Oklahoma coverage

Most of the contenders were in Stillwater yesterday for a forum hosted by the Oklahoma Democratic Party. Like Texas, Oklahoma D's are sometimes ignored since they are a red state. But with the front-loaded primary schedule, Oklahomans are enjoying newfound attention:

This year, Oklahoma is one of seven states planning primaries or caucuses Feb. 3. The others are Arizona, Delaware, Missouri, South Carolina, New Mexico and North Dakota. "This is exactly what we had in mind," said Jay Parmley, state Democratic Party chairman standing in the middle of a crowd that waved signs and sported T-shirts for various candidates before the event. "In fact, this has exceeded expectations."

The O-blog has already posted a nifty gallery of images. All the candidates took shots at Bush, but some of the contenders were more well received than others:

Evan Noble came to the forum saying he had an open mind, although he wore a T-shirt backing Connecticut Sen. Joe Lieberman. By the end of the evening, he found he aligned with some of the other candidates more. "He's extremely conservative, and I'm more of a moderate liberal," said the 21-year-old University of Oklahoma student from Tulsa...Janice Mathews-Gordon liked the way the candidates took on Bush's handling of the economy and the war in Iraq. She, too, said she came away unresolved on her pick for the nomination. "I was able to narrow it down," the 44-year-old said. "Lieberman, Gephardt and Dean." ... Retiree Bettye Williams came in supporting Edwards but left saying, "he's young and I don't know."

More local coverage can be found here, including this gem:

Howard Dean, former governor of Vermont, was asked about the stark differences between himself and Bush. "I'm a fiscal conservative," Dean said. "I balance budgets. Everyone in my state has health care. So, there are a lot of differences between me and the president."

Dean also sounded a recurring campaign theme, according to WRAL in North Carolina:

Former Vermont Gov. Howard Dean described Bush's tax cuts as perks for his wealthy corporate friends. "I wouldn't have cut taxes, period," Dean said. "Most people would gladly pay the same taxes they paid when Bill Clinton was president if only they could have the same economy (they had) when Bill Clinton was president." He also said corporations can no longer be trusted to run their own pensions and that an independent pension could travel with a worker who changes jobs.

From what I've read, the Democrats in Oklahoma are fired up and ready to take on George W Bush:

"For them to stop in Oklahoma, that really means a lot to me," said Leslie Warrior, a 19-year-old Oklahoma State University student. She enjoyed the chance to hear the candidates take on Bush. "I don't know if he forgot how to relate to the people or what," Warrior said. "You've got to get back to the people."

If I find any more articles about the forum, I'll append this post. Do we have any Oklahoma readers who'd like to share their stories from yesterday?