By Theodore King

On June 18th the House passed a ban on abortions after 20 weeks of pregnancy. H.R. 1797, the District of Columbia Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act, passed by a vote of 228 to 196. All five members of the Oklahoma delegation voted in favor of the bill to end abortions after 20 weeks. Six Democrats voted for the measure, and six Republicans voted against it. The recent trial and conviction of Philadelphia abortion "doctor" Kermit Gosnell spurred Republicans to act on this important legislation. If this bill passes in the Senate, it will not become law during the Obama presidency. Texas has just enacted a law like it. After 40 long years of the legal killing of the unborn, it's good to see legislation to curtail this evil.

On June 20th the House did something it seldom does. It rejected a pork-laden agricultural bill. H.R. 1947, the Federal Agriculture Reform and Risk Management Act of 2013, authored by Oklahoma Congressman Frank Lucas of the Third District was rejected by a vote of 195 in favor and 234 against. Congressman Lucas is chairman of the powerful House Agricultural Committee.

Freshman Congressman Jim Bridenstine of the First District was the only NO vote from the Oklahoma House delegation. He was joined by 61 other Republicans in voting no. Ironically, 172 Democrats voted against this bill. They voted no because it wasn't pork-laden enough! One complaint among House Democrats was that states would have the option to require food stamp recipients to get work! Republican Steve King of Iowa, usually a stalwart conservative, who voted for the bill, argued that if the bill is not passed, a 1949 version of the farm bill will go into effect, which has been characterized by The Hill newspaper that covers the capitol as containing "archaic ...subsidy supports." The Department of Agriculture is now operating according to a 2008 farm bill that is set to expire this Sept. 30th.

On June 21 Congressman Bridenstine's office issued a press release stating that he voted against the bill because food stamps are lumped in with farm programs: "The two programs must be separated to accomplish real reform. Many people don't realize that over 70% of the spending in the bill went to food stamps." Congressman Tom Cole of the Fourth District released a statement: "Chairman Lucas along with members of the House Committee on Agriculture worked tirelessly over the last four years to produce a bill that makes significant reductions to spending while protecting necessary programs. After more than 40 hearings and even a two-year audit of every program, there is no excuse for this failure... Yesterday's vote represents a missed opportunity for my House colleagues, the Americans we all represent and the road to economic recovery. This result is inexcusable."

The National Taxpayers Union (NTU) urged a defeat of this bill, calling it, "a horrible deal for taxpayers." NTU stated that the bill placed taxpayers on the hook for price guarantees to agri-businesses: the cost of $940 billion over nine years is 60% larger than the 2008 farm bill. Note: Democrats were in the majority in 2008. And three quarters of Congressman Lucas's bill contain money for the food stamp Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP).

It was reported in National Review online July 8th that House Majority Leader Eric Cantor of Virginia attempted to intimidate Republican members in a closed-door meeting regarding a second vote on the farm bill proposed for this summer. The following is an excerpt from that story:

"Representative Frank Lucas of Oklahoma, the agricultural committee chairmen, expressed hope that the House would take up a farm bill again this summer, and Cantor reportedly agreed with him. The majority leader went on to tell the group that he doesn't want another headache if he does that.

Near the end, Cantor coolly reminded them that the leadership is much more likely to usher their bills to the floor if they stick with him on votes."

On June 10th the Senate took up their own version of the House bill, which passed 66 to 27 with seven not voting. Senators Tom Coburn and Jim Inhofe voted against that bill. The questions for Congressman Lucas and the rest of our House delegation are why did Congressman Lucas produce such a bloated bill and why was Congressman Bridenstine alone in the Oklahoma House delegation in opposing it?

According to the Environmental Working Group, ewg.org, Congressman Lucas's wife has received $40,613 in farm subsidies since 1999. The Lucasas have a farm in Roger Mills County.

In a victory for conservatives on July 11, the House passed a new and improved farm bill minus the food stamp program. The vote was 216 to 208. All five members of the Oklahoma delegation voted for this bill. This new farm bill will cost $196 billion over ten years. The Senate version passed on June 10th will cost $955 billion over ten years. At least the House under Republican control has done the right thing (finally), and it is now imperative that the Senate scale down their own pork-laden bill. President Obama has promised to veto the farm bill if it does not contain food stamps.

On June 27 the Senate passed S. 744, the Border Security, Economic Opportunity, and Immigration Modernization Act. The vote was 68 to 32. Senators Coburn and Inhofe voted NO. This immigration bill is a deal with the devil. When you make a deal with the devil, you lose. There will be no border security because too many people on both the Republican side and the Democrat side won't allow it to happen. When did George W. Bush push for border security during his eight years in office? Or, Bill Clinton before him? You can bet that this president will never seal the border.

Here's what's wrong with so-called immigration reform: We are not going to send back tens of millions of people here illegally, and within a generation most of these people will likely assimilate. The problem is -- they're poor. And poor people tend to vote for politicians who promise them a free lunch. Most Americans, be they of the right, the left, or the center, know that we must put Americans to work before we even discuss bringing more people into this country. Then there is the ethnic aspect. La Raza (Spanish for "The Race") is a racist organization that would benefit from legalizing millions of people already here illegally and having more of them pour into the country. La Raza and this president do a lot to stir up racial animosity among Hispanics and would use the leverage from a new immigration law to their profit.

For these reasons, it is imperative that no immigration bill go forward during the next three years of the Obama administration. The House is now considering the immigration bill. It is also imperative that Republican Senators John McCain of Arizona and Marco Rubio of Florida, both up for re-election in 2016, and Republican Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina up for re-election next year, not be returned to office because they promoted the immigration bill. Real conservatives must challenge these three even if Democrats ultimately win in the fall election. These three men need to be made examples of what happens when men turn on their own base. The long-term stakes are far too serious not to punish those Republicans attempting to make this deal with the devil.

The news has brought to our attention the fact that the Obama administration used the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) to delay and hamper conservative groups from receiving a tax classification before the 2012 elections. At the same time, liberal groups were given quick approval by the IRS. An IRS tax classification is necessary for any organization to function legally and do fundraising. This issue must be investigated, and those in the administration connected with this scandal must be brought to justice.

This scandal brings an opportunity -- to eliminate the IRS! Since the 1990s, arguments have been made for a flat tax as supported by Steve Forbes or a national sales tax (i.e. Fair Tax). One or the other, or a combination of the two as espoused by 2012 presidential candidate Herman Cain, needs to become our agenda. The tax code, now in its 100th year, must be scrapped, and the IRS should be disbanded and replaced with a smaller less controlling and intrusive tax collection agency.

Just before the 4th of July, a year after the U.S. Supreme Court announced that somehow the Affordable Care Act (ObamaCare) is constitutional, the Obama administration announced a one year delay of the employer mandate scheduled to go into effect on January 1, 2014. The administration wants to wait until after the 2014 midterm elections before implementing ObamaCare, which is unpopular with business owners and the public at large. Republicans in the House need to de-fund the ObamaCare nightmare now. This is a rare opportunity for them to offer leadership.