Let's Pod This

America is officially shut down, and that includes Oklahoma. Except for, you know, a poor response to the global pandemic, the state legislature amending the Open Meeting Act, elections being delayed, Senator Infofe suspiciously selling some stock, and people from Maine knitting llama wool. Special guest Effie Rorke joins us as we cover all of that and more in this week's episode!  Show...

Due to the coronavirus pandemic, a State of Emergency has been declared at the city, state, and federal level. These declarations have far-reaching impact and consequences and, frankly, we are in uncharted waters. Here to help us walk through everything that has happened in the past 48 to 72 hours for my cohosts, Bailey Perkins and Scott Melson.  Last Friday President Trump declared a na...

We discuss the coronavirus outbreak that is sweeping the country (and how it's being handled here in Oklahoma), a bill to outlaw child marriages that both failed and passed in the same week, a cost of Living Adjustment (COLA) for state employees, and an update on HJR 1027, which would affect ballot initiatives.

Super Tuesday has come & gone...but just how 'super' was it this year? We also talk about the Oklahoma response to COVID-19 (aka coronavirus), especially in the face of the Governor's plan to consolidate health agencies AND his just-announced plan to...expand Medicaid? Oh, and the legislature basically wants to end the initiative petition process. What a week!

We discuss the process of lawmaking (both from inside and outside the legislature), what happens when that process is circumvented, what the Super Tuesday primary looks like for Oklahoma.

Announcements State brand online store: https://www.shoptravelok.com/ Anti Hunger Day - Tuesday Feb 25th  Presidential primary: March 3rd LFT Capitol Day: April 1st Census starts: April 1st Child Advocacy Day: May 6th This week at the Capitol: Tribal gaming update OMES says $85.5m less to appropriate this year from last year Senate approved SJR to call a constitutional convention School suici...

We're two weeks into the legislative session, an d bills are starting to move. Some are alive, a few are dead (or at least mostly dead), and others...well, it's still a bit too early to tell. This week Representative Jason Dunnington (HD88) joins the crew to talk about two of his bills and a whole lot else. Topics include: Conversion therapy ban advances Roberts vaccine bill killed in committee Ne...

Scott is joined by our newest co-host, Bailey Perkins, to discuss the finer points of Governor Stitt's second State of the State address.

The Oklahoma legislative session starts in less than two weeks, so we're giving listeners an update-in-brief so that you are ready and prepared.   Updates:  Stone & Smalley have resigned:  Tribal gaming  Tribes sued Gov Stitt asks for injunction and for proceeds to be placed in trust  Healthcare reform Marijuana Redistricting How will this year be different What d...

Think you know what bills will pass and what bills will fail? Great, because it's time for our annual Predict-O-Rama game! Scott and I run thru the slate of options, and now it's your turn to vote! Link to the game: https://forms.gle/peFv2FMSWpZPjqpQ6

Did Governor Stitt deliver on the plans and promises he listed during his 2019 State of the State address? We break it down and then look ahead at what to expect from the 2020 legislative session.

BIG NEWS! A rag-tag group of Oklahomans have banded together to form "People Not Politicians," a nonpartisan organization that has filed a ballot initiative to amend the state constitution to create an independent redistricting commission and end gerrymandering in our state! We hear all about it from their Campaign Manager, whom you might already know...

Much to the chagrin of the NCAA, the state of California recently passed the Fair Pay to Play Act, which law permits collegiate athletes to hire agents and make money from endorsements. A similar bill will likely be filed in Oklahoma next year, so we sat down with OU gymnast (and burgeoning entrepreneur) Peter Daggett to hear his perspective as a student athlete.

This is the fourth and final episode in our "Gerrymandering Oklahoma" series.  By now we know what gerrymandering is, how and why it happens, and a few ways to prevent it. But  how , exactly, do you get it to stop when the political system is rigged against you? You let the voters take the lead. For this, we spoke with Katie Fahey who started a people-first movement in Michigan in 2018 that led to...

This is the third episode in our "Gerrymandering Oklahoma" series. We wanted to learn more about gerrymandering around the country, so we wanted to talk to a man who literally wrote the book on the topic, David Daley. He is the author of "Ratf**cked: Why Your Vote Doesn't Count" and has probably looked at more maps and driven more legislative district boundaries than anyone else in the country.

This is the second episode in our "Gerrymandering Oklahoma" mini series. Now that we know how legislative redistricting is done and how that process often leads to gerrymandering, we want to talk broadly about how states can prevent politicians from picking their own voters. For that, we speak with Dan Vicuña from Common Cause, to gain some insight on what's worked in other states and how their or...

This is the first episode of our "Gerrymandering Oklahoma" mini series. We're joined by OU political science professor Keith Gaddie to discuss the ins and outs of gerrymandering and the legislative redistricting process. (Hint: It's super important and most people have no idea.)

The judge has ruled: Oklahoma has won their lawsuit against Johnson & Johnson, and for that the state will receive $572 million...or will they? 

Quick updates on the two ballot initiatives (SQ802 & 803) that are collecting signatures right now, plus we're joined by Sara Jane Rose and Alyssa Fisher from Sally's List to talk about recruiting and training women to run for public office. (Psst - you can do it!)

This is the third episode in our three-part series about criminal justice reform in Oklahoma. In this episode, we speak with state Representative Garry Mize about the legacy of state questions 780, 781, and 788, and what the legislative path to meaningful criminal justice reform might look like. 

This is the second episode in our three-part series about criminal justice reform in Oklahoma. In this episode, local defense attorney Brian Jones walks us through each of the steps involved in the typical criminal legal process, including details about the many, MANY fines and fees, as well as some of the big fallacies most people people believe about how the legal system operates.

This is the first episode in our three part series on the criminal justice system in Oklahoma. We're joined by policy experts Damion Shade & Ryan Gentzler to lay a foundation of data about the Oklahoma criminal justice system, how we got here, and why things are so bad. --------- SERIES DESCRIPTION Criminal justice is always an important, hot button issue in our state. In fact, Oklahoma incarcerat...

Audio from the panel discussion following our "The West Wing" Watch Party, recorded live on May 15, 2019, featuring Donelle Harder (Gov. Stitt's spokesperson), Phil Bacharach (Chief of Staff to State Superintendent Joy Hofmeister), and Steve Hill (Chief of Staff to OKC Mayor David Holt). 

We're joined by two members of OKC's LGBTQ community - one a Republican and the other a Democrat - to talk about how they got involved in politics, what Pride means to them, and how they navigate the waters that contain those two things.

We review the results of our 2019 #okleg Predict-o-Rama game and visit with one of the winners, Rep. Zack Taylor from Seminole.