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NEW Top Ten Coffee Enemies List; Rep. Terrill Added
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It’s the political perfect storm: the battle over official English, lawsuit reform and private prisons will determine whether Senate Leader Glenn Coffee stays or is ousted this legislative session. And as a result, there’s been a change at the top of the standings of the Coffee Enemies List! State Rep. Randy Terrill, R-Moore, has rocketed all the way to the top of the Coffee enemies list, with capitol reporters pursuing private prison shenanigans debuting on the list at a strong number 2 position.
OKPNS has learned that the embattled Coffee is being squeezed by a group of liberal Republican senators led by Sen. Harry Coates of Seminole and Patrick Anderson of Enid. Coffee’s top legislative agenda item, so-called lawsuit reform, has been weakened by the scandal fumes that have been surrounding Coffee for nearly a month now. Coates and Anderson, and perhaps as many as 4 or 5 more Republican senators, are seen as possible ‘no’ votes on lawsuit reform. Coffee desperately needs their support to keep his leader post and their votes to pass his lawsuit reform package. But Coates and his followers have another agenda: to stop Randy Terrill’s official English package, something Coffee’s conservative members are strongly committed to passing.
Coates is using his leverage to push Coffee, and insiders say as a result Coffee has given orders that none of fellow Republican Terrill’s bills are to be passed in the senate. We’ve learned steps are even being taken to keep Terrill from getting credit for any progress on the official English bill, a silly and simplistic measure but something the desperate Coffee is nonetheless attempting.
Meanwhile, Terrill and his official English allies are turning up the heat on liberals opposed to the bill. Official English has targeted Anderson, who leaned on Coffee to contact House Speaker Chris Benge to rein in Terrill to no avail.
Meanwhile, reporters continue to follow leads on the broadening prison scandal. Insiders say the capitol is abuzz with speculation about how reporters are energetically pursuing information on trips senate staffers may have taken to exotic vacation destinations paid for by private prison lobbyists. With Coffee reaping the whirlwind as a result of his mishandling of this issue, revelations of more private prison monkey business would result in a surefire crisis for the embattled leader.
NEW Top Ten Coffee Enemies List (Updated Tuesday April 14, 2009)
1. Rep. Randy Terrill
2. Capitol reporters after prison story
3. Justin Jones
4. IRS
5. Dave Jordan, News9
6. Nick Winkler, FOX 25
7. OKPNS
8. Lawyers who don’t work for his law firm
9. Health care patients not represented by his law firm
10. Tulsa World Editorial Staff
Related:Top Ten Coffee Enemies List
