After several scandals rocked the Republican-controlled Oklahoma Senate in recent years, including a multi-million-dollar embezzlement conviction and a guilty plea to a child sex trafficking charge, the new President Pro Tempore is calling for senators to conduct themselves in a manner which is beyond reproach.
Senator Greg Treat of Oklahoma City was officially elected President Pro Tempore on Tuesday, in a vote of 47-to-zero.
"There are several black eyes that have hit the Senate in the last two or three years, and I don't care to re-live history. All of you have been through it. But, we must honor the constituents who have put us here," Treat said. "We must restore public trust in this institution."
The 40-year-old Treat also promised to work with minority Democrats in the best interest of all Oklahoma taxpayers, who fund lawmakers' salaries.
(Pictured: Oklahoma Senate President Pro Tempore Greg Treat, (R) - District 47. Photo: Oklahoma State Senate.)