McAfee & Taft, Paycom increases lawfare against Oklahoma conservatives

McAfee & Taft, Paycom increases lawfare against Oklahoma conservatives

OKLAHOMA CITY (May 23, 2024)—More than four years after Paycom’s lawsuit against the Oklahoma Council of Public Affairs was originally filed, Paycom’s attorneys at the McAfee & Taft law firm have just now realized they want to take more depositions in the case.

Attorneys with McAfee & Taft have filed a motion requesting depositions from three staff members at OCPA and one OCPA board member. One of the OCPA staff members that McAfee & Taft lawyers want to depose did not even work for OCPA four years ago when Paycom first filed its lawsuit.

OCPA: Paycom and trial lawyers’ SB 1737 weaponizes courts against conservatives

Paycom and trial lawyers’ SB 1737 weaponizes courts against conservatives

OKLAHOMA CITY (April 18, 2024)—Oklahoma Council of Public Affairs President Jonathan Small issued the following statement after the passage of Senate Bill 1737, which was supported by trial lawyers and strongly supported by Paycom, an $11 billion publicly traded company with a track record of attacking conservatives in Oklahoma.

“SB 1737, which could provide a windfall to trial lawyers, is a bill that the author has said is supported by Paycom, which has had a track record of attacking conservatives in public and in the courts because Paycom and its CEO Chad Richison prefer the far-left’s plan for Oklahoma,” Small said.

“SB 1737 amends a current state statute to make it even easier to harass political opponents by allowing someone to pursue civil action for ‘online harassment’ that allegedly impacts a company’s intangible assets. 

Small: OSU tries to intimidate students

OSU tries to intimidate students

By Jonathan Small

In 2023 a national civil-rights organization that focuses on First Amendment issues, Speech First, sued Oklahoma State University on behalf of three OSU students, arguing the university’s harassment, computer, and bias-incidents policies violate students’ First and Fourteenth Amendment rights.

The lawsuit did not identify the three students by name. In court, OSU argued the lawsuit should be tossed unless the students were publicly identified.

OSU’s intent with that argument was obvious: to expose students to retaliation if they dared to challenge university policies.

Small: Free speech double standard at colleges

Free speech double standard at colleges

By Jonathan Small

The leaders of three major universities recently became free-speech absolutists – when it comes to defending anti-Semitic calls for genocide at student rallies. But if you “misgender” a man wearing women’s clothes, look out.

The ever-shifting standards of college presidents when it comes to free-speech protections is one reason U.S. citizens have an increasingly negative view of a college education. A July poll by Gallup found that just 36% of Americans have confidence in higher education with only 17% expressing a “great deal” of confidence, and a March poll by The Wall Street Journal found 56% of American say the cost of a four-year degree is not worth it.

Oklahoma leaders celebrate after ending June with major conservative wins at the Supreme Court

The Supreme Court ended June (or as I saw one person dub it, "LGBT Ramadan") with a string of major wins for conservatives. Below are press releases from Congressmen Brecheen and Hern, Senator Lankford, Attorney General Gentner Drummond, and OCPA on several of these rulings.

Small: A free-speech victory for all Oklahomans

A free-speech victory for all Oklahomans

By Jonathan Small

Free speech and public debate are necessary ingredients of a democratic government, which is why the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution enshrines free speech as a basic right. But that hasn’t stopped some entities from trying to do an end run on that fundamental right, including here in Oklahoma.

One tactic used by free-speech opponents is a “strategic lawsuit against public participation” (SLAPP) lawsuit. In such lawsuits, a person or entity files a lawsuit, typically for defamation, against a public-policy opponent. The lawsuits are frivolous. Those filing have no real expectation of court victory. Instead, they use lawsuits to generate significant legal expenses for their public-policy opponents and bankrupt or financially hamstring their opponents.

Civil liberties group steps in to help preacher threatened with arrest by Bartlesville judge over social media use of Bible verses against LGBTQ, public drag shows

In Bartlesville, OK, a Christian street preacher has been silenced and threatened with arrest by activist judges for daring to - on his social media account - use the Bible to denounce same-sex marriage and public drag shows. The LGBTQ insanity seems to have gripped local law enforcement and judges in Bartlesville. For much more information, the Substack blog The V1SUT Vantage has covered this ordeal extensively.

The Rutherfor Institute, a nonprofit civil liberties organization, is taking up the case on behalf of the preacher, Rich Penkoski:

Court Threatens Street Preacher With Arrest for Using Bible Verses to Criticize Same-Sex Marriage, Denouncing Drag Show on Social Media

OKLAHOMA CITY, Okla. (April 13, 2023) — Pushing back at attempts by the courts to silence individuals whose religious views may be perceived as intolerant or hateful, The Rutherford Institute is challenging a five-year restraining order against a street preacher who has been threatened with arrest after citing Bible verses on social media to express his moral concerns about a church that endorses same-sex marriage and raising awareness about a public drag queen performance that occurred in front of children.

Small: OSU embracing worrisome policies

OSU embracing worrisome policies

By Jonathan Small

There’s a reason the phrase, “It’ll never happen here,” is often filed under the category of “famous last words.”

Those who have assumed campus radicalism is concentrated in coastal universities or, in a worse-case scenario, at one particular state college, are now learning otherwise.

Dahm files legislation to protect teachers’ First Amendment rights

Sen. Dahm files legislation to protect teachers’ First Amendment rights

OKLAHOMA CITY (Dec. 28, 2022) – Sen. Nathan Dahm, R-Broken Arrow, has filed legislation requiring school districts to inform teachers of their First Amendment rights and obtain reauthorization every year before deducting union dues from teachers’ paychecks.

Small: An important first step at OU on free speech

An important first step at OU

By Jonathan Small

In recent years, too many colleges have allowed the “heckler’s veto” to prevail. Rather than engage in respectful debate, activists have been allowed to shout down speakers or prevent speeches with threats of violence.

And there have been reasons to worry about free speech at the University of Oklahoma.

OCPA column: No need for state handout to tribal government

No need for state handout to tribal government

By Jonathan Small

Oklahoma’s tribal governments have their own police forces, their own court systems, and immense wealth from casinos to pay for their public-safety responsibilities. So why did tribal entities recently seek an indirect subsidy from state government?

Lawmakers recently passed House Bill 3501, which would have required the Department of Public Safety to “recognize and act” upon a report of conviction from any tribal court in Oklahoma.  Supporters said the bill would target drunk drivers, but tribal courts can issue orders regarding issues other than DUI violations, and it appears the legislation could have required state police to carry out a wide range of orders on behalf of tribal governments.

Fortunately, Gov. Kevin Stitt vetoed the bill, writing that it would have required state law-enforcement officials “to carry out tribal court adjudications, no questions asked.” That’s worth stressing because tribal courts can issue orders that might not pass legal muster in Oklahoma’s state court system.

To cite one prominent example, the Cherokee council approved an “Anti-Harassment Act” that allows tribal officials to obtain tribal-court ordered restraining orders against any individual who “annoys” officials, apparently including through social-media posts made “over time, however short.”

OCPA column: OU gets warning on free speech

OU gets warning on free speech

By Jonathan Small

It’s hard to say what’s worse—that the University of Oklahoma is accused of trying to force staff and students to endorse positions they do not support, or that college leaders thought they could keep those efforts a secret.

The Foundation for Individual Rights in Education (FIRE), whose mission is to “defend and sustain the individual rights of students and faculty members at America’s colleges and universities,” recently focused its attention on OU’s mandatory diversity training.

FIRE notes that such training is not, in and of itself, an infringement on free-speech rights. But schools cross the line when they compel students or staff to endorse specific viewpoints.

FIRE says OU appears to have done just that, writing that OU’s training modules “go further, requiring students and faculty to answer questions in a manner that expresses agreement with the university’s viewpoints on thorny and difficult issues. Viewpoints with which students and faculty may not actually agree.”

OCPA column: Prioritizing free speech for teachers

Prioritizing free speech for teachers

By Jonathan Small

How important is the right of free speech to you? To some, but fortunately not all, lawmakers, it’s not even worth a piece of paper and an email.

The nation’s two major teachers’ unions—the National Education Association and the American Federation for Teachers—both support many far-left political causes and candidates, including abortion on demand. As a result, the dues paid by members of those unions ultimately support those political causes.

Yet many teachers—including thousands in Oklahoma—do not support left-wing political causes. And the U.S. Supreme Court, in its 2018 decision in Janus v. American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees, Council 31, ruled that employees cannot be forced to participate.

Partly in response to that ruling, Sen. Julie Daniels has filed Senate Bill 634, which would require schools to get annual reauthorization for union-dues withholding from employees. The bill requires that schools provide teachers with a form to sign each year that notes employees “have a First Amendment right, as recognized by the U.S. Supreme Court, to refrain from joining and paying dues or making political contributions to a professional employee organization” and that they cannot be discriminated against it they choose not to join a union.

1889 Institute files amicus brief in US Supreme Court over state bar associations and political speech

1889 INSTITUTE FILES AMICUS BRIEF IN SUPREME COURT OF THE UNITED STATES

Oklahoma Bar Association tramples first amendment rights of state’s attorneys

OKLAHOMA CITY, OK (January 2, 2019) – The 1889 Institute, an Oklahoma state policy think tank, has filed an amicus brief in the United States Supreme Court. The amicus (friend of the court) brief asks the court to review the case of a North Dakota attorney who has been forced to fund political causes he opposes through mandatory membership in the state bar association. This also occurs in Oklahoma, where attorneys are forced, by law, to join the Oklahoma Bar Association if they wish to practice in the state.

“The Oklahoma Bar Association uses its members’ money for political and ideological advocacy, not just to make sure lawyers are qualified and behave ethically.” said Ben Lepak, Legal Fellow at the 1889 Institute and author of the brief. “That violates lawyers’ First Amendment right to freedom of association and their right to choose what political speech they will and will not support with their money.”

Lepak went on to say, “And it’s totally unnecessary. In 18 states, attorneys aren’t forced to join a bar association or pay money to a bar association to practice law, but the state still regulates attorneys, and attorneys still pay for the cost of that regulation.”

1889 Institute’s brief argues that the case of Fleck v. Wetch has national reach, so the court should do far more than merely correct one bad decision of a lower court. The brief highlights the political activity of the Oklahoma Bar Association, which the brief argues is representative of political activity by mandatory associations in 30 other states. The Supreme Court reviews only a small fraction of the cases it is asked to hear.

A similar lawsuit was filed against the Oklahoma Bar Association in March 2019 by a Tulsa attorney who has accused the OBA of using his mandatory dues to fund political activity. That case is pending in federal court in Oklahoma City. If the nation’s Supreme Court takes the North Dakota case, attorneys nationwide, including Oklahoma attorneys, might see their First Amendment rights vindicated.”

The 1889 Institute has critiqued the OBA’s compulsory membership. It has also criticized the privileged status the OBA holds in selecting state judges. Publications include “The Oklahoma Supreme Court’s Unchecked Abuse of Power in Attorney Regulation,” “Legislators in Black Robes: Unelected Lawmaking by the Oklahoma Supreme Court,” and “Taming Judicial Overreach: 12 Actions the Legislature Can Take Immediately.”


About the 1889 Institute
The 1889 Institute is an Oklahoma think tank committed to independent, principled state policy fostering limited and responsible government, free enterprise and a robust civil society. The Fleck Brief, and other reports on licensing can be found on the nonprofit’s website at http://www.1889institute.org/licensing.html. Reports on the Oklahoma judicial system are available at https://1889institute.org/govt-profiteering. 

Small: LeBron's Hong Kong comments would fit in at OK universities

LeBron’s comments might not stand out at OK college campus

By Jonathan Small

Many people have been understandably appalled that NBA superstar LeBron James recently defended, indirectly, the Chinese government’s persecution of protestors in Hong Kong. What should equally bother Oklahomans is that there’s reason to wonder if college students in this state are being indoctrinated in such a way that they will see nothing objectionable with James’ comments.

Here’s a quick recap.  James recently criticized Houston Rockets General Manager Daryl Morey for a tweet in which Morey supported Hong Kong protestors. James said Americans have freedom of speech, but “there are ramifications for the negative that can happen when you’re not thinking about others and you’re only thinking about yourself.” James said he believed Morey “wasn’t educated on the situation at hand.” Later, James tweeted, “My team and this league just went through a difficult week.  I think people need to understand what a tweet or statement can do to others.  And I believe nobody stopped and considered what would happen.  Could have waited a week to send it.”

James’ reticence on this issue is a bit surprising because he’s been vocal on many other political issues. When discussing how Donald Trump was elected president, James said, “I don’t think a lot of people was educated,” echoing his complaint that Morey is not educated. James has also called the president a “bum.”

I don’t agree with James’ views, but support the free speech rights that allow him to make such comments. But it’s still jarring to see him switch gears from vocal criticism of U.S. politics to endorsing silence when it comes to the oppression of people by a communist government overseas.

Could it be that James is the one who is not educated enough to understand reality—that the persecution imposed by the Chinese government is far greater than what anyone faces in the United States?

If so, James may have plenty of company even on Oklahoma college campuses. Consider the fact that the University of Oklahoma is home to a Confucius Institute with ties to the Chinese government.  The goal of the institute sounds nonthreatening—to promote Chinese language and culture in foreign countries—but the Hanban, the agency of the Chinese Ministry of Education, funds Confucius Institutes. The CIA has even warned the Chinese Communist Party “provides ‘strings-attached’ funding to academic institutions and think tanks to deter research that casts it in a negative light.”

Does the “understanding” of Chinese culture fostered by such programs at U.S. universities include helping students understand the very real and very severe oppression of people under the rule of the Chinese government? Somehow, I think not.

The good news is that public response to James’ comments has been overwhelmingly negative, which shows most citizens understand the reality of Chinese oppression. The bad news is there may come a time when we can’t say the same about many of our recent college graduates.

Jonathan Small serves as president of the Oklahoma Council of Public Affairs.

Lawmakers Question UCO for Rescinding Invitation to Christian Speaker

Lawmakers Question UCO for Rescinding Invitation to Christian Speaker

OKLAHOMA CITY – State lawmakers today publicly asked why Christian speaker, Dr. Ken Ham, has been told he is not welcome at the University of Central Oklahoma. According to news reports, the UCO student body president yesterday said he had been "bullied and personally maligned" by campus activists opposed to allowing Dr. Ham to speak.  The lawmakers expressed concern about a growing climate of such assaults on free speech and whether or not the Regents for Higher Education were properly accountable for the use of taxpayer dollars.

“Bullying and intimidating people to squelch free speech are disgraceful anywhere - but even more so on our college campuses,” said Rep. Kevin Calvey, R-Oklahoma City. “Higher Education’s censorship and bigotry against Christians shows an appalling lack of accountability on how Oklahoma’s public colleges and universities spend our tax dollars. We fund education to teach and promote American values. Censorship is not an American value.”

“Those claiming to advocate for tolerance are often, and ironically, the most intolerant of all,” said Sen. Josh Brecheen, R-Coalgate. “This bullying by anti-Christian campus censors has to stop.”

“The overwhelmingly Christian and conservative people of Oklahoma should not be forced to pay more taxes to subsidize censorship and bigotry against Christians and conservatives at our state colleges,” said Rep. Chuck Strohm, R-Jenks.

The lawmakers promised to review the Regents for Higher Education's accountability for their use of taxpayer dollars, and advocated for appropriate safeguards to be enacted to avoid intolerance like that at UCO in the future.

UCO boots Christian speaker Ken Ham from campus forum

UNIVERSITY OF CENTRAL OKLAHOMA RESCINDS INVITE 

TO CHRISTIAN SPEAKER

Nationally-renowned Christian speaker and author, Ken Ham, has been un-invited from a scheduled forum at the University of Central Oklahoma.  Ham had planned to speak about the science behind Darwinian theory but, inexplicably, objections from a campus LGBT group prompted UCO to cancel.

“Since the doors of our public university are closed, we will open our doors for interested students and members of our community to hear what Ken has to share,” says Paul Blair, Pastor of Fairview Baptist Church in Edmond. “I am greatly disappointed that a university that boasts of being ‘discrimination free’ on its website, openly discriminates against the free speech rights of Christians on the campus.” 

Ken Ham is a highly respected and sought after national speaker and the founder of the world-renowned Creation Museum.

Despite a speaking invitation from the UCO student government, and a contract (attached) with the university, Ham was told this week he is no longer welcome. Instead, Ham will give his presentation at Fairview Baptist Church in Edmond.

“It’s another case where the First Amendment exists everywhere except on college campuses,” says Pastor Blair.  “According to its Campus Expression Policy, UCO is committed to ‘fostering a learning environment where free inquiry and expression are encouraged’.  But apparently that only applies to speech that echoes specific political beliefs. The irony is, the groups promoting ‘tolerance’ are the most intolerant forces on campus.”

Ken Ham will speak at 6:30 PM, Monday, March 5, at Fairview Baptist Church, 1230 N. Sooner Road, in Edmond.  Admission is free but seating is limited to the first 500 attendees.

Extra: Contract between UCO and AiG/Ken Ham 

MORE: Here's some additional information from Answers in Genesis.

Must Read: NRA Sells Out First Amendment

Politico: "House Democrats have offered to exempt the National Rifle Association from a sweeping campaign-finance bill, removing a major obstacle in the push to roll back the Supreme Court’s Citizens United ruling."

RedState:

• Yet Again the NRA Sells Out Freedom to the Democrats
• Deja Vu: the NRA and the Democratic crocodiles
• National Rifle Association’s First Amendment Sellout