominees for their party to appear on the General Election ballot for all voters. Instead, under the so-called “open primary” proposal, which is more correctly called a “jungle...

By Steve Byas

Oklahomans will go to the polls on June 16 to vote on State Question 832 – a proposal to have the government, not the free market, determine what is a proper wage. ...

By Tim Bakamjian

June 16, 2026 is Primary Election Day in Oklahoma. Voters will choose candidates for a wide variety of positions. However, perhaps no vote cast that day will be as important, on a long-term basis, as how they vote on Oklahoma State Question 832. ...

By Charlie Meadows

If Oklahomans pass State Question 832 we will start a three year process to raise our minimum wage to $15.00 per hour. We won’t experience any affect for the first two years, as entry level jobs in Oklahoma already start around the $10 to $12 dollar range. But, after the third year, the minimum wage will rapidly increase each year based on cost of living increases in large cities such as New York and San Francisco, as measured by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Consumer Price Index for Urban...

By Reed Downey, Jr.

Oklahoma School Boards, as they are currently structured, have been and are a dismal failure for millions of Oklahoma kids! Moore Public Schools had a school board election on April 7th. The Moore School District held a public debate to educate school patrons on which candidate would be the best suited for the seat. There were two candidates. One is running for reelection, the other is running to replace the current board member. An independent journalist who writes on education issues atte...

By Shane Smith

On April 16, Welch Public Schools in Craig County released a statement informing parents and students that the district would be ending their “one laptop for each student” policy, beginning in the fall semester. Rather than taking their laptop with them wherever they go, students would no longer have an individual device assigned to them, and all laptops would remain in the classroom – only to be used when needed. It doesn’t take too much guesswork to understand that the district is...

By Linda Murphy

The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) and other global organizations have had a large role in driving the centralized control of education and the models which have been produced and proven to fail. That includes: President Clinton’s Outcomes Based Education (OBE); President Bush’s No Child Left Behind (NCLB); and President Obama’s Common Core. ...

By Jason Murphey

Time and again, ambitious legislators now seeking higher office run what I have termed “The Great Grassroots Gaslighting Gauntlet.” One by one, they appear before Republican grassroots groups, attempting to convince audiences – hopeful and eager to support those who share their values – that they are the true conservative candidate of choice. For the most part, that gaslighting hasn’t worked. The grassroots are becoming more sophisticated. With the rise of a freer, more open X foll...

By Allan Wall

It’s 2026 and gubernatorial elections are being held in 36 states, including Oklahoma. There are fifteen candidates running for governor in Oklahoma. Some aren’t famous and don’t stand much of a chance. But even if you lose, running for office raises your profile and may lead to future opportunities. ...

By Bob Linn

America is trending communist. Less that 100 years ago, communism and socialism were anathema to most Americans. Last August, Gallop polling found that only 54% of the American people viewed capitalism in a positive light. Americans who wish for a socialist society and government now stands at 38%. Polling Democrats only has discovered that sixty percent of those who are Democrats favor socialism with only the minority having a positive view of capitalism! With the GOP primary elections for...