Muskogee Phoenix Endorses Dana Murphy

The Muskogee Phoenix newspaper has endorsed Republicans Dana Murphy and Jeff Cloud for the Corporation Commission seats.

Commission Choices

We encourage voters to return Jeff Cloud to a second term on the state Corporation Commission.

We also encourage a vote for Dana Murphy, replacing the man who currently holds a seat on the commission.

Cloud has done a commendable job in his first term. There is no reason to replace him.

Cloud’s opponent, Charles Gray, has taken an admirable stance, stating that unlike Cloud, he would not take campaign donations from energy companies. State law does not prohibit those donations, though we think it should.

Still, Cloud, as others have pointed out, has shown a good balance between serving the interests of consumers and the interests of the companies the commission regulates.

Murphy has a long background in energy, and she served as an administrative law judge for the commission. She has all the qualifications for the job.

Her opponent, Jim Roth, has been on the board for two years after having been appointed by Gov. Brad Henry and serving as a two-term Oklahoma County commissioner.

Given the current energy crisis and the need for development of alternative energy sources, we believe it’s wise to elect someone with a strong energy background and someone who has dealt with energy and consumer issues for years.

The Muskogee Politico applauds this endorsement.

In this election, the Phoenix has endorsed Democrat Sen. Barack Obama for President, Democrat State Sen. Andrew Rice for U.S. Senate, Republican State Rep. George Faught for re-election, sort of endorsed Democrat State Rep. Jerry McPeak for re-election, and Democrat Sheriff Charles Pearson for re-election. They also endorsed the Muskogee County Questions Propositions 1 and 2, which deal with updating the 911 system. They endorsed voting 'no' on SQ 742, the 'Hunters Bill of Rights'.