Following the recent presidential election, former Gov. David Walters, taking a cue from Thomas Frank's bestseller, "What's the Matter with Kansas," asked the same question of Oklahoma.
Writing about the local election results in his Red Dirt Blog, Walters wrote: "We’re the winner of the national championship for the highest McCain/Palin margin at 65.6 percent; the only state where Republicans gained ground in the state house, senate and statewide offices; and the only state in which McCain/Palin carried every county."
Walters asked should we do anything?
"Of course we should. Not just for competitive partisan reasons, but because it’s not good for Oklahoma to run so counter."
His observations drew a wide range of comments, from progressives who shared his concern to the Daily Oklahoman, which published a not-unexpected critical drubbing based on the editorial page's belief that there is nothing wrong to being a political outlier.
Walters suggested a plan.
"How do we determine what are the highest contributing factors to this unusual trend in Oklahoma. Let’s assume that we can identify with polling and focus groups the top 20 contributing factors, and then perhaps we can identify that half of these we cannot do anything about … but a plan to address the other half may have merit."
Walters plan is now available and is a must-read for progressive minded Oklahomans interested in moving Oklahoma, if not left, at least back toward the American center.
Walters with Gov. Tim Kaine on Feb. 24 to discuss the plan
"Gov. Kaine was very interested and offered assistance in a few key areas," said Sean Mossman, president of Oklahoma City-based Persuasive Strategies. Mossman attended the meeting with Walters. "Gov. Walters and Kaine also discussed the 50-state strategy, which is important to Oklahoma's ability to continue to build the Oklahoma Democratic Party."
The plan is available, password protected, here. To read the plan, please send an e-mail to tokenliberal@gmail.com for the password.
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