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Oklahoma Third District Congressman Frank Lucas has cruised to an easy victory on Tuesday evening as GOP voters give him over 83% of the votes- propelling him into the November general election where he will be a prohibitive favorite to win reelection.


Congressman Lucas has served this current term as the Chairman of the House Ag Committee, leading the efforts to write what turned out to be the 2014 Farm Law. His opponents used arguments against the Chairman that the Farm Law was too expensive and heavily laden with unnecessary subsidies for American agriculture. In a brief conversation with us last night, Lucas thanked the voters of the Third District for vindicating his bipartisan work on bringing to a successful conclusion the multiple title farm bill. Lucas says "It's nice when your neighbors demonstrate that they understand what you were trying to do for them and with them- I'm very pleased with the vote from the good folks from the third district." 

As we talked with Lucas last night on the long line from Washington (The House was in session- so he was there instead of back in Oklahoma at a watch party)- it was unknown whether Senator Thad Cochran of Mississippi would win his runoff race with Tea Party favorite Chris McDaniel. Lucas told us that the agricultural community- no matter the outcome of Tuesday night- owed Senator Cochran a debt of gratitude for his efforts to make sure the Commodity Title included choices for producers when it came to the farm program safety net.

Later in the evening- it did become apparent that Senator Cochran had won his GOP nomination by about six thousand votes.

Click here to read(and hear) more from our visit with Chairman Lucas- and for a chance to hear his comments about the races of last night- including his thoughts on James Lankford avoiding a runoff in the US Senate race to fill the last two years of the Tom Coburn position.

Lankford and Hofmeister Win Outright Races That Could Have Gone to August Runoff-   

Two statewide races that could have resulted in an August primary  runoff did not- Congressman James Lankford grabbed 57% of the vote and moves on in the US Senate race to replace Tom Coburn.

By capturing more than 50 percent of the vote Tuesday in the seven-man GOP primary field, Lankford avoids a runoff and faces the Democratic nominee and an independent in November.

The seat was open because U.S. Sen. Tom Coburn decided to forego the final two years left on his term amid a recurrence of cancer. The state's other senator, James Inhofe, also was on the ballot and easily won his GOP primary.

While you will see various pundits talk about why Lankford won- I would offer one key that is often overlooked- The Power of Falls Creek.  Lankford was known statewide for his more than a decade management of the largest church youth camp in the world.   

Click here to hear Congressman Lankford's victory speech from the Oklahoma History Center last night.  

Meanwhile, Former state Education Board member Joy Hofmeister has won the Republication nomination for Oklahoma state school superintendent- picking up 57% of the vote and avoiding a runoff.  

For some in rural Oklahoma- this was not so much about Hofmeister winning but Janet Baressi- the incumbent- losing.  

Barresi was first elected to office in 2010 at the height of the tea party movement and vowed to reform the state's public education system.

But her inability to win support from some educators, administrators and parents had left her vulnerable to challengers within her own party.

Wheat Harvest Results Shows Slipping Test Weights Downstate- Excellent Irrigated Wheat in Panhandle 

According to the latest Wheat Harvest report from Mike Schulte at the Oklahoma Wheat Commission- the remaining wheat being harvested in central and north central Oklahoma has taken a hit quality wise from the multiple rounds of rain this month.  

The report says "Producers in North Central Oklahoma around the I-35 corridor and east of I-35 around the Tonkawa, Blackwell and Newkirk areas were just getting started before the rains this past week. Yields in this region are varying depending on planting date and previous crop rotations used. In this region, yields are being reported from 7 to 20 bushels per acre for the most part. Test weights are reported to be lower in this region with ranges of 55 to 58 pounds per bushel with approximately 20 percent of the crop harvested."

OKC West Livestock One Year After Tornado Destruction- Better Than Ever!  

The first tour stop for the 2014 Oklahoma Cattlemen's Association Summer Ranch Tour was in Canadian County at the OKC West Livestock Market. Tour participants were greeted by General Manager Bill Barnhart, who described the operations of the weekly market, which has been averaging close to 6,000 head weekly here in 2014.


After he greeted the OCA group, we talked with Bill and you can hear that conversation by clicking here- where you can listen to the audio visit and read more about the OKC West Market.


We talked about the recovery and rebuilding of the Market after a F5 tornado tore through the facility, leaving little left. Some cows that were in the yards when the twister hit were found a few days later on the opposite side of Interstate 40- the power of the storm was enormous.


It took only seven weeks for the market to start weekly auctions again- but the office and welcome area of the facility has literally just been finished for about a month, and landscaping is still underway in the front of the building.


We also talked about the status of the southern great plains cattle market and Barnhart says the cattle they are seeing regularly today are a better quality animal than seen when they first started OKC West almost 20 years ago.


The genetics are better and the stockers have been bred to better perform on the hoof and then on the rail when they reach slaughter weight. 

Click here for the rest of our story with Bill Barnhart- plus we have a link back to the story we did a year ago with Bill right after the destruction of that F5 Tornado.

New York Lawmakers Say No to HSUS on Gestation Crate Ban- National Pork Producers Pleased

The New York Pork Producers, the National Pork Producers Council and America's hog farmers today hailed the New York Legislature for not taking up ill-advised legislation banning the use of individual maternity pens for pregnant sows. The pens are approved by the American Veterinary Medical Association and the American Association of Swine Veterinarians.

If passed, the legislation would have had a devastating effect on local sustainable farming in New York by forcing farmers to abandon the humane animal housing practice. New York family farmers use individual maternity pens because they allow for personalized animal care and eliminate pregnancy aggression from other sows. Banning the practice could have resulted in financial damage and, potentially, destroyed a sustainable and affordable food source for New Yorkers.

"New York hog farmers are pleased the legislature realized there are far more critical issues to consider than attacking small family farms in rural New York," said Ed Keller, president of the New York Pork Producers.

Click here to read more.

Recent Propane Crisis Sparks Interim Study Request

An eastern Oklahoma legislator wants the state to be prepared if propane prices spike again this winter.
            
Rep. James Lockhart, D-Heavener, has requested an interim legislative study of propane infrastructure and supply in Oklahoma. House Speaker Jeff Hickman said he will announce the studies he has approved, and the committees to which they have been assigned, by July 11.
            
Hodgen propane/butane dealer Curtis Kelly said his domestic customers usually pay $1.85 per gallon for propane, and poultry farmers pay $1.50 per gallon.
            
Five months ago, though, prices tripled; Kelly said he had to charge in excess of $5 per gallon when propane and butane prices skyrocketed. The three Oklahoma refineries where Kelly procures propane were charging him $4.95 a gallon, he said. Consequently, filling up his 10,000-gallon transport truck cost him $50,000, and he was going through a load "about every day" at that time.

Click here to learn more about the request by Lockhart to have the State Legislature conduct an interim study on this issue.

This N That- Big Iron With Regular Closing of Weekly Auction Items, Analysis of Last Week's Boxed Beef Move Higher and No Till Bus Tour Reminder

 The regular weekly Wednesday auction closes conducted by Big Iron begin at 10:00 AM this morning.  A total of 304 loads will be sold this week in this no reserve online auction.  Click here to take a look at the categories of equipment to be sold this week.

If you'd like more information on buying and selling with Big Iron, call District Manager Mike Wolfe at 580-320-2718 and he can give you the full scoop.  You can also reach Mike via email by clicking here.

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The  Boxed Beef Cutoff last week went nine dollars higher per hundredweight for the full week- we have an analysis of what was going on with the wholesale trade with Ed Czerwein of the USDA Market News office in Amarillo- click here to jump to our story and a chance to hear from Ed what was going on to cause this market advance.

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Planning is complete for the 2014 No-till on Plains bus tour. This year's tour is August 5-8 and heads south through Kansas and Oklahoma. Nine stops are planned over four days at producer farms using continuous no-till, cover crops and livestock integration. Registration is open and 54 spots are available. Ryan Speer, the President of No Till on the Plains says "We are excited about heading south this year into Oklahoma."  Speers' operation, Jacobs Farms, near Halstead, Kansas will be the first farm stop.


The tour will originate in Salina, KS and travel to Jacobs Farms, then head south into Oklahoma. Farm stops in Oklahoma include Randy Lanie farms near Manchester, Marty Williams farms near Red Rock, Matt Alig's farms near Kingfisher, Jimmy Kinder's farm near Walters, and Alan Mindemann's farm near Apache. Stops are also planned at Oklahoma State University's cover crop plots near Stillwater and the Samuel Roberts Noble Foundation in Ardmore. 

Click here for more details- the time is now to reserve your seat on the bus for this great No Till tour.