Man overboard!
Earlier today, Lt. Governor Todd Lamb officially kicked off the 2018 Oklahoma gubernatorial race by announcing he is stepping down from Mary Fallin's cabinet. I guess he doesn't want to be associated with an unpopular governor's disastrous administration and "Tax Everything" budget plan.
Here are the details from a press release:
Lt. Governor Todd Lamb today announced his resignation from Governor Fallin’s cabinet, where Lamb has served as the state’s Small Business Advocate, one of many roles the Lt. Governor fills. This resignation does not affect Lamb’s role as Lt. Governor.
“In Oklahoma, the Governor and Lt. Governor are separately elected positions. While both are Republicans, at this time Lieutenant Governor Lamb believes it is best for him to vacate the cabinet position,” stated Lamb’s Chief of Staff, Keith Beall. “His decision to resign was made after yesterday’s cabinet meeting in which Governor Fallin maintained her support for taxing 164 services affecting every Oklahoma small business and family,” Beall concluded.
This doesn't surprise me. Lamb's the early frontrunner for the GOP gubernatorial nomination, and although he and Mary Fallin probably agree on 99% of the issues, he needs to do everything in his power to distance himself from her. This was a good political move.
Here were his comments:
Lt. Governor Lamb made the following statement:
“Governor Fallin deserves to have someone in her cabinet who can be a strong advocate for her agenda, and that is something I am unwilling to do. While I respect the determination with which Governor Fallin met her obligation to present a balanced budget to the legislature, I cannot support her proposed tax increases. This proposal will adversely harm Oklahoma’s small businesses and families, especially those in our service industry. While Governor Fallin and I have disagreed on issues from time-to-time, our differences on this important topic are so significant they preclude me from continuing to serve on her cabinet.”
That's nice. I like how it took a plan to raise taxes to convince Lamb to leave the administration. I would have jumped ship years ago. I guess he was fine standing by Mary Fallin's side as she created and contributed to the budget crises, failed to take action on man-made earthquakes and oversaw a botched execution. He'll make a great Governor for Derplahomans and our energy industry overlords some day.
