Monthly Archives: September 2010

Boren as Congress Adjourns

Between votes in the U.S. House, Oklahoma’s Dan Boren spoke with Tulsa Today on the last day of the Congressional session.  “I am sitting here in the cloak room off the House floor between votes and had a moment to call,” Boren said.

Question:  Can you tell us what our tax rate will be January?

“No,” he answered. 

After a pause, Boren (D, 2nd District) continued, “I think that what will happen is that we will adjourn late tonight.  After the election, we will come back November 15th and within a week to ten days we will have a vote on the extension of the Bush Tax Cuts.  My belief, and some will disagree, but I think we will extend all of them probably for about two years.  They won’t be permanent, but I think that will be the compromise.

The Bush Tax Cuts have been the operative level of taxation for about a decade in America so repeal of those would be a significant tax increase for many.

Rep. Boren said, “The President has left a little wiggle room open for some movement there, but he only wants tax cuts for those making under $250,000 a year.”

It is a busy time for Rep. Dan Boren as Congress ends the current session and he returns home to campaign for reelection.  September 23, Dan and Andrea Boren were blessed with a new baby son and just last Saturday they brought him home from the hospital.  Dad reports the baby is not sleeping though the night yet, but there is hope for the near future.  The child is “healthy as a horse with a good appetite.”  He was born in the afternoon at 1:07 pm weighing 7 lb 5 oz.  This is the couple’s second child.

Question:  Why is this Administration providing billions in American tax dollars to fund offshore drilling in Brazil and Mexico while forbidding off-shore drilling for America?  That oil will stay in those countries, build their economies, all the while hurting our oil industry and American workers.

“The Obama Administration has been the most anti-oil and gas industry administration on record.  We knew this going in.  I asked then Senator Obama in a meeting of super delegates just before the nomination about taxing oil and gas companies and taking away the tax deductions for intangible drilling costs and the depletion allowance.  Obama said straight up, yes that was what he wanted to do.  Luckily we have not had those taken away.  

“I have introduced a natural gas bill to expand the use of natural gas.  We were just getting to the point where more than the usual [congressional] players from Oklahoma, Louisiana, Texas who are always pro natural gas were being joined by New York and Pennsylvania representatives when the oil spill happened.  The Administration did a terrible thing by issuing a moratorium [to stop all off-shore drilling].  I understand British Petroleum and some other folks did a bad job there and that the spill could have been prevented, but there are a lot of jobs tied to this industry off-shore.

“You may have noticed that Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-La.) has put a hold on one of the Obama Administration nominees for the Office of Management and Budget,” Boren said.

In a released statement, Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-La.) explained her hold on Jacob J. Lew’s nomination as OMB director because of the Obama administration’s "ill-conceived moratoria on offshore drilling that are having such a devastating impact on working people and small businesses through the Gulf Coast," she said.

"The administration, for whatever reason, has stood in defiance of our federal courts and disregarded economists, experts and its own economic data in proceeding down a path that is putting thousands of people out of work and hurting the bottom line of hundreds of small businesses," Landrieu said.

Boren said, “We are doing everything we can procedurally to get that moratorium lifted and people back to work.  Beyond the jobs, this is also about energy security.”

Question:  Given the Administration’s tax provided funding for foreign oil and climate change and general foreign aid; can you tell us if President Obama’s goal of redistribution of wealth is intended just within the United States or does he plan to level the standard of incomes worldwide?

“I don’t know what President Obama’s worldwide plan is, but whatever it is doesn’t matter if you can’t get it through Congress,” Boren said.  “That is the great equalizer.  We have separate branches of government.  The old saying is, the president proposes and congress disposes and I think that after the election here you will see (as Democrats are on tap to lose seats) that government will come back into balance and hopefully much more bipartisan.

“Some of the economic issues you are questioning [the Administration] will not be able to do.  They will have to negotiate with Congress – they will have to come to the middle at least,” Boren said.

Question: They haven’t had to do that yet?

“No,” Boren said.

Question:  Are you the hope for a new Democrat Party, because this one doesn’t seem to like America very much?

“Well, there are so many factors involved here.  It is not just the parties.  They do play a role, but you have people on both sides of the isle that are extreme right and left.  They don’t believe in any kind of problem solving or bipartisanship.  They are looking to score political points.  The far left people are not in danger of losing their elections this cycle.  It is the people who are somewhat in the middle that ended up voting too far to the left and should have been more to the center.  The sad part of that for the country is that we need more people who are for America not for their political party – Democrat or Republican.

“President Bush ran on being ‘I’m a unite-er not a divide-er’ and President Obama said ‘I’m going to be post-partisan and things are going to be different’ but they both went into office and governed as if only their party was going to be the one doing things and they did not listen to the other party.  That is where you end up getting these really bad deals on both sides.  

Question: The economic policy of trying to pump up the economy with government spending has cost unbelievable trillions of dollars and accomplished nothing.  What is your economic philosophy?  

“There are a lot of parts to this.  Starting with TARP people were bailed out that actually made the bad decisions.  The problem was that if you didn’t bail out the bad guys, then the whole economic system was going to collapse.  TARP and Stimulus sometimes gets mashed into one thing, but TARP is a loan to be paid back with interest and some of that money has come back.  Stimulus is direct spending.  Stimulus will add to the deficit.

“I am not a lawyer.  I am an MBA.  My background is in economics and I have worked in a bank and in an oil and gas company.  I am not what you would call a traditional Democrat.  What I have learned and what I have seen is that we were in a situation and still are where private companies are not spending money because they are very scared about the economic situation, government regulation and the uncertainty of taxes.

"If you look at the timeline, TARP stabilized things.  Then you have the stimulus.  What I think has killed economic growth and frankly really hurt our economy is the Health Care Bill.  A lot of these companies are saying they are just getting back on their feet, but all of a sudden there is this new health regulation coming down the pike and they don’t know how that will impact them so they hold cash and do not hire people.  On top of that is the energy regulation bill known as Cap and Trade?  Both of those bills have had more of a negative impact than the Stimulus Bills.

"We have very low interest rates right now, but at some point what goes down is going to come up and this debt will dramatically increase the national debt and our interest payment on that debt will get larger and larger.  What I would like to see happen is for the Debt Commission made up of people like Sen. Tom Coburn (R-OK) and Rep. Paul Ryan (R-WI) on the Republican side and Andy Stern (indicted former union president of SCIU) on the Democrat side address the tough choices.  There will be a lot of spending cuts.  There will not be any sacred cows here.  

“I think it is a good thing, especially right now that people are paying concerned attention to their country.  Hopefully, we are going to fix some of these problems,” Boren added.

 

To reach Rep. Dan Boren’s Congressional web site, click here.  To reach his campaign web site, click here.


About the author:
An individualist, David Arnett began a traditional journalism career untraditionally in an Aha Moment
you can review thirty years ago. Arnett has long argued that
government is incompetent if not corrupt at the Federal level, put his
life on the line to fight corruption on the state level and questioned
almost every “authority” in Tulsa at some point.  Passionately
belligerent in the demand for equal treatment under the law, Arnett
fought for racial integration of Tulsa Public Schools and equal rights
as youth liaison to the Community Relations Commission before he
graduated from high school.  Arnett is a communications consultant and equal opportunity aggravator.

You are encouraged listen and welcome to call-in between 4 and 6 pm each Saturday on The David Arnett Show on AM 740 and FM 102.3 news talk KRMG to discuss this story and others.  You may also register free on Tulsa Today
and comment below.  E-mail of news tips are welcome to
editor@tulsatoday.com.  (This e-mail address is being protected from
spambots.  You need JavaScript enabled to view it or use our contact
form at the top of the page.)  Arnett writes here as often as
opportunity allows.   This interview is similar to one he held during this campaign cycle with U.S. Rep. Mary Fallin.   Rrecent editorials you may enjoy include “Top Down or Free Up?” and "Obama’s Christian Experience" and "We Can Shrink Government" and "Obama’s Thinking Revealed."

Boren as Congress Adjourns

Between votes in the U.S. House, Oklahoma’s Dan Boren spoke with Tulsa Today on the last day of the Congressional session.  “I am sitting here in the cloak room off the House floor between votes and had a moment to call,” Boren said.

Question:  Can you tell us what our tax rate will be January?

“No,” he answered. 

After a pause, Boren (D, 2nd District) continued, “I think that what will happen is that we will adjourn late tonight.  After the election, we will come back November 15th and within a week to ten days we will have a vote on the extension of the Bush Tax Cuts.  My belief, and some will disagree, but I think we will extend all of them probably for about two years.  They won’t be permanent, but I think that will be the compromise.

The Bush Tax Cuts have been the operative level of taxation for about a decade in America so repeal of those would be a significant tax increase for many.

Rep. Boren said, “The President has left a little wiggle room open for some movement there, but he only wants tax cuts for those making under $250,000 a year.”

It is a busy time for Rep. Dan Boren as Congress ends the current session and he returns home to campaign for reelection.  September 23, Dan and Andrea Boren were blessed with a new baby son and just last Saturday they brought him home from the hospital.  Dad reports the baby is not sleeping though the night yet, but there is hope for the near future.  The child is “healthy as a horse with a good appetite.”  He was born in the afternoon at 1:07 pm weighing 7 lb 5 oz.  This is the couple’s second child.

Question:  Why is this Administration providing billions in American tax dollars to fund offshore drilling in Brazil and Mexico while forbidding off-shore drilling for America?  That oil will stay in those countries, build their economies, all the while hurting our oil industry and American workers.

“The Obama Administration has been the most anti-oil and gas industry administration on record.  We knew this going in.  I asked then Senator Obama in a meeting of super delegates just before the nomination about taxing oil and gas companies and taking away the tax deductions for intangible drilling costs and the depletion allowance.  Obama said straight up, yes that was what he wanted to do.  Luckily we have not had those taken away.  

“I have introduced a natural gas bill to expand the use of natural gas.  We were just getting to the point where more than the usual [congressional] players from Oklahoma, Louisiana, Texas who are always pro natural gas were being joined by New York and Pennsylvania representatives when the oil spill happened.  The Administration did a terrible thing by issuing a moratorium [to stop all off-shore drilling].  I understand British Petroleum and some other folks did a bad job there and that the spill could have been prevented, but there are a lot of jobs tied to this industry off-shore.

“You may have noticed that Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-La.) has put a hold on one of the Obama Administration nominees for the Office of Management and Budget,” Boren said.

In a released statement, Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-La.) explained her hold on Jacob J. Lew’s nomination as OMB director because of the Obama administration’s "ill-conceived moratoria on offshore drilling that are having such a devastating impact on working people and small businesses through the Gulf Coast," she said.

"The administration, for whatever reason, has stood in defiance of our federal courts and disregarded economists, experts and its own economic data in proceeding down a path that is putting thousands of people out of work and hurting the bottom line of hundreds of small businesses," Landrieu said.

Boren said, “We are doing everything we can procedurally to get that moratorium lifted and people back to work.  Beyond the jobs, this is also about energy security.”

Question:  Given the Administration’s tax provided funding for foreign oil and climate change and general foreign aid; can you tell us if President Obama’s goal of redistribution of wealth is intended just within the United States or does he plan to level the standard of incomes worldwide?

“I don’t know what President Obama’s worldwide plan is, but whatever it is doesn’t matter if you can’t get it through Congress,” Boren said.  “That is the great equalizer.  We have separate branches of government.  The old saying is, the president proposes and congress disposes and I think that after the election here you will see (as Democrats are on tap to lose seats) that government will come back into balance and hopefully much more bipartisan.

“Some of the economic issues you are questioning [the Administration] will not be able to do.  They will have to negotiate with Congress – they will have to come to the middle at least,” Boren said.

Question: They haven’t had to do that yet?

“No,” Boren said.

Question:  Are you the hope for a new Democrat Party, because this one doesn’t seem to like America very much?

“Well, there are so many factors involved here.  It is not just the parties.  They do play a role, but you have people on both sides of the isle that are extreme right and left.  They don’t believe in any kind of problem solving or bipartisanship.  They are looking to score political points.  The far left people are not in danger of losing their elections this cycle.  It is the people who are somewhat in the middle that ended up voting too far to the left and should have been more to the center.  The sad part of that for the country is that we need more people who are for America not for their political party – Democrat or Republican.

“President Bush ran on being ‘I’m a unite-er not a divide-er’ and President Obama said ‘I’m going to be post-partisan and things are going to be different’ but they both went into office and governed as if only their party was going to be the one doing things and they did not listen to the other party.  That is where you end up getting these really bad deals on both sides.  

Question: The economic policy of trying to pump up the economy with government spending has cost unbelievable trillions of dollars and accomplished nothing.  What is your economic philosophy?  

“There are a lot of parts to this.  Starting with TARP people were bailed out that actually made the bad decisions.  The problem was that if you didn’t bail out the bad guys, then the whole economic system was going to collapse.  TARP and Stimulus sometimes gets mashed into one thing, but TARP is a loan to be paid back with interest and some of that money has come back.  Stimulus is direct spending.  Stimulus will add to the deficit.

“I am not a lawyer.  I am an MBA.  My background is in economics and I have worked in a bank and in an oil and gas company.  I am not what you would call a traditional Democrat.  What I have learned and what I have seen is that we were in a situation and still are where private companies are not spending money because they are very scared about the economic situation, government regulation and the uncertainty of taxes.

"If you look at the timeline, TARP stabilized things.  Then you have the stimulus.  What I think has killed economic growth and frankly really hurt our economy is the Health Care Bill.  A lot of these companies are saying they are just getting back on their feet, but all of a sudden there is this new health regulation coming down the pike and they don’t know how that will impact them so they hold cash and do not hire people.  On top of that is the energy regulation bill known as Cap and Trade?  Both of those bills have had more of a negative impact than the Stimulus Bills.

"We have very low interest rates right now, but at some point what goes down is going to come up and this debt will dramatically increase the national debt and our interest payment on that debt will get larger and larger.  What I would like to see happen is for the Debt Commission made up of people like Sen. Tom Coburn (R-OK) and Rep. Paul Ryan (R-WI) on the Republican side and Andy Stern (indicted former union president of SCIU) on the Democrat side address the tough choices.  There will be a lot of spending cuts.  There will not be any sacred cows here.  

“I think it is a good thing, especially right now that people are paying concerned attention to their country.  Hopefully, we are going to fix some of these problems,” Boren added.

 

To reach Rep. Dan Boren’s Congressional web site, click here.  To reach his campaign web site, click here.


About the author:
An individualist, David Arnett began a traditional journalism career untraditionally in an Aha Moment
you can review thirty years ago. Arnett has long argued that
government is incompetent if not corrupt at the Federal level, put his
life on the line to fight corruption on the state level and questioned
almost every “authority” in Tulsa at some point.  Passionately
belligerent in the demand for equal treatment under the law, Arnett
fought for racial integration of Tulsa Public Schools and equal rights
as youth liaison to the Community Relations Commission before he
graduated from high school.  Arnett is a communications consultant and equal opportunity aggravator.

You are encouraged listen and welcome to call-in between 4 and 6 pm each Saturday on The David Arnett Show on AM 740 and FM 102.3 news talk KRMG to discuss this story and others.  You may also register free on Tulsa Today
and comment below.  E-mail of news tips are welcome to
editor@tulsatoday.com.  (This e-mail address is being protected from
spambots.  You need JavaScript enabled to view it or use our contact
form at the top of the page.)  Arnett writes here as often as
opportunity allows.   This interview is similar to one he held during this campaign cycle with U.S. Rep. Mary Fallin.   Rrecent editorials you may enjoy include “Top Down or Free Up?” and "Obama’s Christian Experience" and "We Can Shrink Government" and "Obama’s Thinking Revealed."

Drillers to host Rockies in 2011.

TULSA, OK–The Tulsa Drillers announced recently that the Colorado Rockies, their Major League parent club, will play an exhibition game on March 30, 2011 at ONEOK Field in downtown Tulsa.

It will be the second-ever appearance for the Rockies in Tulsa, but their first at ONEOK Field. Colorado faced the Drillers prior to the start of the ’03 season to mark the beginning of the affiliation between the two teams.

The exhibition will feature the full Rockies squad, including National League MVP candidate Carlos Gonzalez, Todd Helton and several former Drillers stars such as Troy Tulowitzki, Ian Stewart, Seth Smith, Dexter Fowler, Ryan Spilborghs, Ubaldo Jimenez and Jeff Francis. It will mark the final spring training game for the Rockies prior to their 2011 regular season opener at Coors Field on Friday, April 1 against Arizona.

"We are thrilled to be able to host the Rockies at ONEOK Field," said Drillers General Manager Mike Melega. "Colorado is one of the most exciting and entertaining teams in Major League Baseball, and we are proud of the fact that so many former Drillers are on the team’s roster. This game presents a convenient opportunity for fans to watch major league stars in action."

The contest will mark the tenth time that the Drillers have hosted their major league parent club in an exhibition. Tulsa met the Texas Rangers eight times during its affiliation with the American League club prior to the Rockies’ visit in 2003.

2011 Drillers’ season ticket holders will have the first option to purchase tickets for the game. Tickets will also be included with any Fireworks Plan that is purchased, as long as they are available.

Individual tickets will go on sale to the general public before the end of the year.

Drillers GM awarded Texas League Executive Of The Year.

Tulsa Drillers President Chuck Lamson has been named the recipient of the 2010 Bill Valentine Texas League Executive of the Year. The announcement was made by Texas League President Tom Kayser.

The TL Award is presented annually, with the winner determined by voting from club directors throughout the eight-team league. It is the third time that Lamson has received the honor. He also won the award in 1996 and 1998. The award is named Arkansas’ long-time executive Bill Valentine.

"I am honored to be recognized by my peers in the Texas League, where there are so many good operators," said Lamson. "An award like this is definitely not just about the individual. I would like to thank the Drillers front office staff and game day associates, the Colorado Rockies, Manhattan Construction, the Tulsa Stadium Trust and the wonderful fans of Tulsa Drillers Baseball. All of these folks contributed greatly to our success in 2010. I am also honored to receive an award named for Bill Valentine, whom I consider to be one of my mentors."

Oilers sign veteran defenseman.

altTULSA, OK–Tulsa Oilers head coach Bruce Ramsay signed two veterans to his defensive corps as he inked Tyler Fleck and Stacey Bauman and two forwards as training camp for his 2010-11 Oilers team is just around the corner.

Fleck, who finished last season on the injured reserve list has been given the all clear to resume playing and will be the Oilers’ captain heading into the season. Fleck joined the Oilers in December from the Missouri Mavericks. His season ending injury limited him to a combined 37 games (17 with the Oilers) in which he had one goal and four assists for five points, and 69 penalty minutes.

Bauman played last season for Rio Grande Valley after spending the previous two years as Fleck’s teammate at Oklahoma City. Last season he had seven goals and eight assists for 15 points in 58 games.

“These two along with Derek Eastman give us one of the deepest, and most experienced defensive crews in the league,” Oilers coach Bruce Ramsay said. “They’ll give us a lot of poise and keep things calm in our end.”

Ramsay also announced the signing of Dain Prewitt and Brandon Roshko, two young forwards to the roster.

Roshko played the last four seasons at Alabama-Huntsville where he had double digit points each of his four years. Prewitt, was a college teammate of Oiler Jeff Gumaer and had 11 goals and nine assists for 20 points in his rookie campaign with South Carolina of the ECHL last year.

“Both these guys bring a lot of energy to the ice and are going to make for a very competitive camp,” Ramsay said.

The Oilers will hold a free agent camp September 29th-October2nd, and then players will assemble this Sunday for pre-camp physicals before the full camp begins on Monday, October 4th. Camp will run from October 4th through October 13th with a pair of preseason exhibition games with the Wichita Thunder on October 8th and 9th. Those two games will be a home and home series.

All camp sessions and the October 9th preseason game will be held at the Oilers Ice Center located on Mingo between 61st and 71st Street. The Oilers will be on hand for the first “Hockey Happy Hour” at the Twisted Tilt Sports Grill at the Jenks Riverwalk.

Finally, opening night for the Tulsa Oilers will be at home when they host the Wichita Thunder at 7:35pm at the amazing BOK Center in downtown Tulsa. Tickets and other information can be obtained by calling 918 632 7825 (PUCK) or at tulsaoilers.com.

 

 

 

 

The Joint set to open with The Doobie Brothers.

Legendary group to open new venue at Hard Rock Casino.

Classic rock lovers will flock to the brand new music venue at the Hard Rock Casino in Catoosa as legendary rockers The Doobie Brother are set to be the first band to play The Joint.

Songs like “Rockin’ Down The Highway”, “Black Water” and the universal feel-good hit “Listen To The Music” have come forth from the legendary group that has had many different personnel changes over the years. 

The latest album offering from the group is the HOR Records release “World Gone Crazy”, which sums up the groups attitude as the Doobie Brothers enter their 4th decade of existence.

In a sense, World Gone Crazy is an analogy for the Doobie Brothers as a whole. Led by founding members, vocalists and principle songwriters Tom Johnston and Pat Simmons, and joined by longtime members John McFee on guitar and Mike Hossack on drums, the Doobies “pro tem” have perfectly honored the broader, 40-year band’s legacy with an offering that grows in unexpected new directions.

“This album has been in the mix for five years, but we didn’t seriously start putting the nuts and bolts together until three years ago,” Johnston says. Simmons adds, “We had been compiling songs with the idea we would eventually do a record. Our old producer Ted Templeman came by tour rehearsals one day and was impressed with how we were sounding. He asked if we were doing any new material or thinking about recording. And that’s where it really started.”

Aside from a few years of inactivity in the mid-eighties, the Doobie Brothers have continued to perform, create and record, with Johnston and Simmons fronting together for a band-record 21 years. “The Doobies have always been about playing live,” Johnston says. “We’re not a studio hot house group and we’re not a concept album band. We’ve always just brought in the tunes we had, put them together and made an album. That’s the way it’s been from the very first album and that’s still the way it’s being done.”

Doors open at 6PM. Show starts at 7:30pm. Tickets are on sale now.

hardrockcasinotulsa.com.

doobiebrothers.net