Page 12 God Bless America Chisholm Trail Community News WWW.CHISHOLMTRAILNEWS.COM July 12, 2023 July 28 & 29 Ladies this is an awesome time to come together to be refreshed, re-energized, and be Þilled with the grace, power, and love of God! Tickets are $25 & can be purchased online at rohchurch.org or the day of the event at the door. Optional $10 lunch ticket purchase also available. Friday, July 28th, 7:00 pm to 9:00 pm Saturday, July 29th, 9:30 am to 3:30 pm Speakers: Lucinda Davidoff, Stella Maxwell, Roxanne Parks, & Dr. Lauren Duroy Ray of Hope Church Highway 81 & ReÞnery Road Just 5 minutes south of Duncan, OK rohchurch.org - 580.252.7772 Fair and Biased A conservative view of national, state, and local politics by Steve Fair Chairman, 4th District Oklahoma Republican Party Vice-Chairman ANIMAL FARM Last week, the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals reversed a federal district ruling on whether the City of Tulsa has jurisdiction over Native Americans. Justin Hooper got a speeding ticket five years ago in Tulsa. He pled guilty and paid his fine. Two years later, Hooper, who is a member of the Choctaw tribe, filed for postconviction relief citing the McGirt decision. The Tulsa municipal court threw out the case, as did the federal district court. Hooper appealed to the appellate 10th circuit court and they agreed the Indian reservations of the five civilized tribes remains intact and the members of the tribes are under no obligation to submit or obey municipal or state law. Alicia Stroble is a member of the Creek nation. In 2022, Stroble sued the Oklahoma Tax Commission (OTC) contending that she did not have to pay state income taxes because she wasn’t subject to the laws of the state of Oklahoma. An OTC administrative judge agreed with her, but the OTC board members reversed the ruling. The case is now in front of the Oklahoma Supreme Court, a body more unstable and unpredictable than water. Who knows how they will rule. When the McGirt decision was rendered by the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS), the disestablishment of the reservations was cited as the primary issue. McGirt was thought to apply only to criminal law, but the 10th Circuit decision in the Hooper case indicates the reestablishing of the reservations has more than criminal law implications. Two observations: First, tribal members in Oklahoma should be subject the same laws as non-tribal members. Since statehood, that has been the case. McGirt changed that. Now the Hooper ruling says non-tribal members in the eastern half of the state have to drive the speed limit, but tribal members can ignore it. That’s unfair and crazy! If Stroble is successful, she will not pay taxes, but nontribal members will have to. That is asinine! There can’t be two sets of rules in the state. That will divide and ultimately destroy the state. Governor Kevin Stitt said regarding the Stroble suit: “I will always fight for fairness, and it is just preposterous to believe that in this scenario a single mom of a different race would have to pay taxes, but I as governor (Stitt is Cherokee), wouldn’t because of my native heritage. The reality is we all drive on the same roads, send our kids to the same schools - we should all play by the same set of rules regardless of race.” Tribal leadership appears to want to divide Oklahoma. For over 100 years, the tribes and the state co-existed and cooperated, but now it appears tribal leaders want preferential treatment for their citizens. The Hooper opinion by the 10th circuit sent the message tribal members are like Post cereal - just a little bit better than other Oklahomans. Second, the Hooper decision was based on race. Ironically, the Hooper decision came the same week the SCOTUS struck down Affirmative Action and ruled college entrance could not be based on race. Sara Hill, the Attorney General for the Cherokee nation, said, “A lot of people make the mistake this (the Hooper decision) was about race when its really about being a citizen of a government and who has authority over you.” But Hill is wrong. The determination of tribal citizenship is based on race, so how is the ruling not related to race? George Orwell’s novel, Animal Farm, tells the story of a group of farm animals who rebel against their human farmer. The animals vow to create a society where all the animals are equal and free. But under the dictatorship of a pig named Napoleon, the pigs ultimately create a state as bad as it was under the farmer. In the final chapter of the book, Napoleon tells the animals that all of them are equal, but some are ‘more equal’ than the others. Welcome to Animal Farm! Steve Fair is Vice Chairman of the 4th district of the Oklahoma Republican Party. He can be reached by email at steve.fair@ ymail.com His blog is stevefair.blogspot.com. Sen. Montgomery announces resignation Sen. John Michael Montgomery, R-Lawton, released the following statement Friday after announcing that he will be resigning from the Oklahoma Senate, effective Aug. 1, 2023, to accept the role of president and CEO of the Lawton Fort Sill Chamber of Commerce. “It has been an honor and truly humbling to have been able to represent at the state Capitol the community that I have grown up in and call home for the last nine years. I am deeply grateful for the trust my constituents have placed in me, for the outpouring of support I have had, and cherish my colleagues I have worked with these many years. I consider it a great blessing to be able to continue to work for my home in a new role as president and CEO of the Lawton Fort Sill Chamber of Commerce and believe that my resignation from the Oklahoma State Senate, effective August 1, 2023, will be a long term investment in our community.” Montgomery was first elected to the House of Representatives (District 62) in 2014 and served to 2018 when he was elected to the senate (District 32) to replace Randy Bass. He was the first Republican to hold the seat since the 1930s. BEHIND EVERY PROJECT IS A 416 Choctaw - Chickasha 405-224-2222 BEHIND EVERY PROJECT IS A 416 Choctaw - Chickasha 405-224-2222 Now Over 416 Choctaw - Chickasha 405-224-2222 STORE HOURS: Mon-Fri 8:00 a.m. - 6:00 p.m. Sat 8:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. Sun 12:00 p.m. - 5:00 p.m. Find Everything you need at Ross Seed
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