Joe Exotic for President
The Tiger King is running for president - again. Joseph Maldonado, better known as Joe Exotic, is well-known in Oklahoma, but rose to national fame during the pandemic as the star of the Netflix series “Tiger King.” Now he’s launching a 2024 presidential bid from prison. He’s running as a Democrat. He also ran in 2016 as an Independent, and in 2018 ran for governor as a Libertarian.
Maldonado’s Twitter account says he changed his affiliation to force the Democratic Party to "answer legitimate questions and meet in the middle on hot-button issues."
His platform: Responsible gun regulation, reproductive rights, mental health and criminal justice reform. Maldonado is currently serving a 21-year federal sentence for multiple crimes, including violations of the Endangered Species Act while running his zoo in Wynnewood, and a murder-for-hire plot against his rival and fellow wildlife park owner Carol Baskin.
Drummond Sues Biden
Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond has sued the Biden Administration over a rule designating the lesser prairie chicken as a threatened species.
Drummond sued the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, alongside attorneys general from Texas and Kansas, over a rule that designates the lesser prairie chicken as threatened and endangered under the Endangered Species Act.
The ruling took effect last month. It requires companies, farmers and ranchers to take special care - that can prove costly - not to harm the birds. Drummond says the rule places burdensome restrictions on Oklahoma ranchers who graze livestock and impedes the development of energy pipelines, oil drilling, wind farms and roads. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service ruling states the primary risk for the lesser prairie chicken is habitat loss and land fragmentation. The agency estimates there are about 32,000 in the wild.
Drummond says he’ll be using a fund that was recently created by the state legislature to help Oklahoma in litigation against the federal government for the suit.
Smell Test for Dogs
Before dogs can sniff out explosives they have to pass a test. One of those tests was held recently at the Oklahoma State Fairgrounds.
About 20 K9 units are in Oklahoma City for the AFT national odor recognition test. Trained on almost 19,000 smells, the dogs are tested on their ability to distinguish the difference between explosive materials and distracting odors. The test consists of 15 cans, containing a multitude of odors.
2-year-old K9 officer Jasmine was able to identify all the “hot” or explosive materials in her test. Jasmine is trained to work with a bomb squad. Her handler is Oklahoma Highway Patrol Trooper Mark Tschetter. And he has a lot of respect for his partner. That kind of bond is common between officers and their canines, says Special agent Kevin Brown.
"Without a doubt, they are the heroes of the heroes," he said.
Once the animal has passed its test, the dog and their handler are federally certified.
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