House Media Division
Rep. Sally Kern issued the following statement in response to news that a Senate committee will not hear her bill to address concerns about the United Nations Agenda 21 action plan:
“It is unfortunate; no, it is pathetic, when Senator Cliff Branan is personally threatened by an activist if he does not hear a bill and accused of wrongs without any supporting evidence. I absolutely do not agree with such tactics. In my nine years at the State Capitol I’ve learned we should deal with policy, not personalities. Personalities should not factor in as they will continually change. When personalities are focused upon, it usually gets ugly, and, sadly, that has happened with this House Bill 1412. I very much regret that and stand with Senator Branan as being a man of integrity. However, I do very much disagree with him on this policy issue.
I have said all along that House Bill 1412 faced an uphill battle in the Senate. While I am disappointed that this bill will not be heard, I am not totally surprised. What I am surprised about is Senator Branan’s comments to the Associated Press that ‘It’s a fringe conspiracy-type issue that’s frankly bad public policy.’ He went on to say, ‘I check each bill one at a time, and that was really more of a solution to a problem that doesn’t exist at all.
“Unfortunately, it appears that Senator Branan did not check too much into the bill or he would have learned that this is a very real problem that threatens our personal property rights as well as the sovereignty of our nation. There is abundant information available for anyone who is willing to seriously look into this issue. The UN Agenda 21 Sustainable Development issue is not a Republican or Democrat issue. It is a bipartisan issue that will affect all of us regardless of party affiliation.
“What I find most troubling is that it appears the Senator’s reasons for not hearing the bill parrot the very talking points of the UN Association of USA and National Chambers of Commerce as well as Oklahoma City’s planning director who described the opposition to Agenda 21 as an ‘insane conspiracy theory.’ One has to wonder who is really influencing the Senator on this issue. The citizens of Oklahoma who are extremely concerned about losing their personal property rights or the Chambers and city planners?
“The citizens of Oklahoma deserve to have their personal property rights protected at all costs. House Bill 1412 would have done that. I will continue to work on this issue to ensure that the people’s interests are addressed.”
