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| T.W. Shannon |
Booker Rising has reported on this for some time, but yesterday it became formal. From the Associated Press: "Lawton Republican Rep. T.W. Shannon has been formally elected as Oklahoma's first black Speaker of the House. During the Legislature's organizational day on Tuesday, the House voted along party lines to elect the 34-year-old Shannon as speaker. Democratic leader Scott Inman of Del City also was nominated. The new 72-member strong House Republican caucus already had voted unanimously to elect Shannon as speaker, and Tuesday's vote was a formality."
Did you know that he once worked for former U.S. Congressman J.C. Watts? After he was sworn in, Speaker Shannon called for tax reform in Oklahoma. He also slammed runaway federal spending in his address: "'Today, we live in a country with an out-of-control federal government that is bankrupt both financially and morally,' he said. 'As a result, we have fewer freedoms. We pay more in taxes than we should and there is little hope of these things changing under our president and this current Congress.'
