House Democrats are calling for an investigation into State Superintendent Ryan Walters for possible impeachment charges. Officials held a press conference Tuesday morning calling on the Speaker of the House to act.
Democrats say the legislature should investigate a litany of allegations against Walters, here’s some of that list:
Lying to the legislative education committee about filing federal grants, sending pornographic material to legislative staff, mishandling federal funds, using state funds to create political videos about teachers’ unions and Tulsa Public Schools, and using his official Twitter - now X - to share an altered video from a far-right account that’s now at the center of over a week of bomb threats to schools.
Though Democrats are calling for the investigation, Oklahoma City Rep. Mickey Dollens says his Republican colleagues are also getting just as many concerned messages from constituents.
"The safety of our children, the safety of our students is apolitical. It’s an Oklahoma issue," said Dollens.
House Speaker Charles McCall would have to green light a bipartisan committee.
If legislators moved forward with articles of impeachment, it would have to pass the House and Senate. A spokesperson for Walters calls the move a “direct threat to democracy.”
Extra security is being put in place at high school athletic events around Oklahoma City following last week’s shooting at a football game in Choctaw that left a 16-year-old dead and several injured. The new measures meant to prevent future violence.
Oklahoma City Public Schools Superintendent Sean McDaniel says he hears the community’s concerns about safety at high school games. Here he is at a recent press conference.
"And they want to know, 'are my kids safe at school? Are my kids safe at a sporting event? Tell us what you’re doing at OKCPS so that we can breathe a little bit easier,'" McDaniels said during a Tuesday news conference.
Wayland Cubit is the district’s director of security. He says very few changes need to be made, but there are some, including the use of more advanced weapon detection systems, and a “no-bag” policy that will only allow things like purses and clutches inside stadiums. No backpacks or duffel bags.
"Another thing that we’re going to do that’s a little bit different is we’re going to assign school administrators to the entrances to make sure that only those kids with vested interest in the game, or belong to those particular schools that are competing in that event attend those games," said Cubit.
The 16-year-old who was killed last week was not a student at either of the schools competing.
An Oklahoma utility company is sending help to Florida in wake of Hurricane Idalia. On Tuesday, Edmond Electric sent a crew of six to travel to Tallahassee, Florida, to help restore electricity following the storm.
The utility provider says the crew will work to cut down trees and replace poles and conductors.
The team is prepared to spend about two weeks in Florida.
The Governor’s decision to send Oklahoma National Guard troops to the Texas-Mexico border will cost at least $825,000.
The nonprofit news outlet Oklahoma Voice says the cost will be used to pay roughly 50 Guard members to be deployed to El Paso, Texas.
It pays for a 30-day mission, which concludes this month. Initially, Gov. Kevin Stitt planned to authorize up to 100 guard members to go - after Texas Gov. Greg Abbot sought aid from Republicans after pandemic-era border restrictions expired.
The cost of deployment is mostly made up of personnel costs, but also a sizable smaller chunk for travel. Another smaller portion covered the cost of commodities - like fuel, food and other basic supplies.
The outlet reports it is not yet clear whether the National Guard or the Oklahoma Military Department will have to cover those costs - and that the Governor’s office has not yet responded to that question.
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