America in Turmoil (part 6) |
The Oklahoma delegation continued to increase its seniority in the House, even as it lost both its long-term U.S. senators. In the House, four of the six members of the delegation remained in office through most of the period. Elected in 1950, Page Belcher had become ranking minority member on the Committee on Agriculture before he retired in 1972. |
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Ed Edmondson of the Second District, in office since 1953, passed up certain re-election in 1972 to make an unsuccessful run for the U.S. Senate. Carl Albert, Tom Steed, and John Jarman continued through the mid-1970s, with Albert and Jarman retiring in 1976. Only the Sixth District remained unstable, with four members—two Democrats (Jed Johnson, Jr., and Glenn English) and two Republicans (James V. Smith and John N. “Happy” Camp)—serving between 1965 and 1976. |
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Above: The only Republican member of the Oklahoma delegation for all but two of his
twenty-two years in Congress, Representative Page Belcher (R-OK, 1951-1972) was
born on his family’s claim which had been staked during the opening of the Cherokee
Outlet. The ranking minority member of the Agriculture Committee, Belcher (right)
looks over the budget with Glenn Gibson and Richard Adee of the American Honey
Producers Association in late 1968. |
Left: James V. Smith (R-OK, 1967-1968, left) looks over a document with Senator John Tower (R-TX). An opponent of tax increases and the growing federal bureaucracy, Smith gave his first speech on the economic benefits of closing the Office of Economic Opportunity. |
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Right: Because military installations are important to the state’s economy, Oklahoma's delegation has always worked together to avoid base closures. In this photo, President Richard M. Nixon (center) is joined by John Jarman (D-OK, 1951-1976, left) and John N. “Happy” Camp (R-OK, 1969-1974, right) at Vance Air Force Base in Enid. Known for his “low profile” approach to Congress, Jarman worked with Senator Mike Monroney to secure the Federal Aeronautics Administration Center for Oklahoma City and promoted the continuing success of Tinker Air Force Base. In early 1975, Jarman switched his party affiliation to Republican. A life-long resident of Enid, Camp also knew the importance of having a military installation in his district. |
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