NTKNetwork: Former Dem. Oil Exec. Compares Pro-Oil-and-Gas OK Lawmakers to Judas
Former Democrat Compares Pro-Oil-and-Gas Lawmakers to Judas
Need to Know (NTK) Network
May 19, 2017
As Oklahoma’s legislative session comes to a close, activists calling for an increase in the state’s gross production tax on oil and gas are engaging in some extreme hyperbole as the debate to close an estimated $800 million budget gap continues.
Longtime capital insider Mike Cantrell, who leads a group of older, vertical drillers, recently compared state Republican lawmakers to Judas for opposing the tax hike his organization is backing.
Talking to NewsOK last week, Cantrell blasted potential compromise legislation being considered at the state capital in Biblical terms:
“[I]f you sell us out, at least get the full 30 pieces of silver.” He went on to say, “Don’t sell us out cheap. These big companies are offering revenue. I call it political blackmail, but some say that’s just making a deal.”