What issues are the candidates addressing?

• Kendra Horn

  • Economy

    • Kendra Horn believes in helping small businesses by providing stimulus packages by pushing to pass the Cares Act, for example. She says, “During the pandemic, I've fought to pass relief for Oklahomans that is timely, targeted, and transparent. I worked with both parties to pass the CARES Act, which delivered stimulus checks to our families and unemployment assistance to workers who lost their jobs through no fault of their own.”

  • Environment

    • Horn supports government funding for environment-friendly projects, but doesn’t support the federal government regulating greenhouse gas emissions. “We have to be smart about how we address climate change… unless we reduce harmful emissions, experts estimate that climate change will cost the United States $224 billion dollars a year. One of the greatest weapons in our fight against climate change has been natural gas… That's why I've stood up to my own party against a federal fracking ban."

  • Trade

    • She supports increased international trade and thinks that it benefits Oklahoma. For example, she is in favor of the Democrat negotiated United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement. “… two of our largest trading partners are our neighbors to the north and the south. In 2018 alone, Oklahoma exported a total of $5.6 billion in manufactured goods. Nearly half of those went to Mexico and Canada. In the same year, Oklahoma agriculture exports to Mexico and Canada totaled $154 million. A stronger trading relationship with Mexico and Canada means a stronger economy for Oklahoma [and] support[ing] millions of American jobs in the process.

  • Taxes

    • Recently, Horn announced plans to cut taxes for the middle class using the Workers Tax Cut Plan. This would increase the maximum Earned Income Tax Credit by $1,500 and expand the number of households eligible for the credit by 50 percent. In a tweet, she says, “Our tax system should be balanced and ensure everyone pays their fair share. We shouldn’t be putting the most burden on working Oklahomans who are just trying to get by. My proposal incentives work and will help lift millions of Americans out of poverty. The Earned Income Tax Credit encourages work by scaling up as an individual’s income grows. My plan to double the EITC would help millions more families make ends meet.” To do this, she plans to tax the rich more. Horn also is targeting prescription drug companies and foreign subsidiaries for revenue.

  • Healthcare

    • Horn believes that healthcare is a right that everyone should have. She has voted for Patient Protection and Affordable Care Enhancement Act, an addition to the ACA. This strengthens it by lowering coverage costs, lowering drug costs, increasing matching funds for states like Oklahoma to expand Medicaid, and reinforcing protections for people with pre-existing conditions. She said, “Today’s legislation would make a critical difference for families struggling to afford their premiums, prescription drugs, or just keep coverage while living with a pre-existing condition. This bill would also provide increased matching funds for Oklahoma to expand Medicaid, which would extend health insurance to 200,000 Oklahomans. We need to make healthcare more affordable and accessible for all Americans, especially during a pandemic. The bottom line is that this bill would mean big savings, better health care, and more protections for Oklahomans.”

  • Immigration

    • Horn supports strengthening the border patrol, but disagrees with separating families and thinking children of undocumented immigrants should have a path to become a citizen. She remarks, “America is a nation built by immigrants…

    • There should be a realistic and legal path to citizenship for anyone brought here as a child who has not committed any crimes and is contributing to society.

    • It is important that we secure our borders. But we shouldn't break up families or turn away fully vetted refugees from countries in crisis… Using technology, intelligence and properly funding our border patrol, we can enforce immigration laws in a much more effective manner.

• Stephanie Bice

  • Economy

    • Stephanie Bice supports small businesses and encourages young entrepreneurs to start and grow businesses in Oklahoma. She has the experience of being a small business owner and understands what struggles small business owners sometimes go through. She talks about Oklahoma’s ability to withstand economic recessions. “Our state was able to withstand the 2008 Recession and avoid high unemployment rates, and part of this was due to the entrepreneurs who were starting businesses and creating jobs.” She says small businesses are what kept Oklahoma strong during the 2008 Recession.

  • Environment

    • Her stance on the environment is similar to Trump’s. According to justfacts.votesmart.org, she does not support the federal regulation of greenhouse gas emissions. She says that “Overregulation is holding back Oklahoma's energy industry from achieving its full potential. I applaud President Trump for giving regulatory power back to the states.” She is a republican and agrees with Trump’s stances, including her stances on regulation of greenhouse gases.

  • Trade

    • Stephanie Bice supports removing barriers to international trade. On some social media websites she has stated this, for example, on Twitter, she stated: “Excited to see USMCA pass through the Senate Finance Committee last week. With Oklahoma jobs on the line, it's more important than ever that Congress comes together to pass this bill.” For context, the USMCA stands for the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement. This agreement is pro-small business (which aligns with Stephanie Bice’s beliefs), will protect intellectual property of small businesses, and motivates worldwide growth for American entrepreneurs. Essentially, she supports international forms of trade because it benefits small businesses, and she heavily supports small businesses.

  • Taxes

    • Bice announced that she is leaning towards raising taxes for people to give teachers a pay raise she believes they deserve. She talks about this topic in an advertisement. “I am sure you’ve seen the negative attacks against me. If you’re not a teacher but you care about Oklahoma kids and our schools, then you’ll realize that these attacks really aren’t about me. They’re attacks against Oklahoma teachers by some that don’t think they deserve a pay raise.” She faced GOP criticism because of her stand on taxes, but regardless stands for the side of increasing taxes because she believes that tax raises will increase the quality of schooling, even if this means the largest tax increase in Oklahoma history.

  • Healthcare

    • Bice’s stance on Medicaid is that “Like many other federal programs, changes in the future could impact the costs to the state of Oklahoma. If you’re familiar with the structure currently, it is a 90/10 match – 90% paid by the feds, 10% by the state but there’s no guarantee that that’s going to be the case in the future.” She supports Medicaid because of the ratio of people that are supported by it. She is concerned that if Medicaid were to be changed or taken away, Oklahoma would have financial problems because of this. Her stances on the Affordable Care Act are the opposite, because she believes, “You have to look at increasing competition, and the reason that we have so many insurance companies that have left the market place is because the people that are on the exchange right now are typically unhealthy and they’re driving up costs. You need to be able to provide insurance for all Oklahomans and that means both healthy and unhealthy without penalties for not doing so.” She disagrees with the Affordable Care Act because she believes it opens up too many insurance companies and thus creates more competition for small businesses.

  • Immigration

    • According to biceforcongress.com, Bice thinks that the American’s immigration system is broken. Bice believes that first strong border protections must be made. She aligns with Trump’s belief of having a wall and additional border agents and technology. She says this is because she thinks the safety of the American people is very important. She says, “We must also fix our immigration system so states like Oklahoma can have their workforce needs met.” She is a huge supporter of small businesses, and immigration does not align with her beliefs because sometimes small businesses can be replaced by immigrants. She also states, “Citizenship should not be a reward for those whose first interaction with our country was an illegal act, no matter how well intentioned.” She does not support immigration.