I spent the better part of my day today watching seven hours of Senate Confirmation Hearings for Cliff’s former colleague and friend, Oklahoma Attorney General, Scott Pruitt.  He has been tapped to to head the EPA, and in today’s polarized society, has come under some pretty heavy fire from the left.

We first met Scott and his sweet wife Marlyn, back in 2002 when Cliff was elected to the State Senate.  There were only a handful of Republicans in the Oklahoma Legislature at the time and Scott was a friendly face in that lion’s den.

An attorney by trade, Scott specialized in Constitutional Law which made it especially fun to watch him debate on the Senate floor.  He was also a baseball player in college and at some point, instituted a friendly baseball game between the members of the House and Senate.  The game itself was usually held in the spring at the Bricktown Ballpark and very competitive in nature.  It was fun for family and friends too. Below is a photo from one of the games with Trump’s nominee for EPA in the middle.

Looks like my baby was hanging out with her daddy down in the dugout too….sigh.

Baby Girl Branan, Big Boy Branan, Pruitt, Coffee

Having known Scott since 2002, it’s fair to describe him as extremely sharp, capable and very determined. In 1998, he ran a successful race against a sitting State Senator which is no easy feat.  Two years later, he ran for Congress finishing third in a heated Republican primary and then ran unsuccessfully for Lt. Governor six years later. It wasn’t until 2010, when Scott ran for Attorney General that he would pick up a significant statewide win.  Significant, because if he had won that Lieutenant Governor’s race or the Congressional seat before that, he might not have been in a position to challenge the EPA as he did in his role as Oklahoma Attorney General… which is what ultimately landed him in the hot seat today as Trump’s nominee for head of the EPA!  God certainly works in mysterious ways!

My Senator and I knew Scott would hold his own during what would be seven grueling hours of confirmation hearings and we watched almost every minute.  Thank goodness for being able to live stream CSPAN-2!  Best of luck to you Senator!  We’re certainly proud of all you’ve accomplished and are cheering you on from our seat on the sidelines!