Walters requested that the Biden-Harris administration reimburse over $474 million to Oklahoma schools for “the financial impact borne by Oklahoma taxpayers for education of illegal immigrant children.” The letter, issued Tuesday, comes as Walters deemed Harris as “the number one threat to parents and kids” in the United States.

“This open border policy has cost our state $474 million to educate illegal immigrant children,” Walters said on Fox News’s Fox and Friends First. “We have fentanyl pouring across into our schools, and we even had a terrorist that came across in our open border policies, that was arrested in one of our schools. Her open border is causing mass chaos into our schools, into our economy and into our society. We never had these problems under President Trump. We never had these issues in our schools and in our society. We had a closed border, safer schools, safe border. This is absolutely essential that her administration is held accountable. The border czar has failed us.”

Walters’s comment on Harris as “the border czar” comes after the Republican-controlled House of Representatives passed a messaging bill in July condemning both the vice president and the Biden administration’s handling of border security. Sen. J.D. Vance (R-OH), former President Donald Trump’s 2024 running mate, has sought to portray himself as the new border czar should he and Trump win.

The Oklahoma superintendent explained that the federal government mandates school districts to educate any child who will attend their school, regardless of whether they are legal immigrants or not. As such, schools are required to “quickly” allocate resources originally intended for students already enrolled, with one district even getting “100 a week” in illegal immigrants attending their district.

“So all of the resources that were there, prepared for our students in Oklahoma, are now being diverted to the students of illegal immigrants,” Walters said.

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The superintendent’s letter is not the first time Walters has feuded with the Biden administration, as he directed all of his local school districts not to comply with the administration’s rewrite of Title IX because it puts “women in danger.” He has also sought a “complete overhaul” to Oklahoma school curriculum with the goal to “inspire in students a love of country and a proper understanding of the American founding.” 

Illegal immigration has been a major topic ahead of the 2024 presidential election, including the possibility of non-residents of the United States voting. On Wednesday, the Supreme Court ruled 6-3 to allow Virginia to carry out a purge of an estimated 1,600 people from its voter rolls to prevent ineligible noncitizens from voting, a decision Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R-VA) deemed “a victory for commonsense and election fairness.”

NORMAN — In Oklahoma basketball’s preparation for its first year in the Southeastern Conference, senior Jalon Moore and Sam Godwin became the team’s comfort — and Porter Moser’s.

“Retention is so big, not just in basketball, but in a lot of the sports in college,” Moser said last Wednesday during the team’s first press conference of his fourth year as OU’s head men’s coach. “That’s been a challenge in the NIL and transfer portal era. Having Jalon Moore and Sam Godwin come back — them, unanimously people on the team (believe) those were two of the toughest guys. Them and Rivaldo Soares, toughest guys (last year) — it was great to have those guys.” The loyalty, the vision that they have. They attacked the summer and getting better.” 

Moore, who transferred to Oklahoma from Georgia Tech last year and finished as the team’s third-leading scorer with 11.2 points per game, entered his name into the NBA Draft pool but withdrew it before the June 16 deadline.

Godwin, a fifth-year from Ada, Oklahoma who played on scholarship his first two years at Wofford, walked-on at Oklahoma and earned a scholarship his second year, averaged 6.7 points and 5.2 rebounds last year.

“Those eight or nine (returning players) are telling the new guys, ‘This is how we do things, how hard we go. This is our standard,’” Moser said. “Jalon and Sam have been doing that. The retention of those two was key for us, because they’re our toughest guys. . . [We’re] going to need that in the SEC.”

The Sooners did not do themselves a favor by losing six of their last eight games but were, regardless, considered one of the NCAA Tournament’s 64-team bracket’s biggest snubs and did not accept their invitation to the National Invitational Tournament. Finding somebody in the Griffin Family Performance Center who wasn’t frustrating last March was impossible.

“This year, I think it’s going be such a grit and burn. I think it’s going to be a gritty team,” Moser said. “I think it’s going to be a team that, like I said, a lot of guys that were crushed on Selection Sunday.”

For Godwin — the team’s hustle — the choice was obvious. 

“It was a pretty easy decision for me (to return for a fifth year),” Godwin said. “Obviously, Oklahoma’s home. It’s where I grew up. It’s where I dreamed of playing my whole life, so I never really thought about leaving. I knew if I was going to use my Covid year, I was going to use it here.

“Me and Jalon talked quite a bit. Obviously, we had some players leave, some of our good friends leave. I mean, we both love it here, like, we love coach Moser and everything he’s about, so we just decided we’re going to stick it out, play another year with him and hope to make the tournament,” Godwin said.

For Moore — undoubtedly Moser’s most valuable weapon — the decision held some nuance. A legitimate pro prospect, Moore elected for the draft process, but Moser held the door open.

“We both told him, ‘If this process leads to you staying in it and getting drafted, I’m going to be the biggest guy to give you a hug,’” Moser said, ‘“But if not, obviously, we want and need you back.’ 

“He said, ‘That’s my plan. I’m coming back if I don’t get the nod that I’m going to get drafted.’ He stayed true to everything he said. He’s an unbelievable young man, and I think he’s going to do great things for us, not only at Oklahoma but beyond that because of his foundation and character.”

Godwin and Moore offered each other his unwavering support, and after it was clear both would be returning, they turned their collective focus towards building a winner in Norman. They had a brief taste of that success, winning 13 of their first 14 games and peaking at No. 7 in last year’s AP Poll. The story of summer 2024 was their crucial leadership as Moser’s practice enforcers.

“Sam’s my brother,” Moore said. “What you do every day is going to show in the game, so it’s kind of just been, like, keeping that approach of attack each other every day, go at each other every day, push each other every day. If I see you down or you see me down, like, hold me accountable because we need that for this team to succeed.

“To me, Jalon’s the heartbeat of the team. He comes in every day and brings in an elite level of energy, gets us going at practice. Obviously, he’s a freak athlete, another high-motor guy,” Godwin said. “The way he’s worked, I’ve seen him work every day. He lifts in the morning before practice, after practice. He’s in here working every day. His game’s grown a lot. I know he has aspirations to play in the NBA, and with the work I’ve seen him put in, he’s going to get there.

“The best teams are player-led teams, so I think us just being able to attack and take on that role is just going to help us as a team team, for sure, a lot,” Moore said.

The Sooners open the 2024-25 season Monday, Nov. 4 against Lindenwood, the first of a four-game homestand, after which they will compete in the Battle 4 Atlantis at the Imperial Arena in Paradise Islands, Bahamas from Nov. 27-29. OU will play its first true road game and first conference game against Alabama in Tuscaloosa on Saturday, Jan. 4.

“People ask me what it’s like to be in the SEC. I’m so excited to have a home,” Moser said. “The last three years I’ve gone to meetings, I’ve done different things with me knowing that everyone knew Oklahoma was going to compete in the SEC. Felt great in the meetings. Felt great at media day. We’ve got a home and an elite home at that. So to get young guys ready for that, it’s gotta be a physical summer. It’s got to be in the weight room, and it has been. But it’s mentally ready for the physicality and the speed of this level with older guys.”

Absentee ballots are already arriving at election board offices, with early voting beginning across Oklahoma on Wednesday.

More than 78,000 Oklahomans have already cast absentee ballots, and officials expect a record turnout for the presidential election.

State Election Board Secretary Paul Ziriax is urging voters to be patient with others in line and with election workers.

“I think it’s just a matter of whether we beat what we did last time, come close, or about the same. We’ll find out,” said Ziriax.

For the first time in a presidential election, early voting has been extended to four days: Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. The additional day is expected to help spread out the crowds.

Ziriax advises voters to prepare by checking polling locations and viewing sample ballots ahead of time. In-person voters will need identification, and clothing promoting any candidate is prohibited.

Federal and state officials are on high alert for any attempts to disrupt the election, and Ziriax encourages voters to report anything suspicious. Above all, he urges patience during what he anticipates will be long wait times.

“There could be a line you have to wait in, so we appreciate voters’ patience. Please be kind to your precinct officials and poll workers who are helping you exercise the right to vote,” he said.