The Tulsa World
Date unknown
Demos Pick Muskogee Legislator for Speaker’s Job
By Nancy Mathis
World Capitol Bureau
OKLAHOMA CITY – Muskogee’s Jim Barker edged out Sand Springs Rep. David Riggs on the second ballot to become House speaker nominee at an unprecedented Democrat caucus Tuesday.
Barker, the 48-year-old House Budget Committee vice chairman, garnered 39 votes to Riggs’ 34 votes. Rep. John Monks, also of Muskogee, drained off enough support on the first ballot to prevent the other two from receiving the 37 votes needed to win.
However, House Democrats derailed Monks’ attempts to strip the speaker’s post of much of its power. They went along with limiting the speaker’s term to two consecutive two-year terms
Barker said he will urge Gov. George Nigh to immediately call a special Legislative session so the House can elect him as speaker, a formality because of the substantial Democrat majority.
Barker will serve out the year remaining on former House Speaker Dan Draper’s term and presumably will be a candidate for the 1985-1986 term. The House normally would have selected a new speaker in November 1984.
Draper, D-Stillwater, and Majority Floor Leader, Joe Fitzgibbon, D-Miami, were convicted of federal conspiracy and mail fraud charges last month. Both were suspended for office, forcing the House Democrats to hold the special caucus.
Barker called for unity among the sharply divided Democrats and said, “I do not have and do not plan to have a vindictive attitude toward any member of this House.”
Barker also came out swinging at Gov. Nigh, stating he would not bring tax increase proposals before the House until Nigh supported such proposals to meet an anticipated $250 million revenue shortfall next year.
“We will not waste five minutes of our time unless we have a governor committed to leading the tax increase proposals,” Barker said.
Rules changes proposed by Monks would have created a committee on committees to appoint panel members and chairmen and expand the powers of the House Administration Committee to make seating assignments and approve travel claims.
Currently, the speaker has all these powers.
Rep. Jim Glover, D-Elgin, acting majority floor leader, was successful in getting all of Monks’ proposals tabled.
Monks and Glover both introduced a set of rules for the Democratic caucus to use for its special meeting. Because the House has never had to nominate a new speaker between sessions, there were no rules to govern the procedure..
Although the adopted rules were only temporary, Caucus Chairman Robert Henry, D-Shawnee, ruled the two-term limit would be binding on Barker.
Barker praised Riggs and Monks, noting he had twice lost elections for the House. “I know what it’s like to lose,” he said.
Barker told the Democrats that “I’m going to make mistakes and I’m going to do things you won’t like but it will always be for what I....
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