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We spoke with Governor Kevin Stitt Thursday evening by phone. Our conversation with the Governor included topics ranging from the new pandemic research center, to COVID-19 status and vaccine updates to the new president's handling of oil and gas, the new session and an observation on how our schools have handled the pandemic.

 

Governor Stitt is very excited about the new Oklahoma Pandemic Center for Innovation and Excellence (OPCIE) and the newly relocated Public Health Lab.

 

Gov. Stitt said this investment in public health, science and innovation will help Oklahoma become a top ten State. He said it'll make Oklahoma a national and global leader in pandemic preparedness, research and response to any future health crisis the country or State may face.

 

Gov. Stitt said he was happy to plant this flag before any other State in the Union; Oklahoma is the national research pandemic center. He said he believes the OPCIE will prove to be a huge economic driver in years to come.

 

Stitt is very confident in the way Oklahoma is handling the COVID-19 vaccinations at this point. However, he is a bit critical of the federal partners as of late. One the whole, Oklahoma is 7th in the nation in COVID-19 vaccinations per capita.

 

The Governor pointed out that the state numbers show 38% of Oklahomans are showing antibodies for the coronavirus. When he adds that to the number of people who have recovered and those vaccinated, he believes that nearly 50% of Oklahomans now have some kind of immunity from the virus.

 

Stitt's vision is to get two million vaccinations done by Memorial Day so we can get our summer back and really get this virus behind us.

 

Regarding President Biden's new policies on energy that will affect our gas and oil industry, Stitt says he he is going to continue to protect our assets. Stitt says the information he is receiving indicates thes policies limit supplies and will drive up the costs and we will likely not be a net exporter. In the short term it will create opportunities for energy copanies, but in the long run it will be bad for Americans as a whole.

 

As for his outlook on the upcoming new session of the Oklahoma state legislature, Governor Stitt is optimistic. His main goals remain making Oklahoma a top ten state along with making Oklahoma a top ten state for business and continuing to invest in Oklahomans.

 

Lastly, Stitt congratulated the schools across the state for opening up for in-person leaning as much as they have had. However, he calle out the Tulsa schools for not having in-person learning available for nearly a year and accused their school officials of caving to the unions and ignoring the science that shows schools are not the COVID-19 spreader venues as once thought.

 

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