Oklahoma
Bill Clinton And ATTN: Debut Video On Anniversary Of Oklahoma City Bombing To Warn Of Toxic Political Discourse
Former President Bill Clinton is debuting a new video today in which he reflects on the anniversary of the Oklahoma City bombing, warning of the threat that toxic political discourse has on democracy.
The video is part of an “Explainer-in-Chief” series that Clinton is doing with ATTN:, the Candle Media division that publishes content fusing entertainment and topical issues.
The bombing, which killed 168 people, took place 29 years ago today. “For every president there are certain days in your presidency you will never forget,” Clinton says in the video. “April 19, 1995, the day of the largest domestic terrorist attack in U.S. history is one of those days for me.”
“In the aftermath of the Oklahoma city bombing, I knew that we had a responsibility to do everything we could to ensure that something like this would never happen again,” Clinton says. “But perhaps an even greater responsibility was to urge people all across America to reassess how they talked about and thought about people who disagreed with them. Timothy McVeigh was himself motivated by that extreme rhetoric.” McVeigh was arrested, convicted and executed for perpetrating the attack.
Clinton said that he “thought it was my duty to help prevent that hatred from spreading to the average citizen.”
“I had to do two things that almost seem contradictory. I had to defend the right of people to speak freely, and assault the content and the predictable consequences of that kind of speech today. I think the challenge is the same. If you just regularly dehumanize people, so that they are no longer people, but ugly cartoons, bad things are going to happen.”
He adds, “A lot of life is about not so much what your opinion is, but how you express it, and how you relate to other people who just don’t agree with you. Democracy is a hard form of government. We are now the longest continuous democracy in human history, even though we are a very young country. And when you ruin democracy, when people don’t have enough regard for each other to listen, learn and chart a path forward, that is what you get. But it isn’t better.”
The video comes amid ongoing concern over the effects of political division and extreme rhetoric, perhaps reflected in the recent box office success of Civil War at the box office. Clinton has reflected on the Oklahoma City bombing a number of times before, including on his podcast and in a Time essay.
Matthew Segal, the co-founder and co-CEO of ATTN:, said in a statement that they hope that the video “encourages all Americans to look beyond the divisiveness – and instead listen to and treat each other with empathy and kindness.”
The videos are being released on YouTube and Instagram and other social media platforms.
ATTN: and Clinton will release additional videos this year on the politics of dehumanization and the epidemic of loneliness. They will be tied to other moments in Clinton’s presidency, including the dedication of the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum in 1993 and the White House Conference on Mental Health in 1999. ATTN: and Clinton previously partnered on “Explainer In Chief” videos last year, on topics that included bipartisan solutions to gun violence and Ukrainian solidarity, among other things.
ATTN: also has produced videos featuring former California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger and the series Well Versed, an animated civics project that launched on Nickelodeon with First Lady Jill Biden and former First Lady Laura Bush headlining a debut event in Philadelphia. Also collaborating on the project were Moonbug and iCivics.
Oklahoma
Oklahoma School Report Cards 2025 show some growth, but grades declining
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The Oklahoma State Department of Education has assigned the state a D grade for academic achievement in public schools but a C in learning growth for the 2024-25 school year.
The agency on Monday released its annual Oklahoma School Report Cards, which included A-F grades for each public school and for statewide averages.
Results of state reading and math tests, the basis of the “academic achievement” category and the No. 1 factor in a school’s overall grade, came out two months ago with more rigorous scoring. A stricter definition of “proficiency” in reading and math lowered academic achievement rates across the state.
Three fewer schools received an F grade, but grades declined overall with more schools earning a D, the Education Department reported.
Only 26% of Oklahoma students scored proficient or advanced on state reading and math tests, demonstrating they met or exceeded their grade-level expectations, the report cards show. Another 37% made a basic score, indicating partial mastery of reading and math.
In reading, 36% of students scored below basic, and 38% scored below basic in math, suggesting they have fallen significantly behind their grade level.
However, more students improved their reading and math scores from the year before. That caused the statewide academic growth score to increase by 3% and resulted in a C grade for the growth category.
Students learning English as their non-native language also showed a slight uptick in progress. The state gave itself a B for English learner progress with 34% of these students meeting their language acquisition targets.
Another statewide B grade came from college and career exposure, known as “postsecondary opportunities.” Fifty-four percent of high school juniors and seniors completed college preparatory courses like Advanced Placement, an industry certification program, a work-based internship or a college class through dual enrollment.
The state failed to meet a goal state leaders set eight years ago to achieve a 90% high school graduation rate by 2025. The report cards show only 82% of the class of 2025 graduated in four years, and 84% of the class of 2024 and 2023 completed their high school credits in five and six years, respectively.
Potentially in its final year as a core component of the state report cards, the chronic absenteeism category showed only 80.2% of public school students maintained good attendance, defined as missing less than 10% of the school year.
The state Legislature passed a law this year to remove student absenteeism from school evaluations starting in the 2025-26 academic year, though schools with strong attendance rates could earn bonus points. The U.S. Department of Education must approve the change for it to become official.
State lawmakers decided schools shouldn’t be penalized for students’ poor attendance, a factor they said is outside of the school’s control.
Nuria Martinez-Keel covers education for Oklahoma Voice. She worked in newspapers for six years, more than four of which she spent at The Oklahoman covering education and courts. Nuria is an Oklahoma State University graduate.
Oklahoma Voice is part of States Newsroom, the nation’s largest state-focused nonprofit news organization.
Oklahoma
Oklahoma Adds Another 2026 Defensive Commitment
NORMAN — Oklahoma’s 2026 recruiting momentum didn’t exactly slow Monday, even after the decommitment of defensive lineman T-Ron Richardson earlier in the day.
The Sooners added three-star linebacker Kristan Moore to the class two days before players are allowed to begin signing.
Moore had been committed to North Alabama since July before decommitting Sunday.
The Selma, Alabama, product had long been on Oklahoma’s radar, attending a camp in Norman last summer.
He also took an unofficial visit in September for the Sooners’ win over Michigan.
But Moore (6-foot-2, 215 pounds) recently picked up an offer from OU and visited again for Saturday’s 17-13 win over LSU that all but clinched a spot in the College Football Playoff for the Sooners.
Oklahoma is the only Power Four program to offer Moore, through he recently visited Florida as well.
Moore is the No. 125 linebacker in the class and the No. 60 player in the state of Alabama according to the 247 Sports Composite rankings.
He’s just the second linebacker commit in the class, joining three star Beau Jandreau of Chandler (Arizona) Hamilton.
Moore is the 11th defensive commitment in the class for the Sooners. OU is 15th in the 247 Sports Composite team rankings.
Moore’s commitment kept up a recent recruiting surge for the Sooners, who have added five commitments in the 2026 class in the last week.
He joins recent commitments Dane Bathurst, an edge rusher from Carmel, Indiana, safety Markel Ford of Mesquite (Texas) Horn, Cibolo (Texas) running back Jonathan Hatton Jr. and Miami (Florida) St. John Neumann wide receiver Jayden Petit and Montgomery (Texas) running back Keldrid Ben in recently committing to the Sooners.
Oklahoma has also added commitments from Millville (Utah) Ridgeline edge rusher Krew Jones and Tuscaloosa (Alabama) Central wide receiver Tra’Von Hall in the 2027 class during that time period.
The Sooners wrapped up their regular season 10-2, winning four consecutive games to put them on the doorstep of their first College Football Playoff berth since 2019.
Oklahoma coach Brent Venables and general manager Jim Nagy are expected to speak to the media Wednesday to discuss the 2026 signing class.
Oklahoma
Are schools closed today? See OKC schools closing Dec. 1 for icy roads
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Some schools and businesses around Oklahoma are closing or going virtual for the day after freezing rain overnight led to icy roads and frigid temperatures.
According to the National Weather Service, freezing rain will continue in Oklahoma City until 9 a.m., which will lead to a glaze of ice on elevated surfaces like roads and bridges.
The Oklahoma Department of Transportation warned on social media that drivers will likely see black ice during morning commutes. “Slow down and give yourself extra time to get to your destination safely,” the post reads.
With poor conditions, driving to the school pickup line or waiting for the bus may be harder than anticipated as some schools begin making decisions for Monday, Dec. 1.
Check below for any changes or cancellations for local schools organized by district.
➤ Weather alerts via text: Sign up to get updates about current storms and weather events by location
OKC school closures, or virtual-remote learning:
Here are the schools closing at this time in the Oklahoma City metro area. This story will be updated as closures are announced.
- Bethany Public Schools: No cancellation at this time
- Choctaw-Nicoma Park Public School: Closed Monday
- Deer Creek Public Schools: No cancellation at this time
- Edmond Public Schools: No cancellation at this time
- Epic Charter School: No cancellation at this time
- Midwest City-Del City Public Schools: No cancellation at this time
- Moore Public Schools: No cancellation at this time
- Mustang Public Schools: No cancellation at this time
- Norman Public Schools: No cancellation at this time
- Oklahoma City Public Schools: No cancellation at this time
- Piedmont Public Schools: No cancellation at this time
- Putnam City Public Schools: No cancellation at this time
- Santa Fe South Charter Schools: No cancellation at this time
- Western Heights Public Schools: No cancellation at this time
- Yukon Public Schools: No cancellation at this time
Activity, event cancelations in Oklahoma due to weather
Following are major Oklahoma City-area services or businesses closing on Dec. 1:
- Infant Crisis Center, open at noon on Monday
- Oklahoma City-County Health Department, open at 10 a.m. Monday
- Oklahoma County Courthouse, open at 10 a.m. Monday
- Oklahoma County offices, open at 10 a.m. today
Keep up with school, church and event closings using the link below.
This story will be updated.
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