OKLAHOMA CITY — A state senator, known from his far-right, anti-federal government legislative proposals, is getting push back from the state Senate’s Republican leadership.
In what could be described as a presession battle of press releases, Sen. Nathan Dahm (R-Broken Arrow) was criticized after he issue a media statement on Jan. 11, which announced his senate resolution to “reject the insertion of Ukrainian troops in Oklahoma.”
“These America Last policies of the current regime should not be tolerated in Oklahoma,” Dahm’s statement said. “We saw how recently the Ukrainian military fired a rocket into Poland killing two innocent civilians. We certainly don’t need them practicing here in Oklahoma where our citizens could be under the constant threat of a similar failure.”
Dahm said he filed Senate Concurrent Resolution 2 which would “direct the Pentagon to reverse course on their recent announcement to send 100 Ukrainian troops into Oklahoma for training on U.S. missile systems.”
“This resolution rejects this attempt by the feds to put foreign troops in Oklahoma,” Dahm said. “It even encourages the governor, county officials, and law enforcement to use their powers to prohibit these foreign troops from being on Oklahoma soil.”
If adopted, Dahm said his proposal would remain in effect until superseded by a new resolution “to ensure the feds don’t make another attempt in the future to send even more foreign troops.”
“We must put the people of Oklahoma first,” he said. “We shouldn’t be allowing the unaccountable spending, corruption, and potential money laundering to now flow through Oklahoma with the presence of foreign troops on our land.”
Dahm’s proposal drew a terse response from Senate Pro Tempore Greg Treat and several others in the Senate’s GOP leadership. The group said the state’s military installations have a rich history of training programs with different countries.
“Oklahoma has had partnerships with military forces from partner countries to train and maintain the safety and security of the United States and other allied countries for decades,” the group’s statement said. “To cut these ties would be akin to jeopardizing our national security.”
The resolution that was issued, the group said, “does not speak for the vast majority of the Oklahoma Senate, or Oklahomans, who welcome training exercises to defend the lands we love and our neighbors in other countries. We hope the troops from other countries currently training on our beloved military installations in Oklahoma feel welcomed and experience what makes our state the best in the country.”
The statement was issued by Treat and Sens. Greg McCortney (R-Ada), Roger Thompson (R-Okemah), John Michael Montgomery (R-Lawton), Brenda Stanley (R-Midwest City), Adam Pugh (R-Edmond) and Paul Rosino (R-Oklahoma City).
Over the past few years, Dahm has continued to push for and file legislation that attempts to limit the federal government’s authority or restrict what actions state officials can take.
Last week Dahm said he filed several pieces of legislation “aimed at ending any remnants of Covid tyranny.” Those measure include legislation that would limit the emergency powers of the governor and place additional limits on emergency declarations. Other measures would put limits on the closures of businesses and churches during emergencies such as pandemics.
Dahm has also called for laws to prohibit Medicaid providers from receiving reimbursement from Medicaid if they offer gender transition services and bills that would prohibit any Oklahoman under the age of 18 from receiving gender reassignment surgery.
State lawmakers will return to the Capitol in February for the first session of the 59th Oklahoma Legislature.