Press Releases
Lankford Blasts Biden Administration for Open Borders
OKLAHOMA CITY, OK - Senator James Lankford (R-OK) issued the following statement after the Department of Homeland Security announced late Friday afternoon in order to bury the story that it would take steps to "protect border communities from physical dangers" from the border wall and after reports today that President Biden is resuming the processing of migrants at our ports of entry-even though they're closed to most traffic and trade: "President Biden continues to publicly say the border is … Continue Reading
04.30.21
Lankford, Colleagues Press Federal Energy Regulators to Act on Pending Natural Gas Pipeline Projects
OKLAHOMA CITY, OK - Senator James Lankford (R-OK) today joined Senator John Hoeven (R-ND), both members of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, to lead a group of 25 senators to press the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) to act on vital energy infrastructure projects by reviewing without further delay the 14 natural gas pipeline infrastructure projects that are currently pending before FERC. In the letter to the FERC chairman and commissioners, the senators also outline… Continue Reading
04.30.21
Lankford Pushes to Expand Telehealth Access
OKLAHOMA CITY, OK - Senator James Lankford (R-OK) joined Senator Brian Schatz (D-HI) and 50 senators to introduce the Creating Opportunities Now for Necessary and Effective Care Technologies (CONNECT) for Health Act. The CONNECT for Health Act will expand coverage of telehealth services through Medicare, make permanent COVID-19 telehealth flexibilities, improve health outcomes, and make it easier for patients to safely connect with their doctors. "The pandemic forced Oklahomans to adapt in many… Continue Reading
04.30.21
Lankford, Colleagues Condemn Amazon for Removing Justice Clarence Thomas Documentary
OKLAHOMA CITY, OK - Senator James Lankford (R-OK) joined Senator Tom Cotton (R-AR) to lead a group of 19 senators in a letter to the head of Amazon questioning why Created Equal: Clarence Thomas in His Own Words, a documentary about the life of US Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas, was removed from Amazon's streaming service. The film's removal came during Black History Month. In part, the senators wrote, "The film's popularity aside, Amazon's decision to pull this documentary came during … Continue Reading
04.30.21
Lankford Joins Colleagues to Urge President Biden to Investigate Allegations Against John Kerry
OKLAHOMA CITY, OK - Senator James Lankford (R-OK) joined Senators Dan Sullivan (R-AK), Marco Rubio (R-FL), Thom Tillis (R-NC), Roger Marshall (R-KS), Marsha Blackburn (R-TN), Steve Daines (R-MT), Joni Ernst (R-IA), John Barrasso (R-WY), Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-MS), Tommy Tuberville (R-AL), Bill Hagerty (R-TN), Chuck Grassley (R-IA), Mike Braun (R-IN), Rick Scott (R-FL), Ted Cruz (R-TX), Roger Wicker (R-MS), Mike Rounds (R-SD), and Tom Cotton (R-AR) to send a letter to President Biden urging him to i… Continue Reading
04.29.21
Lankford Sounds the Alarm on Massive Debt Spending, Progressive Policies Proposed in President Biden’s Joint Address
CLICK HERE to watch Lankford's Q&A on YouTube. WASHINGTON, DC - Senator James Lankford (R-OK) today raised his concerns on the Senate floor with some of the spending and policy proposals President Biden offered in his address to a joint session of Congress last night. Lankford shared his praise for his friend and colleague Senator Tim Scott (R-SC) who delivered the Republican response. Lankford offered his immediate reaction to the speech and response last night on Facebook Live. Lankford … Continue Reading
04.28.21
Lankford Dives into the Details of Addressing National Security Concerns at the Border
CLICK HERE to watch Lankford's opening remarks and Q&A on YouTube. WASHINGTON, DC - Senator James Lankford (R-OK) today participated in a Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee Subcommittee on Government Operations and Border Management hearing. Lankford is the lead Republican on the Subcommittee. The hearing, entitled, "The Non-Governmental Organization Perspective on the Southwest Border," examined some of the issues non-governmental organizations (NGOs) see as the bi… Continue Reading
04.27.21
Lankford, Marshall, Murphy Want to Keep PPP Tax Dollars from Abortion Providers
WASHINGTON, DC -Senator James Lankford (R-OK) joined Senator Roger Marshall, MD (R-KS) and Congressman Greg Murphy, MD (NC-03) to introduce the Abortion Providers Loan Elimination (APLE) Act, which requires Planned Parenthood affiliates to return the $80 million in Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans they illegally applied for and received. It would also ensure Planned Parenthood affiliates and other abortion providers remain ineligible for future PPP funding and instruct the Small Business … Continue Reading
04.27.21
Lankford Pushes US Energy Diversity
CLICK HERE to watch Lankford's Q&A on YouTube. WASHINGTON, DC - Senator James Lankford (R-OK) today participated in a Senate Finance Committee hearing entitled, "Climate Challenges: The Tax Code's Role in Creating American Jobs, Achieving Energy Independence, and Providing Consumers with Affordable, Clean Energy." Lankford's questions focused on ensuring we can maintain North American energy independence through energy diversity and ensuring American energy producers can make necessary capi… Continue Reading
04.27.21
Lankford, Cramer, Hoeven, Capito Push to Eliminate Wind Tax Credit
WASHINGTON, DC - Senators James Lankford (R-OK), Kevin Cramer (R-ND), John Hoeven (R-ND), and Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV) today introduced the Production Tax Credit (PTC) Elimination Act to completely phase out the federal production tax credit (PTC) for renewables. The bill specifies that any new projects would need to begin construction by the end of this year in order to qualify for the credit, as is the case under current law. Lankford discussed the need to end the PTC for renewables like wi… Continue Reading
04.23.21
Lankford Joins Colleagues to Protect US Jobs from Liberal Climate Agenda
WASHINGTON, DC - Senator James Lankford (R-OK) joined Senators Jim Inhofe (R-OK), Thom Tillis (R-NC), and Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-MS) to introduce the Domestic Manufacturing Protection Act, which would prevent the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) from issuing any new greenhouse gas (GHG) emission rules or regulations until China and Russia adhere to the same emission reduction targets of the Paris Agreement as required by the United States. "We can have clean air and water and still empower Am… Continue Reading
04.23.21
Lankford Quotes then-Senator Biden’s Own Words to Oppose Packing the Supreme Court
CLICK HERE to watch Lankford's remarks on YouTube. WASHINGTON, DC - Senator James Lankford (R-OK) spoke on the Senate floor in opposition to Democrats' persistent and increasing calls to pack the Supreme Court under President Joe Biden in order to help protect their progressive agenda from Supreme Court challenges for generations. This week, Lankford notably quoted remarks from the late Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg and then-Senator Biden about the dangers of increasing the size of the court and … Continue Reading
04.23.21
Lankford, Colleagues Lead Effort to Bring Mineral Supply Chain Away from China to the US
WASHINGTON, DC - Senator James Lankford (R-OK) today joined Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) to introduce legislation to improve the quality and timeliness of federal permitting and review processes with respect to critical mineral production on federal land. Senators Dan Sullivan (R-AK), Kevin Cramer (R-ND), James Risch (R-ID), Thom Tillis (R-NC), Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV), Steve Daines (R-MT), and Mike Crapo (R-ID) are original cosponsors of the bill. The current federal permitting process has … Continue Reading
04.23.21
Lankford, Blackburn Work to Protect Health of Pregnant Women and Unborn Children
WASHINGTON, DC - Senator James Lankford (R-OK) and Senator Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) introduced the Woman's Right to Know Act to protect the health of pregnant women and unborn children by providing adequate medical information for informed consent before abortions. Lankford and Blackburn were joined by cosponsors Senators Jim Inhofe (R-OK), Steve Daines (R-MT), Mike Braun (R-IN), Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-MS), Joni Ernst (R-IA), Bill Cassidy, MD (R-LA), Kevin Cramer (R-ND), Rick Scott (R-FL), and Mi… Continue Reading
04.23.21
Lankford Ensures National Guard and Reservists Receive Record of Military Service
WASHINGTON, DC - Senator James Lankford (R-OK) joined Senator Gary Peters (D-MI), Jon Tester (D-MT), and Jerry Moran (R-KS) to introduce the Record of Military Service for Members of the Armed Forces Act of 2021, which helps reserve component members of the US Armed Forces, including members of the Reserves and National Guard, to receive the benefits they have earned following their retirement or completion of service by ensuring they receive the same DD-214 form as other members of the military… Continue Reading
04.23.21
Lankford Wants Answers From Biden Administration on COVID Relief Spending
WASHINGTON, DC - Senator James Lankford (R-OK) led Senators Ron Johnson (R-WI), Rick Scott (R-FL), and Josh Hawley (R-MO) in a letter to Shalanda Young, Acting Director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) asking for details on how the nearly $6 trillion in COVID-19 funding is being spent. The Senators asked specifically about funding no longer protected by the Hyde Amendment. During the budget debate for the Democrats' reconciliation bill, Lankford introduced an amendment to uphold Hyde… Continue Reading
04.22.21
Lankford Offers Examples of How Democrat Policies are Keeping Oklahoma Businesses from Reopening
CLICK HERE to watch Lankford's remarks on YouTube. WASHINGTON, DC - Senator James Lankford (R-OK) today spoke on the Senate floor about his travel around Oklahoma over the Easter state work period and the concerns he heard from Oklahoma businesses about how Democrat policies continue to get in the way of their recovery because of the ongoing Unemployment Insurance (UI) extensions and other federal benefits related to the pandemic that are discouraging people from returning to work. Transcript … Continue Reading
04.22.21
Lankford Criticizes Chinese Human Rights Abuses and Intellectual Property Theft
CLICK HERE to watch Lankford's Q&A on YouTube. WASHINGTON, DC - Senator James Lankford (R-OK) today participated in a Senate Finance Committee hearing entitled, "US-China Relations: Improving US Competitiveness through Trade," in which Lankford discussed how to address our tenuous trade relationship with China, given China's ongoing human rights and religious liberty violations, oppression of Hong Kong, and US intellectual property theft. Lankford remains outspoken about the need for the … Continue Reading
04.22.21
Lankford Continues to Prioritize the Need to Protect Religious Liberty
WASHINGTON, DC - Senator James Lankford (R-OK) offered the following statement in response to the release of the US Commission on International Religious Freedom's (USCIRF) annual report, which includes the Commission's recommendations to the State Department for the designation of Countries of Particular Concern, which is required to be issued annually by the International Religious Freedom Act of 1998, and recommendations for its Special Watch List: "Religious freedom remains a challenge aro… Continue Reading
04.21.21
Lankford Joins Senate Republicans in Continuing Earmark Ban
WASHINGTON, DC - Senator James Lankford issued the following statement after the Senate Republican Conference today maintained its ban on earmarks for Republican Senators: "I'm relieved Republicans maintained our long-standing earmark ban in the Senate Republican Conference. There are responsible ways to spend American tax dollars, and then there are earmarks. Every local government and nonprofit always needs more money. But earmarks do not prioritize essential national projects; they prioritiz… Continue Reading
