Wednesday, February 29, 2012

Boren's Bi-Partisan Presidential Ticket, who will it be?


John Anderson
Ross Perot
Can you hear the whispers?

In the corners of the coffee shots, in the bleachers at the soccer games, even around the water coolers, who will be the real Republican candidate for president?

Mitt Romney won both the Arizona and Michigan primaries on Tuesday.  He garnered 47 and 41 percent, respectively. Rick Santorum was a close second with 26.6 and 38 percent in those primaries.

Since neither candidate has broken away from the pack, most voters are become disenchanted with their choices.

This bodes well for the Democrats.

On Tuesday, more whispers could be heard from Norman, Oklahoma.
Former senator and governor David Boren, now president of Oklahoma University, is pushing for third party presidential candidates.

We've heard of those third party, independent types — John Anderson and Ross Perot come to mind.

We remember how well they performed at election time.
Boren's group, Americans Elect, is working to get bi-partisan presidential candidates on every ballot in all 50 states.

"The two parties are just fighting. They're not working together to serve the country," said Boren, who was known as a moderate Democrat during his 15 years in the U.S. Senate. "I believe in the two-party system, but I believe it needs some shock therapy. Shock therapy not to replace the two-party system, but to save the two-party system by allowing it to work again and allowing it to work together."
Americans Elect have collected 2.5 million signatures and needs an additional 400,000 to get their candidates in the presidential fight.

They need 51,739 voter signatures to get those names on the Oklahoma ballot.
They are also planning an online convention where candidates from opposing parties would be in the ticket.

Boren has made it clear he has no intention of being on the ticket.

So, just who would be on this bi-partisan ticket?

Any takers out there to follow in Anderson and Perot's footsteps?

Wednesday, February 22, 2012

Touchy subjects - water treatment and security

Could be some trouble brewing right here in Rogers County.
No, not as simple as the pool hall in River City.
It's more of a public relations nightmare for the Claremore City Council and Rogers County District 2 Commissioner Mike Helm.
For the current council members, on their plate is a decade old problem that has been ignored. Because of those previous blind-eyes and out and out neglect, the city has a water treatment center that never has worked.
City voters approved an $11 million bond to build the water treatment facility at Claremore Lake. That was back in 2000.  What those voters may not know until now, is 12 years later the plant does not work.
Current councilors rejected a proposal by city staff to spend $249,000 on finding a way to fix the $11 million debacle.
Due to the 12-year neglect, many questions are being asked.
Why wasn't the original contractor held accountable? Why wasn't there ever a lawsuit to compel the contractor to make sure it worked?
What city official signed off on the plant? Someone, who is probably no longer on staff, had to accept the project as complete, though it never worked in the first place.
More problems face the city council as it tries to find ways to pay the bond. Remember, despite the water treatment plant not working, the city is still on hook for the $11 million bond.
For now the city council is facing more questions than answers.
As for Commissioner Helm, his remarks at a recent meeting about courthouse security came across as blaming the lack of funds for the lack of security. He came across as "it's not my problem."
But incident after incident across the country where a disgruntled person has entered a public building and shot innocent people is enough evidence to make security an issue just as important as repaving any country road.
Helm put the issue in the lap of the Judicial System, but security affects not just people who go to court, but any resident or employee that works or visits there, including Helm.
Because the issue was raise in public, commissioners appointed a committee to study and find a resolution to the problem.
In typical Helm-style, he has attempted to pre-empt the committees work by suggesting a 3-card Monte switch-a-roo with budget items to make funds available for security.
Helm should let the committee do its job. His disruptive proposal may reveal he finally sees that security is more important than he first realized. And, don't forget he will be facing re-election the fall. For the time being, let the committee explore the options and make informed recommendations, instead of off-the-cuff ideas.
By this time next year, there will be a new courthouse and there must be much better security in place, if the committee is allowed to do it work.

Tuesday, February 21, 2012

GINGRICH: Dangling a carrot

It's the natural way. Politicians throw out promises, most of which they know they can never keep, in an out and out effort to gain votes.

Former Speaker of the House New Gingrich has perfected such an art.

"With Gingrich policies, what we know is we will dramatically expand our independence in the world market, dramatically expand our capacity to produce energy without regard to our foreign potential enemies and in the process prices will clearly be a lot lower," Gingrich said. "Now, I picked $2.50 as a stabilizing price for capital investment reasons. It could easily go down to $2."

Speaking to more than 3,500 people at Oral Roberts University on Monday, Gingrich dangle the carrot.

Much talk has been made that motorists should prepare to pay $5 a gallon come summer for gas.

In a state that relies heavily on the sale of gas and oil, Gingrich knew what to say. He wants to expand the oil capacity, good for the consumer, but not so much with the producer. More domestic oil might mean less reliance on the Middle East variety, but would it also reduce the profits of oil companies?

Gingrich was playing the crowd while in Tulsa.

Will voters believe Newt?

Monday, February 20, 2012

All in the numbers for Santorum

Rick Santorum is on top, for now.
According to the latest Gallup daily tracking poll Santorum has zipped by Mitt Romney on the national stage.
Santorum now is backed by 36 percent of Republicans while Romney has dropped to 31 percent support.
Just a week ago, the two were statistically tied. Romeny had 33 percent and Santorum had 31 percent.
Now after Santorum picked up three victories in Missouri, Colorado and Minnesota,  he has jumped 5 percent to take the lead.
The two front runners were followed by Newt Gingrich with 13 percent and Ron Paul at 11 percent.
Can Santorum sustain his momentum?

Wednesday, February 15, 2012

Garth may have started something Big!

Our own Garth Brooks may have set the humanitarian world abuzz.

In January he won a lawsuit against Integris Canadian Valley Regional Hospital of Yukon, Okla. for not using his $500,000 gift.

He filed the lawsuit in 2005, after the hospital promised to name a building after his mother, Colleen Brooks, who died of cancer in 1999, but did nothing.

The Rogers County mega-star received his $500,000 plus $500,000 in punitive damages.
Integris had to admit they were making Brooks work to get his money back.

Non-profit organizations and businesses, like Integris, shouldn’t be so arrogant, especially when a donor gives them such a large donation.

In the Intregis case, hospital officials actually sought Brooks out to recruit a donation, then apparently led him on.

Now word comes from down in Georgia that the Ray Charles Foundation has asked Albany State University for a $3 million donation it gave a decade ago.
He gave $1 million to the university in 2001 and another $2 million a year later. Charles, a native of Albany, died in 2004.

The singer was specific with his donation, according to the foundation. He wanted a new performing arts center built at the university.

As of yet there is no construction underway, and according to the foundation it is only on the drawing board.

Sounds similar to Brooks and Integris.

Musical mega-stars with humanitarian hearts giving of their resources to help public institutions, but being dismissed by their respective charitable recipients.

What is it with organizations that receive sizable donations, but just sit on them and then do nothing?

The Ray Charles Foundation should get its money back. And get this, a university spokesman claims the donation was unrestricted and could be used for whatever the institution wants.

It sounds very familiar.

Here’s the catch - Albany State still has the initial donation in the bank. However, they gave the remaining $2 million away to 125 “Ray Charles Presidential Scholars.”

They gave it away despite the donor’s wishes to build a performing arts center.

Three million dollars is a significant donation to not be used like the donor wished.

Non-profit organizations need donations, but when donars see a lack of good stewardship over the gifts they receive, it is no wonder they are less than giving.

After Hurricane Rita and Katrina, several nationally known charities came under fire for not using donations for real needs, how donors wanted it to be used.

If there was anything learned from the Brooks vs. Integris lawsuit, non-profit board of directors should remember their fudiciary responsibilities and follow to the letter what donors say on how to the donated funds.

Look for the two parties to land in court with similar results as the Brooks trial.
And maybe they should be playing Charles’ song “What’d I Say?” when they enter the court.

Tuesday, February 14, 2012

Six Way Race for District 2

It's a crowded field for the GOP nomination to replace Congressman Dan Boren.
A recent forum of the candidates, George Faught, Markwayne Mullin, Wayne Pettigrew, Dustin Rowe, Duane Thompson and Dakota Wood, televised by RSU-TV was more of a love-fest than where voters could get substantive views on the issues.
For the most part, they all gave party-line answers. Since they agreed going in not to rumble with each other, it is very hard to make a distinction of who should represent District 2 in Washington.
March 6 is three weeks away.
Voters need more of a difference to help make their decisions.
Come on candidates, give us some fodder to chew on...

Back From A Break

Bush/Palin 2012 for President?
Right Wing Randy is back from a study break.
A lot has happened since my research sabbatical.
There's been many leaves falling from the GOP tree, Tim Pawlenty Herman Cain, Rick Perry, Michelle Bachmann and Jon Huntsman.
Who will be next?
Ron Paul, Newt Gingrich, Rick Santorum, even Mitt Romney?
Romney was on a roll until Santorum clicked off three wins. Romney came back with a win in Maine.
The latest work is Romney's second home state, Michigan, has been pushing back on him.
Underlying talk is a "brokered" convention in Tampa, leaving everyone who is in the race on the outside.
Could the 2012 GOP ticket be Jeb and Sarah?  Bush/Palin 2012 would shake things up, wouldn't it?
If you follow The Drudge Report on Twitter, news of having Jeb Bush, former Florida governor and heir to the Bush presidential dynasty, at the top of the ticket was big news this weekend after the annual CPAC meetings.
Throw in our favorite Alaskan hunter Palin and President Obama and his operatives might be quaking a bit more.
What do you think?
Bush/Palin 2012 for President?