FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: April 6, 2011

Another Power-Grab Republican Bill Passes

A bill that continues to strip the board of education of power passed today in the House.

SB425 gives the Governor power to terminate and appoint members to the board at any time while in office. As the law states now, the Governor makes new appointments to the board once the term of the old appointments lapses.

This law will permit Gov. Fallin to completely wipe out the current board and replace it with members who will rubber stamp Barressi’s radical education agenda.

During debate today, Rep. Jerry McPeak (D-Muskogee) said implementing laws to do away with any dissenting voice is undemocratic.

“Do you not realize how we would have furthered society if everyone thought the same?” McPeak asked Republicans. “How unhealthy is it where we have people doing anything where they all think alike? This is about as backwards as Oklahoma could ever be. ‘We are only going to put people in a room with us who agree with us.’”

Rep. Joe Dorman (D-Rush Springs) continued the debate and proposed bringing significant change like this to the ballot box so the voters can decide where they want the power to be.

“We are giving way too much authority to one person elected in office in this bill,” Dorman said.

Rep. Richard Morrissette (D-Oklahoma City) finished the debate against the bill by saying “this bill is wrong, wrong, wrong!” He also pointed out that this centralizing of power was never discussed in Barressi or Fallin’s campaigns during the election, but this session Republican leadership has continued to power grab in every way possible.

“There seems to be a constant drive to centralize power from the right,” Morrissette said.  “If you aren’t a yes person, you get ousted because you didn’t agree with the people in power.”

Todd Goodman, Chairman of the Oklahoma Democratic Party, said this law is another bad law Republicans are pushing through solely to gain even more power than they already maintain.

“They hold super majorities in the Senate and House and hold every statewide position, yet they can’t immediately ramrod their aggressive and radical education proposals through, so they find an excuse to strip the board of power,” Goodman said. “This is undemocratic. This is uncivil, and frankly, this is outrageous. This is politics at its worst, and these moves are not supported by a majority of voters.  There is no viable reason to give one person this much authority. I really hope Oklahomans hold these Republicans accountable come election time.”

-30-