Henry Vetoes Lawsuit Reform Bill
Governor Brad Henry announced Saturday he has vetoed Senate Bill 507, the lawsuit reform bill passed by the House and Senate. Speaker Lance Cargill (R-Harrah) and Senate President Co-Pro Tem Glenn Coffee (R-Oklahoma City) both reacted to the veto.
"After campaigning for re-election as a moderate, this session we're seeing the reemergence of the liberal Brad Henry we all knew in the State Senate. If the governor isn't careful, he's going to get the nickname 'Governor No,' with all of the vetoes he has issued lately.
"It is ridiculous for the governor to claim he is trying to protect businesses. Business owners know the truth, and they wanted this reform. The governor spent the last two days attempting to water down this legislation.
"Where has the governor been the last four months? To renegotiate a complex and lengthy bill at the eleventh hour ignores the fact that this has been a topic at the Capitol for months.
"We know defenders of the status quo will come up with a long list of excuses to stop Oklahoma from moving forward. As House Republicans continue to champion much-needed reforms in areas like education, tax and civil justice, the governor has become a powerful defender of a detrimental status quo.
"In just the past several weeks, the governor has vetoed a conservative bipartisan budget, he's tried to stop important tax relief in its tracks, he killed pro-life reform, he opposed an independent outside audit of the Department of Corrections and now he has thwarted lawsuit reform.
"We want Oklahoma's second century to be better than its first. While the governor may want to keep us tied down with the failed policies of the past, we will double our efforts to move our state forward."
Coffee said, “This is one of the biggest flip-flops in Oklahoma political history. Today, the governor ignored his own promises by vetoing the genuine reforms he called for in 2004,” stated Senate Co-President Pro Tem Glenn Coffee, R-Oklahoma City. “To paraphrase Groucho Marx: If you don’t like Brad Henry’s stated principles on an issue, don’t worry, he has others,” he said.
“The governor missed a grand opportunity to send a message to the nation that Oklahoma is pro-jobs, pro-doctor, and pro-business,” Coffee continued. “Instead, he sent a message that millionaire trial lawyers are still running the show.”
In 2004 Henry promised to bring “Texas-Plus” lawsuit reform to Oklahoma – and even campaigned in favor of lawsuit reform during last year’s governor’s race. SB 507 contained 18 of the 28 areas of lawsuit reform Henry called for in 2004.
"After campaigning for re-election as a moderate, this session we're seeing the reemergence of the liberal Brad Henry we all knew in the State Senate. If the governor isn't careful, he's going to get the nickname 'Governor No,' with all of the vetoes he has issued lately.
"It is ridiculous for the governor to claim he is trying to protect businesses. Business owners know the truth, and they wanted this reform. The governor spent the last two days attempting to water down this legislation.
"Where has the governor been the last four months? To renegotiate a complex and lengthy bill at the eleventh hour ignores the fact that this has been a topic at the Capitol for months.
"We know defenders of the status quo will come up with a long list of excuses to stop Oklahoma from moving forward. As House Republicans continue to champion much-needed reforms in areas like education, tax and civil justice, the governor has become a powerful defender of a detrimental status quo.
"In just the past several weeks, the governor has vetoed a conservative bipartisan budget, he's tried to stop important tax relief in its tracks, he killed pro-life reform, he opposed an independent outside audit of the Department of Corrections and now he has thwarted lawsuit reform.
"We want Oklahoma's second century to be better than its first. While the governor may want to keep us tied down with the failed policies of the past, we will double our efforts to move our state forward."
Coffee said, “This is one of the biggest flip-flops in Oklahoma political history. Today, the governor ignored his own promises by vetoing the genuine reforms he called for in 2004,” stated Senate Co-President Pro Tem Glenn Coffee, R-Oklahoma City. “To paraphrase Groucho Marx: If you don’t like Brad Henry’s stated principles on an issue, don’t worry, he has others,” he said.
“The governor missed a grand opportunity to send a message to the nation that Oklahoma is pro-jobs, pro-doctor, and pro-business,” Coffee continued. “Instead, he sent a message that millionaire trial lawyers are still running the show.”
In 2004 Henry promised to bring “Texas-Plus” lawsuit reform to Oklahoma – and even campaigned in favor of lawsuit reform during last year’s governor’s race. SB 507 contained 18 of the 28 areas of lawsuit reform Henry called for in 2004.
Labels: Brad Henry, Lance Cargill, Lawsuit Reform, Veto
posted by Mike McCarville @ 5:06 PM
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