Press Releases
Senator Lankford Cosponsors Legislation to Combat Opioid Epidemic
WASHINGTON, DC - Senator James Lankford (R-OK) today announced his cosponsorship of the Stopping Overdoses of Fentanyl Analogues (SOFA) Act. This bill would give law enforcement enhanced tools to combat the opioid epidemic and close a loophole in current law that makes it difficult to prosecute crimes involving some synthetic opioids. "Oklahomans are tragically aware of the devastating ways the opioid epidemic has affected our families and our communities," said Lankford. "Drug abuse and addict… Continue Reading
12.04.19
Senator Lankford Questions Nominee to Lead Federal Regulatory Review Office
CLICK HERE to watch Lankford's Q&A. WASHINGTON, DC - Senator James Lankford (R-OK) today attended a hearing in the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee to consider the nomination of Mr. Paul J. Ray to be Administrator of the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) within the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). As Chairman of the Committee's Subcommittee on Regulatory Affairs and Federal Management and in his previous service on the House Oversight Committee,… Continue Reading
12.04.19
Oklahoma Delegation Unites to Urge Passage of USMCA
WASHINGTON, DC - More than a year after President Trump signed the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) with leaders from Mexico and Canada, Oklahoma's congressional delegation is unanimous in their support of the trade deal. Senators James Lankford (R-OK) and Jim Inhofe (R-OK) and all five members of the House call on House leadership to work together to bring the USMCA for a vote before the end of the year. "The USMCA negotiations ended more than a year ago, and it has been sitting i… Continue Reading
12.04.19
Senator Lankford Highlights Importance of Addressing Our $23 Trillion Debt on Senate Floor
CLICK HERE to watch Lankford's floor speech. WASHINGTON, DC - Senator James Lankford (R-OK) today spoke on the Senate floor about the importance of this week's release of the fifth volume of his federal waste report, Federal Fumbles: Ways the government dropped the ball. The report lists $383 billion in wasteful and inefficient federal spending on a variety of programs and processes throughout the government. The report also provides solutions to each example of government waste or inefficiency… Continue Reading
12.03.19
Senators Lankford, Peters, Sinema Applaud Senate Passage of Representative Payee Fraud Prevention Act
WASHINGTON, DC - Senators James Lankford (R-OK), Gary Peters (D-MI), and Kyrsten Sinema (D-AZ) applauded Senate passage of their Representative Payee Fraud Prevention Act, a bill that would crack down on fraud and misuse of federal retirement benefits. "I'm grateful the Senate agreed with our bill to help safeguard federal employee retirement funds from embezzlement," said Lankford. "Our bill closes a loophole in the law that allows bad actors to get off easy if they embezzle funds from federa… Continue Reading
12.02.19
Government Waste Report: Senator Lankford Releases the Fifth Volume of Federal Fumbles
CLICK HERE to watch Lankford's video release. WASHINGTON, DC - Senator James Lankford (R-OK) today released the fifth volume of his government waste and solutions report entitled, Federal Fumbles: Ways the federal government dropped the ball. The report lists $383 billion in wasteful and inefficient federal spending. The report also lists solutions to each of the examples of government waste. CLICK HERE to access the report. CLICK HERE for a summary of the report. "My staff and I compile Fumbl… Continue Reading
11.26.19
Senators Lankford, Rosen Condemn Anti-Semitism, Promote Goals of Bipartisan Task Force for Combating Anti-Semitism
CLICK HERE to watch Senator Lankford's and Senator Rosen's video. OKLAHOMA CITY, OK - Senators James Lankford (R-OK) and Jacky Rosen (D-NV) released a video statement to condemn anti-Semitism and promote the goals of their Bipartisan Task Force for Combating Anti-Semitism. "The mission of the task force will be to collaborate with law enforcement, the White House, federal agencies, state and local government, educators, advocates, clergy, and any other stakeholders to combat anti-Semitism by e… Continue Reading
11.25.19
Senator Lankford Releases New Podcast on Process and Procedure for Senate Impeachment Trials
OKLAHOMA CITY, OK - The Office of Senator James Lankford (R-OK) today released the latest episode of The Breakdown with James Lankford. Lankford is joined by former Senate Parliamentarian, Alan Frumin, who served in the Office of the Parliamentarian of the United States Senate for 35 years, 18 of those as Chief Parliamentarian. Frumin was in the Office of the Parliamentarian during the Clinton Impeachment Trial in 1999. During this episode of The Breakdown, Lankford and Frumin discuss the consti… Continue Reading
11.22.19
Lankford Letter - November 22
CLICK HERE for the November 22, 2019, Lankford Letter.… Continue Reading
11.21.19
Senator Lankford Statement on the Accident at Vance Air Force Base
WASHINGTON, DC - Senator James Lankford (R-OK) today issued a statement following an accident at Vance Air Force Base during a routine training mission with two T-38 Talons: "Our servicemen and women give everything, even their lives, to protect our nation. I am deeply saddened by the deaths of two Airmen at Vance Air Force Base during a training session. I pray for God's grace and healing as their families walk through this and to all those they serve with as they try to understand the difficu… Continue Reading
11.21.19
Senator Lankford Votes to Keep Government Open
WASHINGTON, DC - Senator James Lankford (R-OK) voted in support of a continuing resolution to extend government funding at current levels. This week, Lankford spoke on the Senate floor about the need to address federal spending and budget issues and to once again call on his colleagues to pass his bipartisan Prevent Government Shutdowns Act to hold federal families harmless in the event of a government shutdown due to a lack of federal funding. "Funding the government through short-term conti… Continue Reading
11.21.19
Senators Lankford, Inhofe Praise Committee Passage of Jones Nomination to Western District Court
WASHINGTON, DC - Senators James Lankford (R-OK) and Jim Inhofe ( R-OK) today praised Senate Judiciary Committee passage of the nomination of Judge Bernard M. Jones to serve as judge on the US District Court for the Western District of Oklahoma. Judge Jones has served as a magistrate judge for the Western District of Oklahoma for the last four years and was unanimously rated well qualified by the American Bar Association. "Judge Jones continues to affirm his commitment to the Constitution and to… Continue Reading
11.19.19
Senator Lankford Takes to the Senate Floor to Push for Solution to Keep Congress Working Instead of Shutting Down the Government
CLICK HERE to watch Lankford's speech on the Senate floor. WASHINGTON, DC - Senator James Lankford (R-OK) today spoke on the Senate floor to provide an update on his bill to prevent future government shutdowns as the November 21 funding deadline approaches. Congress is expected to delay the funding deadline until December 20, but the threat of another shutdown provides an opportunity for Lankford to push for real solutions to stop government shutdowns from impacting Americans and federal empl… Continue Reading
11.19.19
Senators Lankford, Peters Introduce Bipartisan Bill to Save Taxpayers’ Dollars
WASHINGTON, DC - Senators James Lankford (R-OK) and Gary Peters (D-MI) and Representatives Greg Pence (R-IN) and Mark Meadows (R-NC) introduced legislation to bring fair market practices into federal real estate, potentially saving billions of taxpayer dollars. This legislation provides the General Services Association (GSA) with the ability to negotiate a discounted or fixed-price option on government leases moving forward. The bill seeks to transform how the government approaches federal real … Continue Reading
11.19.19
Senator Lankford Advocates for Iranians’ Access to Internet in Letter to State Department
WASHINGTON, DC - Senator James Lankford (R-OK) sent a letter to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to push for additional firewall circumvention tools, specifically to ensure access to the internet to millions of Iranians after their government blocked access in response to protests. Earlier this year, the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on State, Foreign Operations and Related Programs (SFOPS) increased funding for Global Internet Programs for Fiscal Year (2020). Lankford is a member of the Subc… Continue Reading
11.14.19
Senator Lankford Reintroduces Bill to Remove Obamacare Ban on Physician-Owned Hospitals to Provide Greater Access to Patients
WASHINGTON, DC - Senator James Lankford (R-OK) today reintroduced the Patient Access to Higher Quality Health Care Act, which removes the Affordable Care Act's (ACA) ban on the creation and expansion of new physician-owned hospitals (POHs) and allows POHs to participate in Medicare and Medicaid. Lifting this ban will increase competition among hospitals, lower costs, and expand access to quality care for more Americans, especially those with Medicare and Medicaid. "Obamacare unfairly prohibite… Continue Reading
11.14.19
Senators Lankford, Carper, Cassidy, Tester Introduce Bipartisan Bill to Protect Student Veterans
WASHINGTON, DC - On the week of Veterans Day, Senators James Lankford (R-OK), Tom Carper (D-DE), Bill Cassidy, M.D. (R-LA), and Jon Tester (D-MT) introduced the Protect Veterans' Education and Training Spending (Protect VETS) Act of 2019. The Protect VETS Act is the first bipartisan bill introduced in the Senate that would protect military and veteran students by closing the 90/10 loophole and require for-profit schools to secure at least 10 percent of their revenues from sources other than taxp… Continue Reading
11.13.19
Senator Lankford Shares Frustrations with Turkey’s President for Lack of Democracy, Human Rights on the Senate Floor
CLICK HERE to watch Lankford's speech on the Senate floor. WASHINGTON, DC - Senator James Lankford (R-OK) today spoke on the Senate floor regarding the visit of Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan to the White House. Lankford has been disappointed in the Turkish regime's increasingly troubling relationship with Russia, particularly with regard to its acquisition of the S-400 missile system from the Russian Government. Lankford issued a statement in October 2019 supporting President Trump's announc… Continue Reading
11.13.19
Senator Lankford Commends ICE for Work to Protect Southern Border
CLICK HERE to watch Lankford's Q&A. WASHINGTON, DC - Senator James Lankford (R-OK) questioned officials from the Departments of Homeland Security (DHS), Customs and Immigration Services (USCIS), Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), and Justice at a Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee hearing to obtain updates on immigration processes including issues with state e-verify participation, government immigration attorney shortages to process immigration claims, and ongoing… Continue Reading
11.07.19
Senator Lankford Announces Public Events for Veterans Day & November 12
WASHINGTON, DC - The Office of Senator James Lankford (R-OK) today released the public events for Veterans Day, Monday, November 11, 2019, and Tuesday, November 12, 2019: WHAT: Senator Lankford gives the opening prayer at City of Moore Veterans Day Ceremony WHEN: Monday, November 11, 2019, 10:00 am CT WHERE: 1900 SE 4th Street, Moore, OK 73160 WHAT: Senator Lankford speaks at Bridge Dedication for Lt. Damon Leehan, Killed in Actio… Continue Reading
