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This is how ice ages begin. Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam today declared a state of emergency ahead of the upcoming storm, which has brought snow and freezing rain across the southern United States. Heavy and accumulating snow is expected in southern Virginia through Monday, the National Weather Service warned. Downed trees and limbs may create significant power outages or cause additional travel hazards. On Friday, North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper declared a state of emergency for all 100 of the state’s counties. Oklahoma Governor Mary Fallin also declared a state of emergency ahead of the storm for all 77 of...

AOKLAHOMA CITY — Oklahoma's Republican Governor Mary Fallin vetoed a bill that would have allowed adults to carry handguns without a permit and signed another that permits religious organizations to exclude same sex couples from adoptions, managing to anger both gun and gay rights groups on the same day. The twin actions announced late Friday were among more than a dozen decisions on legislation taken by the term-limited governor as she clears the decks in her waning months in office. They also followed a tumultuous session of the Legislature that saw striking teachers march on the Capitol, prompting lawmakers to...

Gov. Mary Fallin on Tuesday announced that President Donald Trump appointed her as co-chair of the Council of Governors. Ten governors, appointed by the president, serve on the bipartisan council with a focus on collaboration between federal and state governments on issues related to the National Guard, homeland security and disaster response. “It is an honor to have been named co-chair of the Council of Governors by President Trump,” Fallin said in a statement. “As a previous chair of the National Governors Association, I look forward to continuing my excellent working relationships with the other governors to provide suggestions and...

Oklahoma Gov. Mary Fallin is emerging as President-elect Donald Trump's leading contender for interior secretary, three people close to Trump's transition team told POLITICO. An advocate of oil and gas development, Fallin signed a bill last year that would prevent Oklahoma cites from enacting bans on drilling. Fallin is a staunch critic of the Obama administration's climate change regulations for power plants. She signed an executive order last year saying that her state will not comply with the rules.

Gov. Mary Fallin and six other Republican governors met Tuesday with GOP presumptive presidential nominee Donald Trump in New York City. “The meeting went very well,” Fallin said in a statement. “It was an opportunity for Donald Trump to hear from the governors and for the governors to talk with their political party’s presumptive presidential nominee.”

One day after lawmakers passed a bill that would make performing an abortion a felony, Gov. Mary Fallin decided to veto the measure. On Thursday, the Oklahoma Legislature has passed a bill that would make performing an abortion a felony punishable by up to three years in prison. […] On Friday, Gov. Mary Fallin vetoed the measure, saying the bill was “vague” and “would not withstand a criminal constitutional legal challenge.” …

Despite bitter resistance in Oklahoma for years to President Barack Obama’s health care overhaul, Republican leaders in this conservative state are now confronting something that alarms them even more: a huge $1.3 billion hole in the budget that threatens to do widespread damage to the state’s health care system. So, in what would be the grandest about-face among rightward leaning states, Oklahoma is now moving toward a plan to expand its Medicaid program to bring in billions of federal dollars from Obama’s new health care system. What’s more, GOP leaders are considering a tax hike to cover the state’s share...

Donald Trump said on Wednesday that former Ariz. Gov. Jan Brewer and Okla. Gov. Mary Fallin are both on his shortlist for running mate. “Well also Jan. Jan Brewer has been fantastic,” he said. “She has been so fantastic. You know I won so big, her territory, we won so big. And she is a fabulous woman. And I agree with you, the governor of Oklahoma -- fabulous person.” When asked whether Chris Christie is still in the running as a possible vice president pick, Trump declined to give a straight answer, opting to praise the New Jersey governor. “I...

<p>OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) - Oklahoma Gov. Mary Fallin said Wednesday she supports Republican Donald Trump "100 percent" and offered her enthusiastic endorsement of the New York billionaire in his bid for the presidency.</p> <p>The two-term governor, who had been mum on her pick for president, said her priority is to elect a conservative, pro-business Republican who is strong on national defense, and that she believes Trump is that candidate.</p>

OKLAHOMA CITY – Oklahoma Gov. Mary Fallin is offering her enthusiastic endorsement of Republican presidential contender Donald Trump, saying she supports the New York billionaire “100 percent.” Fallin also said Wednesday she’s honored to be mentioned as a possible vice presidential candidate and would be happy to consider such an offer. Fallin said her priority is to elect a conservative, pro-business Republican who is strong on national defense, and that she believes Trump is that candidate. The two-term governor has not previously endorsed any of the GOP candidates for president. U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas won Oklahoma’s March presidential...

A bill headed to Oklahoma Gov. Mary Fallin’s desk this week would strip abortionists of their medical licenses and basically outlaw abortions in the state. The bill describes an abortion as “unprofessional conduct” and prohibits Oklahoma medical licensure officials from renewing or granting licenses to doctors who do abortions, except to save the mother’s life, according to the Washington Post. The state House passed the bill on Thursday in a strong, bipartisan vote; and the Oklahoma Senate passed it in March, LifeNews reported. Oklahoma state Sen. Nathan Dahm, who sponsored the measure, said the purpose is to protect unborn babies’...

In response to the attack on Marines in Tennessee, Gov. Mary Fallin has authorized Oklahoma military officials to arm full-time personnel at facilities similar to the ones that were attacked on Thursday. On Thursday, four Marines were killed at a Naval Reserve center when a gunman opened fire on the facility. On Friday, Gov. Fallin issued an executive order that allows Maj. Gen. Robbie Asher to arm certain full-time personnel in military installations throughout Oklahoma. “Four unarmed Marines were killed in what appears to be a domestic terrorist attack,” Gov. Fallin said. “It is painful enough when we lose members...

Oklahoma Gov. Mary Fallin (R) issued an executive order late Friday authorizing certain full-time military personnel in her state to be armed following a deadly shooting the previous day in Tennessee. “Four unarmed Marines were killed in what appears to be a domestic terrorist attack,” Fallin said in a statement accompanying her executive order. “It is painful enough when we lose members of our armed forces when they are sent in harm’s way, but it is unfathomable that they should be vulnerable for attack in our own communities," she said. Fallin's order applies to those on military installations in Oklahoma,...

There’s a showdown at the OK capitol. Oklahoma Gov. Mary Fallin has vowed that a Ten Commandments monument on capitol grounds, which the state Supreme Court recently ruled was unconstitutional, will remain through appeal, KOCO reports. “The Ten Commandments monument was built to recognize and honor the historical significance of the Commandments in our state’s and nation’s systems of laws,” Fallin says in a statement. “The monument was built and maintained with private dollars. It is virtually identical to a monument on the grounds of the Texas State Capitol which the United States Supreme Court ruled to be permissible. It...

Indiana will not comply with President Barack Obama's plan to battle climate change by requiring reductions in emissions from coal-fired power plants, Republican Gov. Mike Pence said Wednesday. The proposal as currently written, known as the Clean Power Plan, will make Indiana electricity more expensive and less reliable and hurt economic growth in Indiana and across the nation, Pence wrote in a letter to Obama. The plan targets pollution from the coal-fired power plants that Indiana relies on. Pence said the Indiana coal industry employs more than 26,000 people. "If your administration proceeds to finalize the Clean Power Plan, and...

A proposal that would prohibit private entities from banning firearms in parks, recreational areas or fairgrounds in Oklahoma could threaten dozens of events held in Oklahoma City, including horse shows, basketball tournaments and the Women’s College World Series, the head of the Oklahoma City Chamber of Commerce said Wednesday. Chamber President Roy Williams said he’s urging the governor to veto the measure, which is headed to the governor’s desk after passing the Senate Tuesday on a 39-7 vote. “We could potentially lose Women’s College World Series. We could lose all the Big 12 NCAA sporting events. We could potentially lose...

Oklahoma is poised to become the first state in the nation to allow the use of nitrogen gas to execute inmates under a plan given final legislative approval on Thursday and now headed to the governor’s desk. Without a single dissenting vote, the Oklahoma Senate approved legislation that would allow the new method to be used if lethal injection is ruled unconstitutional or if the deadly drugs become unavailable. Republican Gov. Mary Fallin is a staunch supporter of the death penalty, but her spokesman declined to comment on the measure Thursday. Executions are on hold in Oklahoma while the U.S....

(VIDEO-AT-LINK)There are 65 prominent people who might run for president in 2016. The Democratic and Republican fields contrast sharply. Hillary Clinton is the clear front-runner, while there is no front-runner on the Republican side. Twenty-three Democrats have been mentioned as a candidate or are eyeing a bid, according to an analysis by The Hill. The GOP side has 42. Most of the people on this list won’t run, and some have adamantly claimed that they’re not interested. But many politicians have changed their minds on seeking the White House. Before mounting his 2008 bid, then-Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) said he...

The Oklahoma Supreme Court ruled Tuesday that the Legislature had the authority to repeal Common Core education standards for English and math in the state's public schools. ... Conservative groups maintained that the standards represented federal intrusion into Oklahoma's public education system, and Gov. Mary Fallin signed into law legislation repealing the standards last month.

After months of intense, grassroots push-back, opponents of the White House’s Common Core program won another big prize: Oklahoma. This week, the Sooners became the third state to officially dump the President’s education standards, complaining of federal overreach. mary fallin oklahoma governor “President Obama and Washington bureaucrats have usurped Common Core,” Gov. Mary Fallin (R) explained, “in an attempt to influence state education standards. The results are predictable. What should have been a bipartisan policy is now widely regarded as the president’s plan to establish federal control of curricula, testing, and teaching strategies.” And this time, the administration — the...