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LOL. Lawmakers are already screwing up the special session…

11:48 AM EDT on September 27, 2017

When Mary Fallin recently called the Oklahoma Legislature to a special session, I was optimistic that party leaders from both sides of the aisle would put aside their differences, discard loyalties to flawed ideologies and special interests, and come up with a practical solution to the perpetual state budget crisis that's making our state a national embarrassment and not so desirable place to live.

Haha. Just kidding. If you believe that, I have a valuable Kyle Singer autograph collection I'd like to sell you. We all figured this fiasco would be a shitshow, and only a few days in, our inept, bush league politicians are already proving that's the case.

Via Dale Dewalt with NewsOK.com:

The Oklahoma House will halt special session proceedings until a budget agreement is reached, Speaker Charles McCall said Wednesday.

"It is clear that House Democrats continue to play politics and do not intend to vote in support of the cigarette tax to address the budget hole created when the Supreme Court struck down the cigarette fee," McCall said in a news release. "The Court was clear that the Legislature must pass the tax with a 75-percent majority vote. House Republicans stand ready to deliver 75 percent of our caucus to pass the cigarette tax, but House Democrats have so far given no indication that they are willing to deliver 75 percent of their caucus so we can pass the tax and use other resources to fill the hole."

Democrats won't support the cigarette tax without Republican support of a tax increase on oil and gas production.

I'm a liberal libertarian type, and although I really don't identify with the Democratic party, I think the Democrats are doing the right thing both politically and philosophically by standing their ground. Cigarette taxes should be raised, but that alone is not going to solve the funding needs of the state. We need to find more revenue, and according to a probably liberal biased poll, most Oklahomans think our ridiculous low horizontal drilling tax rates are a good place to start digging.

Unfortunately, most Oklahoma politicians serve oil company executives first, the OCPA second, and teenage prostitutes third. The Oklahoma people are way down on the list! Therefore, expect Speaker McCall and the rest of his minions to do everything possible  – including halting special session proceedings – to protect those interests, and keep our state a national embarrassment.

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