Randy Krehbiel
Tulsa World Staff Writer
With war threatening to spread across the Middle East and the U.S. House of Representatives’ inability to elect a speaker endangering stability at home, U.S. Sen. James Lankford advised prayer on Thursday — and also action.
“There’s a lot we can do in praying for this region and being prepared, as well,” Lankford told the Tulsa Regional Chamber. “Let’s also understand the United States should not just sit idly by while Israel is obliterated.”
On the standstill in the U.S. House — and therefore Congress — and what seems to be the country’s increasingly poisonous politics, Lankford advised supporting political candidates who are more interested in solutions than fights.
Sen. James Lankford speaks to journalists at a Tulsa Regional Chamber luncheon Thursday.
When someone in the audience asked, “How can we support demonstrating behavior like adults when we have differences?” Lankford replied, “Actually support people who act like adults. That would be helpful.”
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Lankford said the tone in the nation’s Capitol reflects the nation as a whole.
“I have quite a few folks that catch me and say, ‘You don’t sound as angry as I feel. I need you to go to D.C. and yell more,’” Lankford said. “I get that, but I’ve just never been persuaded by somebody screaming at me. I’ve never had someone cuss me out and at the end of it I’ve walked away thinking, ‘You’re so smart.’”
Sen. James Lankford speaks to journalists at a Tulsa Regional Chamber luncheon Thursday.
Lankford said the stalemate in the House is caused by “a handful of folks” who were unhappy because former Speaker Kevin McCarthy “wasn’t moving fast enough on things that should have been resolved 30 years ago.”
Talking to reporters earlier, Lankford said that if a new speaker isn’t chosen this week, the situation likely won’t be resolved for “weeks and weeks.”
Even before McCarthy’s ouster, prospects were daunting of passing current budget year appropriations before a Nov. 17 deadline to approve the current budget year’s appropriations.
Sen. James Lankford is framed by a tree with lights as he speaks to journalists before a Tulsa Regional Chamber luncheon Thursday.
On Thursday, Lankford shook his head and said, “No,” when asked if it could be done.
“I don’t see any way. We have to pass 12 bills in the Senate, 12 bills in the House, go through conference, then pass them again. There’s physically not enough days and time.
“Best case scenario is we pass some of the bills. The rest we do a continuing resolution until December and get them done then,” Lankford said. “There’s literally not enough time and not a negotiator in the House.
Sen. James Lankford takes the stage to speak at a Tulsa Regional Chamber luncheon Thursday. At right is Mike Neal, president and CEO of the Tulsa Regional Chamber.
Always a staunch supporter of Israel, Lankford laid responsibility for the current situation completely on the Hamas rulers of Gaza and their Iranian sponsors.
When it was mentioned that about as many Palestinian civilians as Israelis seem to have been killed, Lankford said: “It’s incredibly painful in the whole region right now. You’ve got several terrorist groups functioning in the middle of the Palestinians.
“Those don’t represent all of the Palestinian people, but they suffer under the consequences of those terrorist groups that they allow to stay in that area.”
Hamas seized control of Gaza in 2007. Considered a terrorist organization by much of the world, Hamas does not recognize the state of Israel and seeks to regain Palestinian control of the area set aside in 1947 for the creation of Israel.
Most of Gaza’s 2 million people are Sunni Muslims whose families were displaced by the 1948 Arab-Israeli War. Only 141 square miles, Gaza is among the most densely populated places on earth and also has one of the highest birth rates. It is blockaded by air, sea and land by Israel and Egypt.
In recent years, the Israeli government has come under increasing criticism for its treatment of Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank. Some think the treatment has been justified given Hamas’ objectives and tactics.
“Hamas is both a governing organization for Gaza and also a terrorist military arm for Gaza,” Lankford said Thursday. “So Israel has the difficult task of being able to move into the middle of 2 million civilians and be able to eliminate what is a clear, lethal threat to Israeli citizens but protect as many (Gaza) civilians that are not part of this Hamas movement.”
Later, speaking to the chamber, Lankford said,” When Israel talks about going into Gaza and taking out Hamas, that is changing their governmental system. We know what that looked like in Afghanistan. We know the challenges of that. This is not a simple process.”
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