On Tuesday, U.S. Senator Markwayne Mullin (R-OK) welcomed 83 members of the Oklahoma State Legislature to Washington, D.C., where they participated in the White House State Leadership Conference. Senator Mullin coordinated with President Trump and his team to arrange a series of meetings for the visiting legislators.
According to Senator Mullin, “I reached out to the White House about two months ago saying we’re going to have our state legislative body up here, and you know, the President loves Oklahoma. He says it all the time, ‘it’s the only state where all 77 counties voted for me all three times.’ And so, when he knew they were coming up here, [President Trump] said, ‘let’s put a leadership day together for them. Let’s let the leaders, our cabinet members come visit with them, talk to them, and understand the vision’ that the Trump team is driving for when he says Make America Great Again. Because, if Oklahoma is rowing in the same boat as Washington, D.C., we have a bright future as a country.”
During their visit, Oklahoma legislators met with several senior White House officials and Cabinet Secretaries including Kristi Noem (DHS), Brooke Rollins (USDA), Scott Turner (HUD), and Doug Collins (VA). These officials discussed how President Trump is advancing his America First agenda and encouraged collaboration between federal and state governments.
Senator Mullin stated, “Our state leaders are working in lock-step with the Trump Administration. There is not a state in the union as red as Oklahoma with all 77 counties voting for the Republican ticket. It was an honor to bring them to the White House and introduce them to my friends in the Cabinet who are fighting for our America-First, Oklahoma-First policies every day.”
The itinerary also included a meeting at Joint Base Andrews where some legislators spoke with Vice President JD Vance before his departure for North Carolina.
Kyle Hilbert, Speaker of the Oklahoma House of Representatives, commented on the trip: “It was a great privilege to be welcomed at the White House, hear directly from Senator Mullin and numerous Trump cabinet officials, and visit with VP Vance to discuss the future of our great state. Oklahoma has strong partnerships in Washington, and I want to thank Markwayne for making this productive trip happen for us.”
Josh West, Majority Floor Leader of the Oklahoma House of Representatives added: “As Oklahoma legislators, it’s critical that we remain in close contact with our federal representatives to best serve the Sooner State. After Oklahoma voters overwhelmingly re-elected President Trump, it was a blessing to meet with his team at the White House. I really want to thank Senator Mullin for giving Oklahoma this platform, and for making sure we got a chance to meet with the Vice President of the United States. It was a great trip.”
Oklahoma State Senator Lonnie Paxton also expressed appreciation: “Thank you, Senator Mullin for hosting us at the White House State Leadership Conference this week! It was an honor to hear from DHS Secretary Kristi Noem, and all the cabinet officials who took the time to speak with us and discuss Oklahoma’s role in shaping America’s future.”
