Although he’s been floating around in right-wing obscurity for the past 10 months, Ryan Walters is still finding ways to spend Oklahoma taxpayer money!
According to Oklahoma Voice, the state is on the hook for $132,000 to settle lawsuits filed by two former Oklahoma State Department of Education employees who claimed Walters and his evil henchman, Matt “Wormtongue” Langston, violated their First Amendment rights.
Via Oklahoma Voice:
Taxpayers will cover $132,000 in lawsuit settlements owed to two fired Oklahoma State Department of Education employees who sued former state Superintendent Ryan Walters and his senior adviser.
Cheryl McGee and Matt Colwell each sued Walters and Matt Langston in Oklahoma City federal court in 2023. Both had been fired that year for sharing agency information with individuals outside of the Education Department.
They contended Walters and Langston violated their First Amendment rights by putting an overly broad restraint on their speech. Because Walters and Langston were acting within the scope of their authority as agency officials, the state of Oklahoma is responsible for paying both plaintiffs’ settlements under state indemnification laws.
That’s infuriating.
When lawmakers return to session next year, can we change the law so the right-wing psychos we keep electing to positions of power and consequence are personally responsible for this crap instead of taxpayers?
Who, outside of the right-wing psychos like Ryan Walters, would complain?
Here’s more:
Education Department spokesperson Tara Thompson confirmed the money owed will come out of the agency’s funds.
“We are hopeful this settlement brings OSDE one step closer to a resolution of outstanding legal issues so that our attention and resources can be focused on serving the students of Oklahoma,” Thompson said.
Walters and Langston deny any legal violations, according to the settlement agreements, which Oklahoma Voice obtained from the Education Department.
The defendants signed the agreements on June 26 “solely for the purpose of avoiding further expenses of litigation,” and the settlements in no way represent an admission of liability, the documents state.
Wow. How nice of them, huh?
Walters and Langston get to deny doing anything wrong, hand taxpayers a $132,000 bill and float away like they’re on another one of their magical hot-air-balloon rides.
What a deal!
On the subject of settlements, lawsuits and taxpayer-funded balloon rides, I wonder how much the full Ryan Walters experience ultimately cost Oklahoma taxpayers?
The figurative damage is impossible to calculate, but the literal price tag would be fun to see.
Between the lawsuits, legal fees, Trump Bibles, political stunts, grifts and whatever we paid Matt Langston to lurk around Austin, the total has to be well into the millions.
Can a media outlet that isn’t lazy investigate this, please?
Anyway, while we wait for that to happen, you can read more about the lawsuits, the excessive attorney fees the wrongfully fired employees had to pay and other assorted Walters-era debris over at Oklahoma Voice.
Stay with The Lost Ogle. We’ll keep you advised.
