Mary Fallin to announce political plans in spring

U.S. Rep. Mary Fallin & Lt. Gov. Jari Askins

Oklahoma U.S. Rep. Mary Fallin says she will spend the next several weeks focusing on the national economy and will announce her future political plans in the spring.

Fallin is considered a possible Republican candidate for governor in 2010 or could run for a third term in Congress.

Incumbent Gov. Brad 'I'm Late' Henry (D) is not eligible to run for re-election because of term limits.

Fallin says a run for governor is tempting with Republicans now controlling both state House and Senate.

Fellow Republican U.S. Senator Tom Coburn, U.S. Rep. Tom Cole (OK-4), State Senator Randy Brogdon (Dist. 34) and State Rep. Randy Terrill (Dist. 53) has also been mentioned as a potential candidate for governor.

Democratic Lt. Gov. Jari Askins and Attorney General Drew Edmondson also have said they're considering running for governor.

Cole picked for House Appropriations Committee

U.S. Tom Cole nabbed a seat Wednesday on the House Appropriations Committee, one of the more coveted panels in Congress.

As a member of that committee, the Oklahoma Republican will help oversee federal spending.

His new post provides an automatic boost to the state delegation's clout in Congress as members of the committee also can steer funds to their districts and states for specific projects.

Cole was promised a seat on the key panel during the last Congress.

At the time, he was also chairman of the National Republican Congressional Committee, the political arm of the House Republicans.

Cole was challenged for re-election to that position following GOP losses in the November elections, and he unexpectedly withdrew from that race just minutes before the vote.

WTF: Cole requests pardon for border agents who shot illegal immigrant

Rep. Tom Cole (Moore, OK-4) is asking President Bush to issue pardons for two border patrol agents who were convicted of shooting an illegal immigrant.

Jose Compean and Ignacio Ramos were both sentenced to more than 10 years in prison for the shooting of admitted drug dealer Osvaldo Aldrete Davila in the buttocks.

The agents said they thought Davila was armed.

What going on ?

Maybe Tommy Cole is looking at running for Oklahoma Governor in 2010, and know that He is on the WRONG SIDE of HB 1804 and Illegal Immigration !

And Tommy know that the Voter of Oklahoma still back HB 1804 by 77% !

And a "OU Hat Tip to my Buddy Bill @ ARRA, for this post BOOMER SOONER BILL !

It's Time to Pardon the Border Guards

Eagle Forum: The end of President Bush's final term is quickly approaching. Less than two months remain until he hands over the White House keys to Barack Obama, but we cannot let him leave office without resolving one very important issue: he must commute the prison sentences of convicted U.S. Border Patrol agents Ignacio Ramos and Jose Compean!

Not only do we now know that the agents did not get a fair trial and that the prosecution's case was based on the word and testimony of an illegal drug smuggler, but the Fifth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals upheld their mandatory minimum 10-year prison sentences for "discharging a firearm during the commission of a crime of violence." This law, Section 924(c) of the U.S. Code, has always been interpreted to apply to criminals, not law enforcement officers engaged in their official duties.

Every U.S. citizen has the right to self defense, especially those serving in harm's way.

The severity of these charges and the harshness of the punishment are totally disproportionate to the violation in question. Even the illegal drug smuggler, Osvaldo Aldrete-Davila, was sentenced to less prison time than our fellow American border guards! Most recently, on November 14, 2008, U.S. Attorney Johnny Sutton, whose office prosecuted the border guards, stated "I have always said that the punishment in this case was harsh."

Although the families of agents Ramos and Compean plan to appeal their cases to the U.S. Supreme Court, there is no guarantee that the High Court will agree to hear it. There is the possibility that the Fifth Circuit may rehear the case in front of all 17 judges at a later date, but the fastest and most effective way to free the border guards would be with a presidential pardon or a commutation of their prison sentences to time served.

It has been said that a pardon or commutation will not be considered until all legal avenues have been exhausted, but the President has the presidential prerogative, as granted to him in Article II, Section 2 of the U.S. Constitution, to pardon or commute the sentences of any convicted person for any reason or for no reason. The time to act is now!

1) Please begin to flood the White House phone lines with calls asking President George W. Bush to pardon or commute the prison sentences of Ramos and Compean before he leaves office. White House Opinion Line: 1(800) 671-7887 toll-free or (202) 456-6213 Comments to the President: (202) 456-1111

2) Call and mail letters to the United States Pardon Attorney explaining why the border guards deserve to have their prison sentences commuted!

All requests for executive clemency for federal offenses are directed to the Pardon Attorney for investigation and review. It is important that you make the Pardon Attorney aware that the border guards have the full support of the American people. Mail letters to: Mr. Ronald L. Rodgers, Office of the Pardon Attorney, 1425 New York Avenue, N.W., Suite 11000, Washington, D.C. 20530 or Call: (202) 616-6070

Herrington Resigns from Rocketplane

Thursday, January 3, 2008

By Tony Choate, Media Relations Specialist
Release Date: January 02, 2008
Chickasaw Nation Media Relations Office
Phone: (580) 310-6451
Fax: (580) 436-7253
Web Site: www.chickasaw.net

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Herrington Resigns from Rocketplane

Former astronaut and retired Navy Commander John Herrington resigned Dec. 21 from Rocketplane Global, Inc.

"I was fortunate during my tenure at Rocketplane to work with an incredibly talented group of professionals,” said Cmdr. Herrington. “My decision to leave was a difficult one.”

He said he plans to continue work in the commercial space industry, because he believes “commercial space is the next great adventure in aerospace."

Cmdr. Herrington also plans to continue his efforts as a highly sought after motivational speaker to both industry and educational institutions.

He will continue working with the Chickasaw Nation and in his role as an advisor to the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs' National Institute for Space, Science and Security Centers.


Former astronaut resigns from Rocketplane
By The Associated Press

Former astronaut and retired U.S. Navy Commander John Herrington has resigned from Rocketplane Global, an Oklahoma company which hopes to offer commercial space travel.

Herrington, who was hired in September 2005 as the company's vice president and director of flight systems, resigned on Dec. 21, according to a news release from the Chickasaw Nation media relations office.

Herrington is a member of the Chickasaw Nation. He became the first American Indian to fly in space in 2002, when he was a mission specialist on the space shuttle Endeavour.

Herrington did not immediately return an e-mail message sent Thursday morning, and Rocketplane's chairman and chief executive officer, George French Jr., did not immediately return a phone message left Thursday at the company's Oklahoma City office.

Herrington has retired from the Navy and from NASA. When he joined Rocketplane, plans were for him to serve as the pilot on the first test flight of Rocketplane XP in 2006 and to fly commercial spaceflights that were expected to begin this year.

But the company has yet to get its spacecraft off the ground and NASA dropped a multimillion dollar space transportation agreement with Rocketplane Global's sister company, Rocketplane Kistler, in October.

"I was fortunate during my tenure at Rocketplane to work with an incredibly talented group of professionals," Herrington said in a statement issued by the Chickasaw Nation. "My decision to leave was a difficult one."

Herrington said in the release that he plans to continue working in the commercial space industry, because he believes "commercial space is the next great adventure in aerospace."

He said he will continue working with the Chickasaw Nation, for which he has appeared in television commercials, and to serve as an adviser to the national Institute for Space, Science and Security Centers at the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs.