While I was out for Spring Break last week, the Ryan Walters news cycle continued to churn along with the usual media suspects doing their usual best to document the standard dose of dysfunctional news flowing out of the Oklahoma State Department of Education.
Some of the highlights include:
• Another one of Ryan's high-level henchwomen – Chief of Staff Jenna Thomas – fleeing the state agency before Ryan can further destroy her once-promising career.
• The State Supreme Court not allowing Ryan to participate – a.k.a exploit for personal and political gain – in a case challenging the divine creation of a mythological religious public school.
• The Oklahoma Speaker of House saying he may try to spay and neuter Ryan’s powers as State Superintendent, which considering Ryan wants to destroy the agency he leads, kinda plays into his hands.
In addition to all that, the Human Rights Coalition – an identity-focused left-wing activist group – released a poll conducted by Captain Obvious and Associates that shows that over 50% of Oklahomans have an unfavorable view of Ryan:
HRC eleased new polling from Change Research that found a majority (55%) of likely 2024 Oklahoma voters disapprove of the job Ryan Walters is doing as Oklahoma's Superintendent of Public Instruction, including 42% who strongly disapprove–compared to just 29% of Oklahomans who approve. More than half of those polled (52%) want the state legislature to impeach and remove Walters, and another 11% believe he should be investigated. Walters is especially unpopular among parents/guardians of K-12 public school students: 58% would like to see Watlers impeached and removed, and 75% say he is not a good role model for Oklahoma's students. The survey is of 665 likely general election voters in Oklahoma, 58% of whom identify as Republican.
Wow! That’s pretty cool.
Thanks to echo chambers and social media bots, it’s always been hard to gauge just how many real-life Oklahomans dislike Ryan Walters and his trademarked skinny ties, compact SUV vlogs, and the constant barrage of attacks he makes on Oklahoma teachers, students and other people with brain cells, so I guess it’s nice to know that TLO readers aren’t the only ones who want the guy expelled from office!
That being said…
We should probably acknowledge that Oklahoma poll results – especially ones released by activist groups and/or Sooner Poll – are about as reliable as McDonald’s shake machine.
If any of them were even close to being accurate, Joy Hofmeister would be Governor, Jena Nelson would be the State Public School Superintendent, and I would be running out of things to write about.
Basically, even though the results do offer some hope that Ryan may soon find himself working full-time as a media pundit and roundtable speaker on the Moms For Liberty swingers circuit, take them with an incredibly large grain of woke pink Himalayan salt.
Naturally, Ryan’s personal Wormtongue – his Austin-based advisor Matt Langston – dismissed the poll in this quote to The Oklahoman:
“Fake controversy, fake journalism, and fake polls only confirm the need for common sense to return to education,” he said.
Come on, Matt! You can do better than regurgitating some tired, overused and very fake MAGA talking point. I know you’re not the brightest guy in the room, but spin this as a positive and say…
“28% of mouth-breathing Oklahomans polled by these left-wing nuts actually approve of what we’re doing! Now that's something to brag about.
Once again, you can check out the entire poll here, but please don’t get too excited.
Unless he runs for Governor – or is caught taking a dump in a litter box after performing a Gender Queer-themed children’s drag show at the Belle Isle Library with BLM protestors – I don’t think there’s any way Ryan isn’t reelected if he makes it to the general election.
I assume – keyword: assume – that the moderate, big city GOP power brokers are already scouring through the education ranks to find a Joy Hofmeister 2.0 in an attempt to primary the guy like they did 10 years ago for his Queen Regent Janet Barresi.
Anyway, we have a lot of time until then, so enjoy the moment and remember you’re not the only one who disapproves of Ryan Walters. Most of the people who have heard of him don't like him either.
Stay with The Lost Ogle. We’ll keep you advised.
