James Lankford in 2022 OK Senate race
On Civil Rights:
Equality Act not about equality, prohibits disagreement
The Equality Act amends the 1964 Civil Rights Act to prohibit discrimination on the basis of sex, sexual orientation and gender identity.
Some religious organizations object, saying it would force them to violate their convictions. "The Equality Act is not about equality," Lankford said. "It's about imposing and prohibiting disagreement."
Source: Tulsa World on 2022 Oklahoma Senate race
Jun 20, 2021
On Free Trade:
Opposed bipartisan China competition bill as unfocused
Lankford believes the bill was not focused enough on combatting and competing with China, and doesn't give enough power to private businesses. "The U.S. Innovation and Competition Act is not focused, strategic or affordable," Lankford said. "We should
partner universities with private businesses to spark innovation, increase our own development of critical minerals, aggressively negotiate trade agreements around the world and isolate Chinese companies for their clear human rights violations."
Source: The Norman Transcript on 2022 Oklahoma Senate race
Jun 9, 2021
On Government Reform:
For the People Act makes voting easy, cheating easy
Lankford went after S. 1--the For the People Act--and the Equality Act, saying the former "makes voting easy, cheating easy, and verifying elections impossible" and the latter a violation of religious liberty. S. 1 is a wide-ranging election
reform bill that includes some provisions already in Oklahoma law, but others that are not. It generally loosens restrictions on registration and voting, and opponents say it infringes on the states' constitutional mandate to oversee elections.
Source: Tulsa World on 2022 Oklahoma Senate race
Jun 20, 2021
On Principles & Values:
Questioned 2020 election but after Jan. 6, certified Biden
In December 2020, incumbent Oklahoma Sen. James Lankford raised vague concerns about possible fraud in voting and in other states' vote-counting processes. In January 2021, Lankford cited "reports of problems with voting machines, people voting twice,
non-residents voting in a state, or people mysteriously voting after their death months or years before"--though such issues were very rare and did not affect the outcome.After a pro-Trump mob stormed the Capitol on January 6, 2021, Lankford
abandoned his plan to object to the certification of Biden victories. But Lankford later continued to express doubts about the legitimacy of Biden's victory. He told CNN in July 2021: "Biden is the constitutional President. No question about that. Are
there questions that are still hanging out there? Yes." When asked if those questions would have changed the outcome, he responded, "There is no way to know because we can't get a full answer to some of them. I just want all the questions answered."
Source: CNN on 2020 Election Denial in 2022 Oklahoma Senate race
Sep 15, 2022
Page last updated: Feb 14, 2023