U.S. Sen. Jim Inhofe (R-Okla.), chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, made the following statement after the U.S. Army appointed Mike Brown as a Civilian Aide to the Secretary of the Army: “Mike has served Oklahoma and Lawton Fort Sill for over 30 years, and is an excellent choice for Civilian Aide to the Secretary of the Army. I congratulate him on his appointment. “In his most recent position as Mayor Pro Tempore for the City of Lawton, Mike forged... Continue Reading »
U.S. Sen Jim Inhofe (R-Okla.), yesterday introduced the Keep Our Communities Safe Act, with Sens. John Boozman (R-Ark.), Tom Cotton (R-Ark.), David Perdue (R-Ga.), Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.) and Ted Cruz (R-Texas). The legislation would close the legal loophole that requires immigration authorities to release back into the United States illegal aliens who have not been accepted for deportation to other countries after being detained for six months; a practice also referred to as "catch and... Continue Reading »
U.S. Sen. Jim Inhofe (R-Okla.) welcomed Rocky and Samantha Ausbrooks from Beggs, Okla., and their family to Washington today for the Congressional Coalition on Adoption Institute’s annual “Angels in Adoption” Program. “It is a privilege to welcome five-year-olds Addisyn and Kaleb and 13-year-old Tesfaye Ausbrooks to Washington as we celebrate their parents as Angels in Adoption Honorees,” Inhofe said. “Rocky and Samantha’s story is... Continue Reading »
U.S. Sen. Jim Inhofe (R-Okla.) senior member of the Environmental and Public Works (EPW) Committee, questioned witnesses at an EPW hearing to receive testimony on Preserving and Expanding Clean, Reliable Nuclear Power: U.S. Commercial Nuclear Reactor Performance Trends and Safety Initiatives. Witnesses included Admiral Robert Willard, President and Chief Executive Officer, Institute of Nuclear Power Operations; Dr. Peter Lyons, Commissioner of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission from 2005-2009,... Continue Reading »
U.S. Sen. Jim Inhofe (R-Okla.), chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, welcomed North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg before the committee today for an informal meeting. Members of the Senate Armed Services Committee expressed their support for the long-standing military alliance and discussed the importance of security cooperation and burden sharing. Following the meeting, Inhofe released the following statement: “For 70 years, the NATO... Continue Reading »
U.S. Sen. Jim Inhofe (R-Okla.) spoke on the Senate floor this evening about the current U.S.-China trade relationship Click here to watch Sen. Inhofe’s remarks.As prepared for delivery:I’m here today to talk about an important vote I took 19 years ago—a vote about free trade and China.You might think it is out of character for me to be down here on the floor talking about trade with China, because usually I’m down here talking about how they’re investing in their military at unprecedented... Continue Reading »
U.S. Sen. Jim Inhofe (R-Okla.), in advance of Veterans Day, opened the United States Senate in prayer this morning. Click to watch Sen. Inhofe’s opening prayer. Let us pray. Almighty God, Creator of all, as we gather here today, we are grateful for the service members who are deployed in the defense of our great nation under God. We ask for your comfort of the families who continue the duties at home with the courage to maintain the home front in the absence of their... Continue Reading »
U.S. Sens. Jim Inhofe (R-Okla.) and Roger Wicker (R-Miss.), the chairmen of the Senate Armed Services Committee and Senate Commerce Committee respectively, sent a letter to President Trump, urging him to address the willful decision by Chinese technology companies refusing to pay lawful intellectual property licensing fees to U.S.-based businesses for use of proprietary technology as part of his trade negotiations with China. The chairmen write in part: “By refusing to pay these... Continue Reading »
U.S. Sen. Jim Inhofe (R-Okla.), chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, today spoke on the Senate floor about the need to pass defense authorization and appropriations legislation as soon as possible, given the security challenges facing our nation and limited legislative time remaining before the end of the year: As Prepared for Delivery: Last week, I came down here and talked about why we needed to pass the National Defense Authorization Act and why a full-year continuing resolution... Continue Reading »
U.S. Sens. Jim Inhofe (R-Okla.) and James Lankford (R-Okla.) today issued statements of support for President Trump’s nomination of John Heil to serve as judge on the U.S. District Court for the Eastern, Northern, and Western Districts of Oklahoma. In addition to announcing Mr. Heil’s nomination, President Trump also made remarks on the administration’s judicial confirmation milestones. “The president’s nomination of fellow Tulsan John Heil to serve on the U.S.... Continue Reading »
U.S. Sen. Jim Inhofe (R-Okla.) senior member of the Environmental and Public Works (EPW) Committee, questioned witnesses at an Environmental Public Works (EPW) hearing to receive testimony on the Growing American Innovation Now (GAIN) Act. Inhofe is a cosponsor of this legislation. Witnesses included Jeff Holmstead, Partner, Bracewell LLC; Sean Alteri, Deputy Commissioner, Kentucky Department for Environmental Protection; John Walke, Clean Air Director and Senior Attorney, Natural... Continue Reading »
U.S. Sen. Jim Inhofe (R-Okla.), senior member of the Senate Environment and Public Works (EPW) Committee, praised President Trump for announcing that the United States has submitted formal notice to withdraw from the United Nation’s Paris Climate Agreement today – the earliest possible date to notice withdrawal. At Inhofe’s urging, Trump announced he intended to withdraw from the Paris Climate Agreement in June 2017. “I have said it before and I’ll say it again: the... Continue Reading »
Sens. Jim Inhofe (R-Okla.), James Lankford (R-Okla.), Maggie Hassan (D-N.H.) and Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship Chairman Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) yesterday announced the introduction of their Harmless Error Lesser Penalty (HELP) for Small Businesses Act (S. 2757). This simple, straight-forward, bipartisan good government bill would waive fines for first-time paperwork violations by small businesses, excluding fines for violations that endanger the... Continue Reading »
U.S. Sen. Jim Inhofe (R-Okla.) today released a video of his reaction to House Democrats passing a partisan resolution opening a formal impeachment inquiry. View and download the video here. Transcript below: Today, House Democrats passed a partisan resolution opening a formal inquiry after weeks of secret hearings and meetings. It didn’t get a single Republican vote. Pelosi’s resolution doesn’t follow the historical precedent of the Clinton and Nixon impeachment process... Continue Reading »
U.S. Sen. Jim Inhofe (R-Okla.) applauded the passage of four appropriations bills today. These bills fund nearly one-third of all non-defense discretionary spending and provide the necessary funding for the Department of Commerce, Department of Justice, the Department of the Interior, the Environmental Protection Agency, the Department of Agriculture, the Department of Transportation, the Department of Housing and Urban Development, and other agencies. “I am glad we were able to pass these... Continue Reading »
U.S. Sen. Jim Inhofe (R-Okla.), chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, released the following statement today after Senate Democrats filibustered defense appropriations legislation, blocking annual funding for the military, military families and critical national security programs. “Today, Democrats put politics — and their three-year campaign to impeach our duly elected president — ahead of our troops. Every time military leaders come before the Senate Armed Services... Continue Reading »
Senators Jim Inhofe (R-Okla.) and James Lankford (R-Okla.) today applauded the Senate Judiciary Committee advancement of Jodi Dishman to serve as U.S. District Court Judge for the Western District of Oklahoma. Dishman’s nomination was reported favorably out of the Judiciary Committee and will now move to the full Senate for a confirmation vote. “Jodi has proven herself as an exemplary attorney and I am glad to see her nomination reported favorably out of committee... Continue Reading »
U.S. Sen. Jim Inhofe (R-Okla.), introduced Bernard Jones at the Senate Judiciary Committee. Mr. Jones has been nominated to serve as a District Judge for the Western District of Oklahoma. Remarks as prepared for delivery Thank you, Chairman Graham for the opportunity to introduce to the Committee fellow Oklahoman and distinguished jurist, Bernard Jones. It is an honor to be here today in support of his nomination to serve as U.S. District Court Judge for the Western District of Oklahoma. A... Continue Reading »
The following stakeholders praised the introduction of the Down Syndrome Discrimination by Abortion Prohibition Act: “Taking the life of an unborn child because the baby has been diagnosed with Down Syndrome is the ultimate manifestation of discrimination,” said Tony Lauinger, State Chairman of Oklahomans For Life. “Targeting for death a human being who is deemed by someone else to be less than perfect is eugenics carried to its lethal extreme.” “While society has... Continue Reading »
U.S. Sen. Jim Inhofe (R-Okla.) led 13 of his colleagues in introducing the Down Syndrome Discrimination by Abortion Prohibition Act, which would prohibit abortion based on an unborn child having Down syndrome. Congressman Ron Estes (KS-04) introduced companion legislation in the House of Representatives. Sponsors of the bill include Sens. Steve Daines (R-Mont.), James Lankford (R-Okla.), Tom Cotton (R-Ark.), Rick Scott (R-Fla.), James Risch (R-I.D.), Mike Braun (R-Ind.), Joni Ernst (R-Iowa),... Continue Reading »
