Getting the Job Done

Legislation
Whilst being a representative in the House (2011-2015), Senator Lankford sponsored 33 pieces of legislation.  His most recent bills:

              S.321 - A bill to revoke the charter of incorporation of the Miami Tribe

                         of Oklahoma at the request of that tribe, and for other purposes

              H.R.4849 - Phantom Fuels Elimination Act of 2014

              H.R.5786 - Small Financial Institutions Regulatory Relief Act of 2014

One bill sponsored by Congressman Lankford, H.R.1423, had in the last session of Congress been passed in the House.  It died in the Senate, but had it been passed, the "Taxpayers Right-To-Know Act" would require the Office of Management and Budget to annually post online the details,monetary expenses, and performance metrics of every federal program using taxpayer dollars.  As of a press release on January 28th, Lankford reintroduced this bill in the Senate, seeing it as an extremely important issue.  Here are the Senator's own thoughts on the matter, "The Taxpayers Right-To-Know Act would expose government waste and improve federal accountability.  For too long, information about federal programs have hidden in $3.5 trillion budget line-items that most people never see.  The nonpartisan Government Accountability Office annually identifies tens of billions of dollars in duplication, but still lacks the tools to estimate the overlap.  The American taxpayer deserves to know where their hard-earned tax dollars are being spent - this bill ensures that."

Lankford cosponsored 458 pieces of legislation, many in the policy areas of Health, Government Operations and Politics, as well as, International Affairs. Two bills specifically tried to benefit Native Americans, but none of the legislation sponsored by Senator Lankford was directed toward Oklahoma specifically.

 

Keeping His Constituents Up-to-Date 

Senator Lankford keeps the public up-to-date on issues being debated in Washington, DC through community forums he calls "Tuesday Talks".  Throughout the year, he visits various towns in Oklahoma (on Tuesdays) to allow his constituents the chance to stay updated on issues and ask questions.

While Congress has been on recess, Senator Lankford has been busy holding talks, meeting constituents, and enjoying the perks of Oklahoma.  Last week, he visited Oklahoma State to hold a Q&A with the Student Government Association.  After he spoke, the O'Colly interviewed him to discuss his quick ascension to U.S. Senate.  Having risen to the fifth-ranking position in the House Republican Congress with little-to-no previous political experience, Lankford has accomplished a rare feat.  He doesn't see it that way, "I just try to do my job, and those things come.  You work hard, you do your, stuff, and you just engage.  I don't come from a political background; I don't have political strategy.  I felt called to do this."

Following Senator Lankford's Twitter feed, the issue of the Keystone Pipeline has quickly become a hot topic; he tweeted, "This #Keystone issue is bigger than oil; it is a demonstration of an Executive that refuses to answer a simple pipeline permit request."  Yesterday he addressed the issue at large with a press release.  Also according to Lankford's Twitter feed, he recently met with the Chairman of the Quapaw Tribe of Oklahoma, John Berrey, to discuss how to better work together.