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On Saturday, the Oklahoma Republican Social gathering handed a decision to “condemn” and censure Sen. James Lankford for his efforts to guard the southern border. On Sunday, the Oklahoma Republican Social gathering issued a assertion calling the Saturday decision illegitimate. However that hasn’t slowed the assaults on the state’s senior senator.
Lankford is, by any measure of coverage, ridiculously excessive. He referred to as local weather change a “fable,” mentioned that same-sex marriage violates his non secular freedom, and disparaged the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act. He was one in every of a handful of senators who introduced his intention to object to counting swing state votes following the 2020 election. When the counting course of was suspended as a result of violence of Jan. 6, Lankford was truly on the podium, objecting to accepting Arizona’s electoral votes. Whereas he reversed course on these objections when the method resumed, he topped off these occasions by voting in opposition to a nonpartisan Jan. 6 fee.
Lankford is as exhausting proper as they arrive, however now he’s being condemned as a “RINO” and has turn into the focus of assaults for attempting to do one thing Republicans have claimed they needed to do for many years. As a result of this combat isn’t about coverage, it’s about whether or not Donald Trump, even out of workplace, can management each single motion by each single Republican.
However as of Tuesday, it’s not clear that both of the statements from the Oklahoma Republican Social gathering truly got here from the Oklahoma Republican Social gathering, as a result of it’s not clear such a factor as a coherent, recognizable Republican Social gathering even exists in Oklahoma.
Because the Oklahoma Voice reviews, the Saturday assembly at which Lankford was condemned was organized by Republican Social gathering Vice Chairman Wayne Hill. The Sunday assertion calling that assembly illegitimate was despatched out by Republican Social gathering Chairman Nathan Dahm talking for the occasion’s state committee. However Hill claims he had the help of the vast majority of state committee members on the Saturday assembly.
Since then, Hill has despatched out a sequence of messages justifying the Saturday assembly and elaborating on why Lankford is “an insult to the conservative values of Oklahoma Republicans.” What’s presupposed to be an “official assertion” from Hill is circulating, although it’s unclear if it truly got here from Hill. Hill’s hate for Lankford appears to return no less than two years: He was the chair of a Republican county group that voted to sentence Lankford after he reversed course on opposing the rely of 2020 votes.
Dahm has mentioned nothing extra in regards to the assembly or the condemnation of Lankford. Although he has taken time to make statements defending Speaker of the Home Mike Johnson’s ridiculous demand for “zero” border crossings. (Dahm’s argument isn’t fairly as compelling as he appears to assume.) He additionally appears to have had a long-running feud with Hill.
Lankford is supporting the bipartisan border safety invoice which, by most accounts, provides Republicans nearly all the pieces they ever needed. Sen. Lindsey Graham has mentioned that Republicans received’t get a greater deal if Trump is elected. Senate Minority Whip John Thune agreed. “The Democrats won’t give us something near this if we’ve to get 60 votes in the USA Senate in a Republican majority,” mentioned Thune. “Now we have a singular alternative right here. And the timing is true to do that.”
Beneath every other circumstances, Republicans could be scrambling to move this invoice, speaking it up throughout the media, and making ready to rejoice their victory. Besides they’re not. As a result of Donald Trump advised them to not move it in order that he may proceed to have the border situation to speak about for the upcoming election.
“I’ll combat all of it the way in which,” mentioned Trump. “Numerous the senators are attempting to say, respectfully, they’re blaming it on me. I say, that’s okay. Please blame it on me. Please.”
In the meantime, Lankford maintains that Trump is opposing the invoice due to misinformation. “They’re all functioning off of web rumors of what’s within the invoice, and plenty of of them are false,” Lankford mentioned on CBS’ “Face the Nation.”
However that assumes Trump cares about what’s within the invoice. Trump is claiming that he fully closed down the border, and “I did it with no invoice,” Trump advised supporters in Nevada. Besides he didn’t.
Johnson is echoing that declare and saying that the Senate invoice is “lifeless on arrival” within the Home it doesn’t matter what it incorporates.
From the sidelines, it’s actually entertaining to observe the Republican Social gathering rip itself broad open to place Trump forward of what they’ve lengthy claimed to be a very powerful situation dealing with the nation—even when it’s not precisely wholesome.
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