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Dear
Oklahoma
Friends
and
Neighbors,
It
is
a
cold
start
to
2016,
with
plenty
of
snow
in
Washington
DC
and
plenty
of
things
on
the
national
'to
do'
list.
We
have
already
had
a
busy
start
in
the
new
year
as
we
protect
the
2nd
Amendment,
change
Senate
rules,
stand
up
for
life,
confront
national
security
challenges
and
reduce
regulatory
burdens
to
help
economic
growth. I
hope
you’ll
stay
in
touch
and
let
me
know
your
ideas,
thoughts
and
concerns.
State
of
the
Union
Last
week,
President
Obama
gave
his
final
State
of
the
Union
address
where
he
stated
that
the
economy
was
doing
well
and
ISIS
terrorists
are
just
a
group
of
thugs
with
pick-up
trucks. For
the
past
two
weeks,
many
Oklahomans
have
shared
with
me
that
they
do
not
agree
on
either
issue. Families
in
Oklahoma
continue
to
face
real
economic
challenges;
the
cost
of
healthcare
continues
to
increase
and
people
do
not
feel
secure
in
their
own
country. We
face
serious
issues
as
a
nation.
I
was
pleased
to
see
the
President
shares
a
common
commitment
to
medical
research
and
developing
a
cure
for
cancer. I
serve
on
the
committee
that
oversees
the
work
of
the
National
Institute
of
Health;
they
consistently
work
for
cures
and
treatments
that
save
lives. This
is
a
big
personal
and
a
national
issue.
So
many
of
us
have
held
the
hand
of
someone
who
has
been
through
the
long
journey
of
diagnosis,
treatment,
and
God-willing,
recovery. Curing
cancer,
Alzheimer’s,
diabetes
and
other
diseases
is
also
a
budget
issue.
If
we
can
cure
these
debilitating
diseases,
we
can
dramatically
reduce
our
national
healthcare
expenses.
To
watch
my
full
reaction
to
the
President’s
State
of
the
Union
address, CLICK
HERE.
To
read
my
press
statement
following
the
speech, CLICK
HERE.
Activity
Report
for
2015
In
case
you
missed
it,
I
recently
released
the
Activity
Report
for
2015
to
highlight
the
progress
we
made
last
year
as
a
state
and
as
a
nation.
My
office
and
I
are
eager
to
continue
the
hard
work
for
Oklahomans
in
Washington,
DC,
and
I
am
humbled
by
the
opportunity
to
continue
to
serve
you.
To
read
the
entire
Activity
Report
for
2015
memo, CLICK
HERE.
Department
of
Education
Letter
Education
is
a
state
issue. But,
for
the
past
several
decades
the
federal
government
has
worked
to
control
local
schools
at
every
level,
including
state
universities.
During
the
first
week
of
January,
I
sent
a
letter
to
the
Acting
Secretary
of
the
Department
of
Education
John
King
to
ask
the
department
about
their
use
of
“Dear
Colleague”
letters,
which
try
to
force
major
policy
changes
on
colleges
and
universities.
Because
many
schools
are
dependent
on
federal
funding
for
their
operating
expenses,
they
are
afraid
to
confront
the
Department
of
Education
when
they
overstep
their
authority.
My
committee
held
a
hearing
on
their
role
late
last
year,
and
we
have
stepped
up
the
pressure
on
the
Department
of
Education
already
this
year.
To
read
the
full
letter
to
Department
of
Education
Secretary
King, CLICK
HERE.
The
2nd
Amendment
For
the
past
several
weeks,
the
President
has
talked
in
general
terms
about
limiting
Americans'
access
to
guns
to
decrease
gun
violence. Every
Oklahoman
grieves
with
families
that
lose
loved
ones
to
any
type
of
violence,
but
preventing
law-abiding
citizens
from
exercising
their
2nd
Amendment
right
does
not
solve
the
problem.
Attorney
General
Loretta
Lynch
appeared
in
front
of
my
committee
this
week
to
answer
questions
about
guns
and
executive
authority. I
questioned
the
Attorney
General
about
the
release
of
documents
regarding
the
Fast
and
Furious
investigation,
restructuring
of
the
ATF
and
why
so
many
states
do
not
choose
to
release
their
criminal
background
information
to
the
federal
government. All
of
us
agree
felons
should
not
be
able
to
purchase
guns,
but
if
the
federal
government
makes
it
difficult
to
turn
in
records,
our
background
databases
will
not
be
complete.
That
is
an
area
the
Administration
should
work
on
instead
of
degrading
the
2nd
Amendment
by
executive
actions.
To
watch
my
full
Q&A
with
Attorney
General
Loretta
Lynch,
CLICK
HERE.
Senate
Rules
The
rules
of
the
Senate
are
built
to
protect
the
voice
of
the
majority
and
minority
of
Americans. It
is
the
only
entity
in
the
government
where
the
opinion
of
the
minority
always
has
a
place.
But
the
Senate
has
stopped
functioning
and
Senators
should
stop
complaining
about
the
rules
and
start
fixing
them.
For
the
past
five
months,
I
have
met
with
a
small
group
of
Republican
Senators
to
work
on
specific
ideas
to
protect
the
voice
of
the
American
people
in
the
Senate
and
make
sure
the
work
gets
done. We
have
started
sharing
those
ideas,
and
we
hope
to
build
the
necessary
67
votes
to
restore
life
to
the
Senate. We
will
work
to
keep
you
informed
on
our
progress.
Taxpayers
Right
to
Know
Last
week,
the
House
unanimously
passed
the
Taxpayers
Right
to
Know
Act,
a
bill
I’ve
worked
on
for
several
years
to
ensure
transparency
and
to
require
the
federal
government
to
make
public
the
details,
costs,
and
performance
metrics
of
every
federal
program.
I
introduced
the
Taxpayers
Right
to
Know
Act
(S.
282)
on
January
28,
2015
as
my
first
bill
in
the
Senate.
Americans
deserve
to
know
where
their
dollars
are
spent.
We
will
keep
you
informed
about
the
bill’s
progress
in
the
Senate.
CLICK
HERE
to
read
my
full
statement.
Amicus
Brief
in
Support
of
Nonprofits’
Supreme
Court
Challenge
to
Obamacare
Last
week,
I,
along
with
Senator
Orrin
Hatch
and
Representatives
Diane
Black
and
Mike
Kelly, filed
a
bipartisan
amicus
brief
with
the
U.S.
Supreme
Court.
The
brief
was
signed
by
207
Members
of
Congress
in
support
of
the
religious
nonprofits
and
charities,
including
the
Little
Sisters
of
the
Poor,
to
protect
our
religious
freedoms
as
a
fundamental
guarantee
of
the
U.S.
Constitution.
The
case,
Zubik
v.
Burwell,
is
one
that
is
important
to
our
state
since
four
of
our
universities
are
involved
in
the
case,
and
will
argue
before
the
Supreme
Court
for
the
religious
rights
of
all
Americans.
Thank
you
to
Oklahoma
Wesleyan
University,
Southern
Nazarene
University,
Oklahoma
Baptist
University
and
Mid-America
Christian
University
for
standing
up
for
our
essential
freedoms.
To
read
the
full
amicus
brief, CLICK
HERE.
Keeping
You
In
The
Loop
- Today
is
the
43rd
anniversary
of
the
Roe
v.
Wade
decision.
I
spoke
on
the
floor
of
the
Senate
this
week
about
the
value
of
each
child
and
the
breakthrough
in
medical
science.
CLICK
HERE
to
watch
the
short
speech.
- Last
month,
Senator
Inhofe
and
U.S.
Representatives
Frank
Lucas,
Tom
Cole,
Markwayne
Mullin,
Steve
Russell
and
I
wrote
a joint
opinion
piece
for
the
Tulsa
World
on
the
importance
of
lifting
the
ban
on
crude
oil
exports
for
the
Oklahoma
economy.
To
read
the
full
piece, CLICK
HERE.
- Last
month,
the
Oklahoma
congressional
delegation sent
a
letter
to
Secretary
of
the
Air
Force
Debra
Lee
James
to
advocate
that
she
consider
the
138th
Fighter
Wing
(138th
FW)
in
Tulsa
as
the
next
home
for
the
F-35A.
Tulsa’s
138th
Fighter
Wing
National
Guard,
and
Oklahoma,
is
ready
to
beddown
the
F-35
and
will
make
an
ideal
location
for
this
key
national
security
asset.
To
read
statements
from
the
entire
congressional
delegation, CLICK
HERE.
- The
Social
Security
Disability
Trust
Fund
has
been
in
financial
trouble
for
years;
enacting
true
reforms
to
ensure
its
solvency
has
been
a
priority
of
mine
since
I
was
elected
in
2010.
Last
month, I
wrote
an
opinion
piece
for
the
Bartlesville
Examiner-Enterprise
to
detail
the
unmet
promises
and
my
ideas
on
how
we
can
protect
our
most
vulnerable
and
to
protect
retirees.
To
read
the
full
opinion
piece, CLICK
HERE.
- On
Tuesday,
President
Obama
vetoed
a
resolution
passed
by
Congress
to
disapprove
the
Waters
of
the
US
(WOTUS)
rule
issued
by
the
EPA.
The
Senate
immediately
attempted
an
override
of
the
President’s
veto,
but
we
did
not
have
enough
votes.
Although
it
comes
as
no
surprise, I’m
disappointed
the
President
would
continue
to
allow
one
of
his
agencies
to
disregard
the
law.
While
the
WOTUS
rule
still
remains,
I
will
continue
to
work
legislative
avenues
to
create
more
certainty
for
our
farmers,
ranchers
and
landowners.
To
read
an
opinion
piece
I
wrote
on
the
burden
the
WOTUS
rule
puts
on
the
agricultural
industry, CLICK
HERE.
- ATTENTION
2017
high
school
seniors!
Are
you
interested
in
a
service
academy
to
further
your
education?
If
so,
my
office
is
honored
to
consider
nominations
for
outstanding
high
school
seniors
from
Oklahoma.
If
you
would
like
more
information
on
the
process,
please
contact
Mike
Yates
at
918-581-7651,
or
visit www.lankford.senate.gov
- Vets
Vector:
Are
you
interested
in
furthering
your
education
or
training?
The
VA
provides
assistance
for
going
back
to
school
as
well
as
job
training. CLICK
HERE
for
information
on
your
VA
benefits.
###
Stay
Connected!
If
you
would
like
more
information
on
these
topics
or
any
other
legislation
currently
before
the
U.S.
Senate,
please
do
not
hesitate
to
call
my
D.C.
office
at
(202)
224-5754.
My
Oklahoma
City
office
can
be
reached
at
(405)
231-4941
and
my
Tulsa
office
at
(918)
581-7651.
You
can
also
follow
me
on
Facebook
or
Twitter
or
Instagram
for
updates
on
my
work
in
Congress.
Notice:
If
you
wish
to
stop
ALL
electronic
communications
from
my
office,
visit
this
link
to
opt out
permanently
from
this
list.
If
you
have
any
questions
about
this
Notice
or
your
right
to
decline
future
electronic
mail
from
this
office,
please
contact
us
at
United
States
Senate,
316
Hart
Senate
Office
Building
Washington,
DC
20510. |