Jim Inhofe (R-Okla.) serves as the top Republican, or the ranking member of the Senate Armed Services Committee. Sen. Inhofe is a proud Oklahoman and long-time resident of Tulsa, Oklahoma.
While our country is in the most threatened position in American history, Sen. Inhofe remains committed to rebuilding our military from the readiness crisis and addressing the growing threats from our enemies. As the Chairman for the Senate Armed Services Committee, he plays a key role in ensuring that our military has the best equipment, training and resources necessary to meet our nation’s diverse security challenges.
Our Declaration of Independence guarantees each American the right to “life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness,” and I stand up for the unborn across America in fighting for the sanctity of human life. I am pro-life, and I am proud of it. I also advocate for adoption as an alternative to abortion.
To support adoption, I serve on the Congressional Coalition on Adoption and have enacted many proposals designed to encourage domestic and international adoptions for American families.
Our family knows the joys and blessings adoption can bring; my granddaughter, Marie, was adopted from Ethiopia when she was a baby. To support all families who want to grow their families through adoption, I have led initiatives to promote safe, efficient adoptions and authored legislation that encourages more families to take in children in need of foster care.
Throughout the years, I have nominated some wonderful Oklahoma families who received the Angels in Adoption ® award. Each year, members of Congress can nominate a deserving individual or family from their state to receive an Angels in Adoption ® award. You can read more about their stories here.
We have made so much progress over the last four years in our fight for life. As we begin this new chapter with an extremely anti-life administration, it is more important than ever to bring a voice to the unborn. Since Roe v. Wade, over 60 million babies have been deprived of the ability to experience the miracle of life.
To defend the right to life, I have been a leader on legislative efforts to end the practice of abortion, including the Life at Conception Act, the Born-Alive Abortion Survivor Protection Act and the Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act. You can read more about these bills as well as a number of others I have cosponsored here. I also continue to work to defund Planned Parenthood by voting to overturn Obama-era regulations that tried to prevent states from withholding money from abortion providers.
Furthermore, while I work to end the abortion on demand culture, I’ve also pushed to specifically end abortions being sought because the unborn child has Down syndrome. As prenatal screenings increase in availability and accessibility, more and more women learn whether or not their baby has Down syndrome prior to the baby’s birth. Sadly, many of these lives are aborted following a diagnosis— over two-thirds of unborn babies diagnosed with Down syndrome are aborted in the United States, and the population of individuals in Iceland with Down syndrome is being virtually eradicated altogether. My Protecting Individuals with Down Syndrome Act would enact a federal ban on the performance of an abortion with the knowledge that a pregnant woman is seeking an abortion, in whole or in part, on the basis of a belief that her unborn child has Down syndrome so we can better protect the rights of individuals with disabilities.
Oklahoma farmers and ranchers are the backbone of our state's economy. Without them, we wouldn't be able to function in our daily lives. They have been hit especially hard during the coronavirus pandemic and it is my firm belief that they need relief as we continue to battle this crisis. I have authored several pieces of legislation to make them a priority and I encourage you to read more about how we can support our agricultural producers in this time of need.
Farmers and ranchers across the country are working to operate in these unprecedented times. When I spoke with members of the Oklahoma Pork Council last May, we discussed the strain COVID-19 has put on their production cycles and their need for relief moving forward. That is why I was glad to introduce the Relief for Producers Act to provide a framework for producers and ease some of the burden brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic. This legislation will help livestock and poultry farmers more easily and efficiently navigate a path forward as we battle this crisis.
Oklahoma farmers and ranchers rely on the revenue generated from their livestock. I understand how important it is to ensure both livestock dealers and farmers have stability and accountability when a sale is made. If a livestock dealer defaults on a sale, the lost assets can be detrimental to the farmer. That’s why last year, I introduced the Securing All Livestock Equitably (SALE) Act, bipartisan legislation that will create common-sense protections for Oklahoma’s cattle producers and provide necessary stability and accountability for all livestock transactions.
With bad actors like China, who already have a track record of manipulating strategic acquisitions to benefit themselves, it is our duty here in Congress to protect America’s national security, including threats to our food supply. That’s why I was proud to introduce the Agricultural Security Risk Review Act alongside Senator Tillis, a bill that would make the Secretary of USDA an official member of CFIUS to ensure the safety and security of American agriculture.
In addition to supporting the Farm Bill and authoring legislation to support Oklahoma producers, I have worked to protect our agricultural communities from President Obama’s flawed WOTUS rule that could have designated everything in Western Oklahoma as a wetland. It is not an overstatement to say that the Obama-era WOTUS rule was the greatest regulatory burden facing farmers and ranchers in my state and other states across America. For generations, farmers and ranchers have been dedicated stewards of their land and water, but the Obama-era rule placed unprecedented and expanded power into the hands of the federal government which severely hampered the work of farmers and ranchers everywhere. Thankfully, the Trump administration replaced the WOTUS rule, but it is more important than ever that we continue to fight for the best interest of Oklahoma agriculture, as the Biden administration has shown it will put regulations ahead of support for our farmers and ranchers.
Parents, teachers, administrators and locally-elected school boards are best equipped to make decisions about educating Oklahoma students—not the federal government. I’m working to shift more decisions and authority away from the federal, “one-size-fits-all” policies and sending it back to the state and local governments.
To support education in our local communities, I’m focused on ensuring our students are educated about our nation's founding principles and civics - to protect our values and democracy in the long run. I introduced the Constitution education Is Valuable In Community Schools (CIVICS) Act to support the development of Constitution and civics education curriculum for students across the country.
For far too long, we have allowed a level of civil ignorance to permeate into our society – simply due to a lack of teaching the document that formed our nation and set us on the path of prosperity that we know today. Not only is the Constitution the foundation for our entire country, it is also a roadmap for what we should be doing here in Congress: defending America and investing in infrastructure – connecting our people and commerce with well-maintained roads, bridges, highways and waterways. Yet, too often, we focus on teaching students about the people and what media portrays as the process – not the history or the principles that truly stand as the framework that governs these bodies today. That’s why we decided to introduce the CIVICS Act to support the development of Constitution and civics education curriculum for students across the country.
I’m also committed to improving our career and technical education systems to support workforce development efforts. I’ve authored language to expand access to career-tech programs for students from all backgrounds and interests, including veterans and high-school graduates interested in aviation.
Lastly, as a state with five military installations, Oklahoma especially values Impact Aid, the program that reimburses school districts for lost tax revenue from federal property or military installations. Impact Aid can be used for a wide variety of educational needs and does not include any overbearing strings or limitations. Many schools in Oklahoma rely on Impact Aid, and I am proud to lead the effort every year to ensure it is fully resourced.
As the former Chairman of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, I have been focused on cutting regulations that limit an “all of the above” energy policy and have worked to increase domestic energy production and achieve energy dominance. We made great strides under President Trump and we become the global leader in oil and natural gas production and dramatically increased our exports of crude oil and liquefied natural gas. Unfortunately, the Biden administration threatens all of this hard work.
America’s energy supply should be stable, diverse and affordable. We must continue to work to increase exploration and production of natural gas and oil, continuing the development and use of coal, along with the development of renewable sources of energy and further develop nuclear energy.
Working with President Trump, we won the latest battle on fossil fuels, but the war is still being waged under this new administration. I will continue to defend an industry that employs millions of Americans, provides more than a trillion dollars to our economy and allows Oklahomans to heat our homes, get work and cook our meals.
After recovering from President Obama’s failed foreign policy initiatives, the United States was once again able to negotiate from a position of strength as the undisputed leader of the free world. Sadly, the Biden administration has already shown signs of taking us back to the failed Obama tactics. We must put the vital interests of the United States above the maintenance of global institutions to ensure a free, safe and prosperous America.
As the top Republican on the Senate Armed Services Committee, I work on numerous foreign policy issues to ensure that we are trusted by our allies and feared by our adversaries. In the Senate, I’ve led efforts to take a hardline stance against rogue regimes, like Iran and North Korea, as well as preventing malign activity from our strategic competitors, like Russia and China.
I’ve stood up for our allies and friends, like Ukraine and Taiwan, and supported former President Trump as he pulled the U.S. out of unaccountable bad deals, like the INF treaty and the Iran Deal. I’ve made sure our best friend in the Middle East, Israel, is taken care of—including by making sure our embassy was finally moved to Jerusalem. I’ve also worked diligently to stand up for marginalized communities. I’m going to continue to work with our allies and partners around the world to promote our American values of freedom and democracy.
I’ve long believed that health care decisions should be between a patient and their doctor—not government bureaucrats. For too long, the Obama administration tried to insert themselves into families’ medical and health care decisions. We saw the results: skyrocketing costs and fewer options for care, especially in rural communities.
Obamacare was a complete failure. It drove up the cost of premiums by 227 percent for families in Oklahoma since 2014 and failed to provide choices—pushing everyone to an expensive, ‘one-size-fits-all’ health care system. During the last administration, President Trump and Senate Republicans took real steps to lower the cost of health care. One big way was creating guidance to give states more flexibility to provide better coverage and lower costs of premiums based on their unique circumstances, while maintaining strong protections for pre-existing conditions.
I am committed to finding solutions to improving accessibility to quality care for those in rural parts of Oklahoma and our country. While health reform is needed to provide quality medical care and stem the ever growing cost of health care, government takeovers are never the answer. Instead, I’m working with communities to support our rural hospitals and expand tele-health for Oklahomans.
I was a builder and developer in south Texas for 20 years and know the situation we face at the border. After visiting it regularly for the last five years, I know the situation is getting worse. That’s why we need to build a wall to secure our southern border. I’ve introduced the WALL Act, the only legislation to fully pay for the construction of the wall by closing loopholes that allow illegal immigrants to receive federal benefits and increasing minimum fines on illegal border crossers.
Under the failed Biden border policies, Border patrol is completely inundated. Reports indicate that nearly all border patrol sectors are above 100 percent capacity, with some sectors double, triple or even at significantly higher levels of overcapacity.
It doesn’t have to be this way. Former President Donald Trump understood that border security is national security. He took real steps to secure the border by building the wall and made enforcing our immigration laws a priority. As a result, illegal crossings in the Yuma Sector decreased by 87% from fiscal year 2019 to fiscal year 2020 in areas with a new border wall system. In Rio Grande Valley Zone 1, an area that did not previously have border infrastructure, U.S. Customs and Border Protection saw a 79% decrease in apprehensions and a 26% decrease in narcotics seizures after completion of the border wall.
We need to get back to building the wall along the southern border, and we also need to close the loopholes that illegal aliens use to come into this country. Smugglers and illegal aliens use false claims of asylum to gain entry to the United States. That must be stopped.
By reforming our asylum process, we can minimize false asylum claims, ease the backlog on our immigration courts and end “catch and release” — all while improving the process for those who truly need it. That’s why I introduced the Asylum Abuse Reduction Act.
My legislation is just one part of many actions we must take to improve our nation’s border security. Paired with building the wall, increasing support for Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Customs and Border Protection and eliminating sanctuary cities, we can make meaningful reform to improve our immigration process and protect American families.
The American people trust Congress to provide for their security by maintaining a strong national defense. As the top Republican on the Senate Armed Services Committee, I have the sacred responsibility of ensuring that the men and women who volunteer to wear the uniform have the training, resources and equipment they need to complete the mission and return home safely.
Oklahoma has a rich military heritage, and I have worked to maintain our military installations throughout the state and ensure they have the resources they need to attract new missions and keep Oklahoma at the forefront of our national defense. I will continue to work on behalf of Altus Air Force Base, Fort Sill, McAlester Army Ammunition Plant, Tinker Air Force Base and Air Logistics Center and Vance Air Force Base as well as our numerous National Guard stations throughout the state.
Defending America has always been my number one commitment; however, the security and well-being of the United States are at greater risk now than at any time in decades. I am committed to rebuilding our military readiness and capabilities to address the growing threats from our adversaries. Since World War II, the United States has led the way in building a world of prosperity, freedom, and security—an achievement that has benefitted America enormously and been enabled by unmatched U.S. military power. As Chairman, my priority is to implement the recommendations of the National Defense Strategy Commission report. These recommendations include fully funding our military to face growing threats from great power competitors, Russia and China, and to modernize our aging equipment and infrastructure.
I’m also committed to ensuring that in addition to protecting American families, we’re also taking care of our service members and their families. I’ve led the charge on reforms to improve conditions in on-base privatized housing and to improve the quality of life for spouses of service members.
I have been a long-time advocate for lower tax rates that will foster economic growth, allow families to keep more of their hard-earned money and make it easier for Oklahoma's businesses to grow and hire more hard-working people. Last Congress, we passed the first comprehensive tax reform legislation in three decades that enacted my priorities into law.
The historic tax reform cut taxes for the typical American family by an average of $2,000 each year. It also unlocks the economic potential of the United States economy by lowering taxes on businesses—especially small businesses. Additionally it recognizes the important role of key industries in Oklahoma that create jobs and invest in our state, such as the oil and gas industry, by protecting percentage depletion and intangible drilling cost provisions.
Because of historic tax reform, Congress has made doing business in the United States competitive again, so companies are no longer encouraged to move American jobs overseas. President Trump grew economy by cutting regulations and the historic Republican tax cuts have only done more to drive the engine of the American economy to new heights and benefit hardworking families. I remain committed to working to cut regulations and taxes in Congress, even if the Biden administration is not.
One of the inherent roles of government is to provide for a safe and suitable infrastructure to allow our nation access to transportation and fully connect our all sectors of our economy. In addition to providing for the national defense, I believe the single greatest service we can provide our citizens is the necessary infrastructure to enable the United States to remain the economic engine that drives the world’s economy.
As the past Chairman of the U.S. Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, I have worked to pass highway bills and water resources acts which have been historic for the nation and provided victories for Oklahoma. These bills have used our resources in a fiscally responsible manner and eliminated federal red tape to allow for more state and local control and for new construction and modernization of our nation's crumbling bridges, roads and infrastructure.
In America’s Water Infrastructure Act of 2020, I was glad to secure a number of provisions that will benefit people across Oklahoma, including ensuring the Tulsa-West Tulsa Levees project becomes a reality. This has been a large priority of mine for many years, and I look forward to seeing the levees project finished. Not only that, this bill provided certainty in water storage pricing for Enid, prioritized investment in the MKARNS and ensured Oklahoma will not have to wait almost a year after a disastrous flood for waterborne commerce to recover.
Additionally, as an active aviator for over forty years, I’ve seen firsthand how important our aviation infrastructure is for continued economic growth in Oklahoma. I am committed to helping the general and commercial aviation industries in Oklahoma. I will also work to make sure that our existing commercial airports get the resources they need to fulfill increased security requirements.
There is no adequate compensation for the sacrifices our nation’s veterans have so bravely made on behalf of the United States. As the top Republican on the Senate Armed Services Committee and as an Army veteran, I am committed to standing up for all of our nation’s veterans and ensuring that we honor each of them with the proper care and support.
As a tireless advocate for our veterans, it is critically important to me that Oklahoma set the benchmark for the rest of the country in how we treat our veterans – and we’re doing exactly that. In just the last few years, I’ve enacted legislation to do everything from allow independent, third-party inspectors at VA hospitals to pushing all veterans care facilities to strive for higher rankings. I’ve also worked with former President Trump to reform the VA and increase accountability—giving VA directors the ability to fire poorly performing employees and strengthening whistleblower protections. I am committed to a culture of continuous improvement at the VA.
Once the need for additional infrastructure in eastern Oklahoma was identified, I worked with then-Secretary of Veterans Affairs Robert Wilkie to support our veterans by utilizing the CHIP-IN Act. With the help of state and local leaders, we crafted a plan to meet both goals: increase the care provided at the Jack C. Montgomery VA Center in Muskogee by adding a first-of-its-kind, regional behavioral health center, but also to open a brand new inpatient facility in Tulsa. This plan will allow veterans to get all of the care they need in eastern Oklahoma by providing excellent services at both facilities.
For over 18 years, I have led a task force of veterans to stay apprised of the issues facing veterans in Oklahoma and across the country. These regular meetings have resulted in legislation to increase education benefits, establish state of the art medical treatment facilities, and increase health care benefits and pension plans that enable our nation’s bravest men and women to have the ability to transition out of military service with world-class support. I look forward to continuing to work to provide America’s soldiers and veterans the best possible care we can.