Tourism and Economic Growth
Oklahoma has a lot to offer, and we don’t always give ourselves enough credit. Our people, our culture, and our way of life are real strengths, and when we tell that story the right way, it creates jobs and opportunity here at home.
Tourism supports small businesses, fills local hotels and restaurants, and helps communities grow without raising taxes. We have made progress promoting Oklahoma, and I want to build on that momentum.
My focus will be on promoting Oklahoma in a way that feels authentic and benefits people across the state, not just a few areas.
That means:
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Building on Oklahoma’s existing tourism efforts and partnerships
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Showcasing our music, culture, and creative industries
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Promoting Oklahoma as a great place to live, work, and raise a family
Growth also means taking care of the businesses that are already here. Too often, this state’s focus is only on attracting new companies, neglecting the small and local businesses that have stuck with Oklahoma through good times and bad.
We should:
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Support policies that help Oklahoman businesses grow and stay here
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Remove unnecessary state-level barriers that make it harder to do business
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Align workforce development with the needs of Oklahoman employers
When tourism, business growth, and workforce development are working together, everyone benefits. My goal is to make Oklahoma a place people are excited to visit, proud to call home, and confident building their future.
Education
Education is the greatest and most important investment our state makes in its future, and we owe it to students, parents, and teachers to make sure those dollars are working to that end.
We spend billions on K through 12 education, but too often the results don’t match the spending. Families play a huge role in a child’s success, and government can’t and shouldn’t try to regulate and dictate everything in a child’s upbringing. But what we must do is make sure our education dollars are going where they matter most.
To make education funding clear, accountable, and effective, we must:
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Make education spending easier to understand and track
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Clearly separate classroom spending from administrative costs
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Require transparent and public reporting of how education dollars are used
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Evaluate education programs based on real, measurable results
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Protecting local control while enforcing financial accountability
This state’s goal ought to be simple. Ensure education dollars should reach classrooms, support teachers, and give students the best possible chance to succeed.
Healthcare & Mental Health
Healthcare affects nearly every family in Oklahoma, and it represents a major responsibility for our state. Right now, services are often fragmented, expensive, and difficult to navigate. We can and must do better.
This isn’t about spending more money. It’s about making sure the money we already spend is actually helping people and reaching patients instead of getting tied up in layers of administration.
My focus for healthcare is straightforward:
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Do top-to-bottom reviews of state healthcare agencies so we know what is working and what is not
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Identify overlapping services and administrative inefficiencies that drive up costs
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Improve coordination across healthcare programs so people are not falling through the cracks
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Keep the focus on direct patient care, not bureaucracy
Mental health is inseparable to this conversation. When mental health needs are ignored early, the cost shows up later in crisis care, emergency rooms, jails, and broken families. The current approach is not working for Oklahoma.
We need to lead with prevention:
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Prioritize early intervention before people reach a crisis point
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Reduce reliance on crisis-level care as the default response
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Improve coordination between mental health services and other state agencies
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Invest in community-based solutions that help people where they are
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​By improving oversight and focusing on prevention, we can deliver better care while being responsible with taxpayer dollars.
Government Efficiency & Accountability
Oklahoma government has a responsibility to live within its means and to respect the taxpayers who fund it. Over the last few years, a large amount of temporary federal money flowed into state programs. That money helped in the moment, but it is not permanent, and Oklahoma cannot afford to be caught unprepared when it slows down or goes away.
As a balanced-budget state, even if we run into hard times, a deficit isn’t an option. That means poor planning leads to sudden cuts, and sudden cuts hurt everyday Oklahomans. The wise approach is to fix inefficiencies now, before we are forced to make sweeping cuts in response to a crisis.
My focus is on preparing Oklahoma for what’s ahead by:
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Identifying state programs that rely heavily on temporary federal funding
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Requiring agencies to plan ahead for reduced federal dollars before they disappear
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Reducing waste and inefficiency before cuts are our only option
Taxpayer dollars should go toward services that matter, not layers of bureaucracy. We can make state government work better by modernizing how it operates and holding agencies accountable for results.
That means:
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Expanding performance and efficiency audits across state agencies
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Use modern tools including AI to find and cut patterns of hidden and deep institutional waste
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Reducing administrative redundancy and duplication
This is about responsible planning, accountability, and making sure Oklahoma is prepared for the future without putting taxpayers or vulnerable families at risk.
