Surplus hospital beds secured for McAlester Regional Health Center

Surplus Beds Secured for McAlester Regional Health Center

MCALESTER -- State Rep Jim Grego (R-Wilburton) and State Sen.  Larry Boggs (R-Wilburton) announced Thursday that a load of surplus hospital beds from the Talihina Veterans Center had been shipped to the McAlester Regional Health Center in McAlester.

“McAlester Regional officials reached out to their elected delegation expressing difficulty in obtaining some additional equipment in order to restock a previously closed wing of the hospital in anticipation of a surge of patients in the coming weeks due to COVID-19,” Grego said.

Grego said he worked with State Rep. Chris Kannady (R-Oklahoma City) along with Executive Director of the Oklahoma Department of Veterans Affairs Joel Kintsel and Deputy Director Sarah Lane. They were able to confirm the existence of the beds, which had been taken out of service and deemed surplus. The beds then were made available to McAlester Regional Health Center.

Pittsburg County Commissioner Ross Selman secured a truck along with a van trailer loaned by Big V Feeds Inc. of McAlester to provide transportation.

“This is the way government is supposed to work,” Grego said. “You have an identified need, locate a source, then connect the transportation to make it happen. We had state, county and local officials along with private entities involved.

“While this equipment is now positioned where it can do the maximum good, the hopes and prayers are that it will not be necessary to use.”

Jim Grego represents District 17 in the Oklahoma House of Representatives, which includes parts of Latimer, LeFlore and Pittsburg counties.

'Oklahoma Hello': McAlester Ammo Plant sends greetings to ISIS

The GBU-43/B Massive Ordnance Air Blast bomb (AKA Mother Of All Bombs) recently dropped on an ISIS position in Afghanistan was made in McAlester at the Army Ammunition Plant. It appears that 94 ISIS fighters were neutralized in the strike. It now carries the distinction of being the most powerful conventional/non-nuclear bomb ever dropped in combat.

How's that for an 'Oklahoma Hello'?

OKGOP hosting Vice Presidential Debate events in CD2

The Oklahoma Republican Party is hosting 2012 Vice Presidential Debate Community Forum events in the 2nd Congressional District on Thursday, October 11 in Claremore, Muskogee and McAlester, at 7 p.m. CST.  Republicans, Democrats and Independents alike are all welcome to come to these events. High school classes are encouraged to attend and participate, as well.

The format for the evening will include 2 panelists and a moderator for the event. Before the debate each location will be asked a series of questions and will record the audience responses. During the debate’s commercial breaks the moderator will ask for feedback. After the debate the audience will be asked a series of questions to record any change in opinion.

LOCATIONS:

CLAREMORE:
Wings To Go
2002 S Highway 66, Claremore, OK (map)

MUSKOGEE:
Buffalo Wild Wings
1130 W Shawnee St, Muskogee, OK (map)

McALESTER:
Eastern Oklahoma State College Auditorium
1802 E College Ave, McAlester, OK (map)

Terry Harrison to Run for DA, Forgo 5th House Term

State Rep. Terry Harrison (D, McAlester) has announced his intention to run for District Attorney in 2010, rather than run for a fifth term in the Oklahoma House of Representatives.

Harrison represents House District 18, which covers portions of McIntosh and Pittsburg counties, including the cities of Eufaula and McAlester. The District Attorney seat he will be running for is District 18, which covers Pittsburg and Haskell counties.

He will not be facing an incumbent in 2010, for reasons expound on by the McAlester News-Capitol:

Incumbent District 18 District Attorney Jim Bob Miller has been prohibited from running for election in 2010 through a deferred prosecution agreement Miller made with state Attorney General Drew Edmondson’s office.

Miller agreed not to run for another term and the attorney general agreed not to prosecute him. The agreement did not require Miller to resign.

The agreement became known in early September after a state Multicounty Grand Jury completed its probe into allegations of misconduct by Miller’s office.

Allegations against Miller concerned his attempts to subpoena identifying records of up to 35 bloggers who had posted comments critical of him on the McAlester Watercooler Web site.

Harrison gave some reasons for his decision; also from the McAlester News-Capitol.

Harrison also referred to his perception of the current situation in the state legislature.

“I am so tired of party politics,” said Harrison, who is the minority whip in the House.

“When I was first elected as a state legislator, you never heard me say ‘Democrat’ or ‘Republican.’ Right was right and wrong was wrong.”

The Democratic Party is now in the minority in the state House.

“The last legislative sessions have been brutal — having the Republican agenda pushed down our throat,” Harrison said.

With the Democrats now only holding 39 of 101 seats in the State House, I think we will see more sitting Democrat representatives bail out as well. This presents an opportunity for the GOP, particularly in the heavily-Democratic 2nd Congressional District, to pick up seats that otherwise would have been nearly impossible to win.

Boren Town Halls Today

Congressman Dan Boren is holding three town hall meetings today: one each in McAlester, Muskogee and Pryor.

McAlester - 8 a.m. to 10 a.m.
(S. Arch Thompson Auditorium – 221 E. Adams Ave.)

Muskogee - 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.
(Muskogee Civic Center – 425 Boston St.)

Pryor - 3 p.m. to 5 p.m.
(Pryor MidAmerica Expo Center – US-69 South and Airport Rd.)

I will be attending the Muskogee Town Hall, and hope to give a report on it later this afternoon.

Boren Town Halls

I received the schedule for Congressman Dan Boren's town hall meetings from his office this afternoon.

Congressman Dan Boren's Town Hall Meetings
Tuesday, August 18, 2008

McAlester - 8 a.m. to 10 a.m.
S. Arch Thompson Auditorium – 221 E. Adams Ave.

Muskogee - 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.
Muskogee Civic Center – 425 Boston St.

Pryor - 3 p.m. to 5 p.m.
Pryor MidAmerica Expo Center – US-69 South and Airport Rd.

It's good to see Congressman Boren decide to hold town hall meetings after all. Now, if only Senator Inhofe and Congressman Sullivan would follow suit, then all of the Oklahoma delegation will be holding town hall meetings during the August recess.

McAlester Paper to Boren: Come Out, Come Out, Wherever You Are

Here's an editorial from the McAlester News-Capitol, written by the Editor, Matt Lane:

Come out, come out, wherever you are

The road sure has been rough for representatives when it comes to town hall meetings lately. Folks who are afraid of the president’s health plan, or are afraid the president is going set up death committees to kill the old people, or even folks who happen to have tough questions, have been busy shouting down their elected representatives all across America.

Some of these meetings have been real barnburners with in-your-face confrontations and even some scuffling. Health care is hot this summer.

Let me be plain: That is their right as Americans. Speak up, do so with and make your views heard, I say. All of this impassioned democracy makes elected representative a bit nervous, though, what with seeing the folks from the hinterlands so worked up. The questions are not easy and they won’t shut up when told to do so. Imagine that.

These politicians shouldn’t be surprised. American politics have been rough and tumble from the first time the Founding Fathers sat down and started drawing up the plans for this great republic. Even a cursory look at history shows that Americans take things to heart and are not shy about speaking up about what they believe in. It’s raw, it’s mean and it is totally American. And when Americans speak, it is the duty of their elected representatives to listen — and not just over the telephone.

Which brings me to Oklahoma’s District 2 representative, Dan Boren, D-Muskogee. He has adopted a plan that ensures he doesn’t have to face a room full of worked-up constituents who might not play nice. Here is Boren’s plan:

“Due to a large amount of interest in town hall meetings, (the) Congressman will be hosting a full series of telephone town halls starting just as Congress reconvenes in September. Telephone town halls are a new service that will allow Congressman Boren to reach even more people throughout the 25 counties of the Second District. They also are a very effective and efficient use of office resources. The first one is scheduled for September 8, 2008 at 6:30 p.m. and there will be three more to follow so check back often for added dates/times. Phone: 202-225-2701”

I read that as “no way am I getting in a shouting match.” Let me see, if he holds telephone town meetings he can hear from more people than if he were to take the time to come to a town like, oh I don’t know, McAlester, and face the music.

When this newspaper tried to talk to Boren about the telephone town hall (a colossal misnomer since there is no town and certainly no hall involved), the best we could do was a spokesperson who said Boren’s telephone town halls — in which constituents are being asked to participate in what amounts to a huge conference telephone call — are set to begin when Congress reconvenes in September after the current recess.

As to Boren’s whereabouts, the spokesman said, “he’s traveling.”

How convenient.

Too bad he’s not traveling his district holding town hall meetings.

I think Boren should buck it up, meet his constituents face-to-face, shout back if he has to, show the courage of his convictions and hold some town hall meetings. Come on congressman, this is America and you’re an elected representative of the people. Meet these people face to face and hear them out. You are a match for any of these shouters and you could use the power of your ideas to overcome doubt and misinformation.

Matt Lane is the editor of the McAlester News-Capital. Send him hate mail or encouragement to: Editor, P.O. Box 987, McAlester, OK, 74501. Call him at 421-2022 or send an e-mail to editor@mcalesternews.com.

UPDATE: Rep. Dan Boren, D-Muskogee, has scheduled a town hall meeting in McAlester for Tuesday, 8 a.m. at The Meeting Place. The announcement came after this column had gone to press. Check back for more details on the town hall meetings.

Very good.

Bryan County GOP Action Alert - ObamaCare

Here's an important email from the Bryan County Republican Party regarding ObamaCare:

Good Morning Everyone:

As many of you know, Obama's Health Care "Reform" Bill was introduced in the House yesterday. Obama has spoken on this issue multiple times stating explicitly that if you have your own insurance, you will be able to keep it, and that the gov't won't force people to go onto the government plan.

However, today's Editorial Headline in the Investor's Business Daily based on reading the over 1,000 page bill, states that on page 16 of the bill, in actuality, from the day the bill is signed into law, insurance companies will no longer be able to issue new policies. So, you can keep your insurance, but you can't change it and once you lose it (you leave your company or if your insurance company goes out of business since they can't issue new policies) you then MUST go onto the government plan as that will be the only remaining option.

Please read the Investor's Business Daily article here: http://www.ibdeditorials.com/IBDArticles.aspx?id=332548165656854 to come to your own conclusions.

If the news concerns you, we are asking that please call each and every one of Dan Boren's offices in Oklahoma and DC on Friday, July 17, between the hours of 9am-4pm to voice your concerns based on what you read yourself in the article and news- the phone numbers are listed below.

We have heard of an effort mobilizing across OK to be picketing Boren's offices in Muskogee , McAlester, and Claremore so it will be very helpful for us to call across the state to let his other offices as well know that not only are the people outside his office upset, but additional people are taking action by calling as well. We will not demonstrate outside his Durant office, but we can make a big statement just by taking a five minute break to make our voices heard by phone calls.

We simply need to voice our concerns that Mr. Boren not only needs to vote against this bill, but needs to take an active stand - speeches and interviews to media and working to sign on other Democrats to vote against this bill so it does not pass the House - to defend the people of Oklahoma against this power grab by the government.

Here are the Boren office phone numbers:

Durant: 580-931-0333
McAlester: 918-423-5951
Claremore: 918-341-9336
Muskogee: 918-687-2533
Washington DC: 202-225-2701

Thank you everyone for being willing to take the time to learn the facts and speak up for our freedom!

It is vital that we stop Obama's health care "reform". The stakes are too high.

Tea Party Patriots Announce Nationwide Health Care Freedom Tea Party Protests

The following is a press release from the 'Tea Party Patriots' national organization. 'Tea Party Patriots' was one of the main groups nationwide that were organizing Tea Parties on July 4th.

Tea Party Patriots Announce Nationwide Health Care Freedom Tea Party Protests

WHEN: JULY 17th, 12:00 noon EDT / 9:00 am PDT
WHAT: Tea Party Patriots Health Care Freedom Protests
WHO: Citizen Patients!
WHERE: Coast to Coast, Across the Country, from Florida to Hawaii, at every single Congressional and Senatorial Office

Tea Party Patriots is reaching out to Americans to help them protect their patient-doctor relationship. We believe citizens should be making healthcare decisions for themselves and their family, rather than government bureaucrats. We need to carefully address healthcare reform to give individuals more power instead of putting politicians in control of our healthcare system. We are asking all citizens across this country to join together, for one hour on Friday, in a nationwide effort to express opposition to government takeover of our health care.

Mark Meckler of Tea Party Patriots commented, "People around this country are fed up with the behavior of politicians in Washington. Americans Patriots are angry with the current activity and will not silently sit by as they watch their elected officials drive this country down the road to socialism. Healthcare is a personal choice and one that every American has the right to make without government intervention. Americans are rallying against both the Public and Individual mandate ideas on healthcare! They do not want rationing! They want access across State Lines, tax equality status for all health plans, insurance portability, and politicians to reduce the obstacles for care! The bottom line is they want less government intervention. They want the freedom to choose what they want for themselves and their families. Tea Party Patriots grassroots activists are standing up and will be silent no more."

About Tea Party Patriots:

Tea Party Patriots are the same people that brought you Tax Day Tea Party on April 15th. Three of the national coordinators were on the very first conference call, February 20th, where the first round of tea parties were planned following Rick Santelli's rant. There were only 22 people on that call. The following Friday, February 27th, we had approximately 50 tea parties across the country, with an estimated 30,000 people in attendance! On April 15th, we had 850+ tea parties in all 50 states, with 1.2 million people in attendance.

Tea Party Patriots is founded upon the core principles and values of Fiscal Responsibility, Limited Government, and Free Markets.

Tea Party Patriots is organizing to fight for healthcare freedom and against government controlled medicine. On April 15, 2009 over 1.2 millionAmericans rallied at 'Tea Parties' across the nation to protest out of control spending and big government. Tea Party Patriots is mobilizing the grassroots army! Our focus this summer is Project AIM (Attract, Inform, Mobilize) in order to educate the grassroots army and oppose government run healthcare. We are having weekly townhalls cross the country in addition to tea party protests and rallies. We are using the tea party platform to start the discussion about government run healthcare and educate people about the dangers of government run healthcare. Many people are not aware of how dangerous this legislation is for our country. Tea Party Patriots is working to expose the truths about government run healthcare.

For Additional Information:
teapartypatriots.org

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There are protests being planned for Friday the 17th (from 11am to 12 noon, Central Time), at 2nd District Congressman Dan Boren's district offices.

Denise Clinton is coordinating the Claremore protest (email her here), Elizabeth Jones is coordinating the McAlester protest (email her here), and John McAlister is coordinating the Muskogee protest (email him here).