Oklahoma

Securing The Border: Oklahoma National Guard, Senator Langford Report

Published

1 year ago

October 4, 2023

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Securing The Border: Oklahoma National Guard, Senator Langford Report

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Border Security is the responsibility of the federal government.

So why did Oklahoma spend $825,000 to send our national guard to the border?

News on 6’s Amanda Taylor traveled to the southern border. The troops she talked to down in Texas just got back, and now she’s sitting down with them and someone else who has deep insight on why they were needed.

If you take a snapshot of the US Mexico Border in the last 2 weeks, you’d see Border Patrol capturing convicted sex offenders entering the US illegally, seizing pounds of fentanyl and heroin, and rescuing a child after smugglers left her alone to fend for herself.

“Border issues are nothin’ new. A lot of people have focused on it the last couple of years. It’s an ongoing issue. But we’re trying to build a coalition to say, ‘This problem doesn’t get better by ignoring it,’” said Senator Lankford.

Oklahoma’s Senator James Lankford knows more than most about the border. He’s the lead Republican on homeland security.

“We have over 1,000,000 people this year that have crossed into our country that are got a ways that we have no idea who they are,” he said.

When News On 6’s Amanda Taylor was in El Paso, Texas, last month, she talked with several of our 50 Oklahoma National Guardsmen who were sent to act as a deterrent.

“Our goal right now is to keep them on their side keep us on ours so they can legally go through port of entry like they’re supposed to do.”

At the request of Texas’s governor, Oklahoma Governor Kevin Stitt gave the go-ahead for Oklahoma troops to stay for 30 days.

When Lankford was asked about Oklahoma’s role when it comes to the border, he said that it was a federal issue.

“The federal government has responsibility constitutionally to be able to take care of our border and to secure that. The problem is, if the federal government is not doing its job, then the states feel the effect of rising drug increase or rise in prostitution. A rise in human trafficking our state,” he said.

During their mission, our guardsmen estimate they turned back 1,000 people trying to enter illegally.

Their boots are now back in Oklahoma as their 30-day assignment is over.

“What stood out most to me: the desperation,” said Spc. Robert Hinton with the Oklahoma National Guard.

“It’s really difficult to see the things you seen,” said Tech Sergeant Logan Christensen. “It changes the way you look at certain people and their situations. The desperation.”

“My takeaway is these are a lot more family groups than you’d expect,” Captain Jayce Crowder said.

“You see the distress that’s within a lot of the families. You see, they have their kids, and it tugs at the heart,” said Sr. Airman Coleise Thomas.

What our troops saw represented 1 mile of a border that’s 2,000 miles long.

While our guardsmen saw family after family trying to come across, Senator Lankford says those groups do drain our nation’s resources and Border Patrol resources.

“The cartel will then say – literally put up an aerial UAV,” Senator Langford said, “I mean, they’ll put up a drone to be able to watch the Border Patrol come in and pick up families that they push across the border, they’ll go 2 miles upriver, and they’ll send across a group of folks with backpacks that are carrying who knows what.”

Senator Langford was asked about how to balance security with humanitarianism while at the border.

“There’s a humanitarian need there,” he said. “But there’s a difference between meeting a humanitarian need and then releasing them into the country. When you release them into the country, it invites the next person to take the same dangerous journey again.”

And dangerous it is.

Senator Lankford says the cartels in Mexico are behind much of the illegal crossings, advertising around the world that if you want to get to America and get a job, they can help for a fee of anywhere from $4,000 to $30,000. And if one chooses not to pay…

“If you try to cross from the south to the north, they’ll kill you. The Border Patrol will tell you the border is secure. It’s just secure on the south side. You don’t cross from south to north in any method without coming through the checkpoints of the cartels,” Langford said.

There are those who get through without ever getting caught. But many of those who do still get to stay.

Senator Lankford says it’ll be between 5 to 10 years before their asylum hearings.

“None of these have been vetted. Most of them have no identification, no background information at all. They cross the border, ask for asylum, they’re released into the country within 24 hours, and told to show up at a hearing. And most of them we’ll never see again.”

When asked about changes that need to happen and what could be done, Senator Langford said this.

“Where’s the deadline to fix immigration?” he said. “There’s no deadline, so this hard issue just keeps getting postponed year after year after year.”

He says he’s trying to build a coalition in the US House and Senate to resolve this by clarifying the definition of asylum and how it’s handled.

“If we were to say to the next person that came across the border right now that had requested asylum, yes, you can request asylum. You have to stay here at the border, we’ll hold you in this area, we’ll actually connect you with judges. You’ll have a hearing in 25 days. You have time to be able to visit with council if you want to be able to do that, you’ll have your hearing. If you don’t qualify for asylum, we’ll turn you right back around,” Senator Langford said.

“We can either complain about this or try to fix it. Our goal is to say let’s fix it. More than we’re just standing around complaining about it.”

Senator Lankford also talked about how he’s working to take down drones from the cartels.

Last year, 10,000 of them were spotted coming over from Mexico into the US to track Border Patrol movements and even do drug drops.

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Oklahoma

Firefighters respond to commercial fire in Oklahoma City

Published

2 hours ago

December 22, 2024

Press Room

Firefighters respond to commercial fire in Oklahoma City

OKLAHOMA CITY (KFOR) – The Oklahoma City Fire Department responded to a commercial fire near the area of NW 10th and N Western Avenue.

OKCFD were at the scene of a commercial fire around 7 p.m. Saturday night, when they arrived there was heavy smoke visible from multiple floors of a boarded up building.

One adult female was found in the building and taken to the hospital for smoke inhalation.

At this time no cause has been reported.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KFOR.com Oklahoma City.

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Oklahoma

Navy Coach Brian Newberry Talks Oklahoma Prep, Going for 10 Wins

Published

10 hours ago

December 21, 2024

Press Room

Navy Coach Brian Newberry Talks Oklahoma Prep, Going for 10 Wins

NORMAN — Bowl season is a bit unconventional for Navy.

The Midshipmen annually play against Army six days after the bowl schedule is released. That was the case this year, as Navy beat the Black Knights 31-13 on Dec. 14.

Beating Army is always a highlight for the Midshipmen. But the drawback for them is that they have less time than their bowl opponent to prepare for the game.

In this case, that’s Oklahoma. The Sooners will enter the game with more than two weeks of preparation for Navy’s triple-option offense.

“It’s just a little different,” Navy coach Brian Newberry told reporters earlier this week. “They’ve known they’re going to play us for a little time now.”

Navy Coach, Oklahoma Native Brian Newberry Grew Up On OU Football

Navy does, however, enter the Armed Forces Bowl with momentum.

The Midshipmen (9-3) eased past Army last week in Landover, MD. They outgained the Black Knights 384-179 and forced Army quarterback Bryson Daily to throw three interceptions.

Navy’s rivalry win was its third in the last four games after the Midshipmen went on a two-game skid in the middle of the season. Newberry cited his team’s physicality in recent games, particularly in the Midshipmen’s drubbing of Army.

“I was so impressed with how our kids handled the moment,” Newberry said. “Army’s a really, really good football team. I thought we physically dominated the game in the way that we blocked, beat blocks, the way we tackled. I thought we outplayed them in all three phases, so I’m really, really proud of that.”

A stark difference between the teams is the number of players that have entered the transfer portal.

The Sooners have seen 25 players from their 2024 team enter the portal. The Midshipmen have suffered only one departure in the winter portal window with defensive back Lorenzo Vitti.

On one hand, that makes Oklahoma preparation tough for Navy.

“It’s interesting,” Newberry said. “We’re going through their two-deep and trying to figure out who’s going to play and who isn’t. It’s a little bit of a challenge in that regard. And it could certainly change with a different quarterback.”

But largely, the Midshipmen’s lack of transfers gives Newberry confidence that his team will be bought in for one more game in 2024.

“The portal can affect us, players can jump in the portal — we’re not getting that,” Newberry said. “It’s challenging to build a culture anywhere in college football right now, one that’s built on a certain level of trust. They know each other really, really well. They’ve fought through adversity. They stay the course, they pay the price and they have an opportunity.”

Navy will also play for more than just another win; the Midshipmen are looking to make history.

Navy has reached the 10-win mark just four times in program history. The Midshipmen did so three times under former coach Ken Niumatalolo from 2009-2019.

Having a shot at history while playing Oklahoma — the state that Newberry hails from — excites the coach.

“It’s the last time that this team gets to play together,” Newberry said. “They want to go out the right way against a storied program like Oklahoma. It’s a great reward to play in a bowl game, but it’s a game we want to win.”

The Midshipmen and Sooners will play in the Armed Forces Bowl in Fort Worth at 11 a.m. on Dec. 27.

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Oklahoma

Oklahoma LB Kip Lewis Sees Armed Forces Bowl as Growth Opportunity

Published

18 hours ago

December 21, 2024

Press Room

Oklahoma LB Kip Lewis Sees Armed Forces Bowl as Growth Opportunity

As Danny Stutsman departs from Oklahoma, Kip Lewis seems to be the next man up.

A redshirt sophomore linebacker in 2024, Lewis was one of the Sooners’ better defenders. In addition to his 28 solo tackles, Lewis intercepted two passes, running both of them back for touchdowns.

Lewis hopes to be the leader that Stutsman was over his four years at OU. But his goal isn’t to be a Stutsman clone.

“I feel like I’m my own player and my own leader in how I do things,” Lewis said. “Danny’s a great player, great leader. Taught me everything I need to know. I think I’m just my own person. I don’t think I need to step into his role and be the Danny. There’s only one.”

Lewis played and started in all 12 of the Sooners’ games in the 2024 season. It was his second season as a regular on OU’s defense after playing in just two games as a true freshman.

In Oklahoma’s first season as an SEC squad, Lewis and his defensive counterparts saw plenty of offensive stars. Between Garrett Nussmeier at LSU and Quinn Ewers at Texas, there was never really a dull moment for the Sooners during conference play.

Lewis will see a different type of challenge at the Armed Forces Bowl against Navy.

WATCH: Navy HC Brian Newberry Ahead of Armed Forces Bowl vs. Oklahoma

The Midshipmen — like the other service academies — run a triple-option offense. While Navy, Army and Air Force struggle to get the highly-touted recruits that other programs draw, the unconventional offense sets them apart.

Thankfully for Lewis, this style of offense isn’t new.

“I’m a little used to it. So it’s been a minute since I played it, but it brought me back to my roots playing the Wing-T. There’s a team called Pleasant Grove out there in Texas, so they used to give me a run for my money back in the day.”

Navy finished the regular season 9-3. The Midshipmen started the season 6-0 before losing three times in a four-game span.

They ended the season well, though, beating both East Carolina and Army by double digits to end the regular season.

Lewis and multiple of his teammates tuned in as the Midshipmen beat Army in the annual rivalry game.

“They showed a lot of fight, a lot of grit,” Lewis said. “I think that’s an important key into playing football.”

Lewis will play only one more game as an underclassman. Then, he’ll step into the role of other defensive leaders the Sooners have seen recently, whether that’s Stutsman, Billy Bowman Jr., Woodi Washington or others.

Games like the Armed Forces Bowl will help him get there.

“Just always having to bring my best effort every day,” Lewis said. “Just bringing everything I’ve got. Just every day, I bring my value into whatever that is, whatever I’ve gotta do for my team. I think it’ll be a big role.”

The Sooners will battle the Midshipmen on Dec. 27 in Fort Worth. The game is scheduled to begin at 11 a.m.

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