Sen. Tom Woods (R-Stilwell) opened his mouth and stuck his big foot in it recently opining that Oklahomans are conservative Christians who don’t want LGBTQ “filth” in their communities.
Appearing alongside three other Republican lawmakers at a forum in Tahlequah, Woods made his remarks in response to a woman asking why the Legislature “has such an obsession with the LGBTQ citizens of Oklahoma and what people do in their personal lives and how they raise their children?”
As reported by Lee Guthrie of the Tahlequah Daily Press, Woods responded with an explanation that shocked some and drew applause from others.
“We are a Republican state — supermajority in the House and Senate. I represent a constituency that doesn’t want that filth in Oklahoma,” Woods said. “We are a religious state, and we are going to fight it to keep that filth out of the state of Oklahoma, because we are a Christian state — we are a moral state. We want to lower taxes and let people be able to live and work and go to the faith they choose. We are a Republican state, and I’m going to vote my district, and I’m going to vote my values, and we don’t want that in the state of Oklahoma.”
Woods’ Friday comments — which he said he stood behind after the forum — drew rebuke from House and Senate Democratic leaders. Sen. Kay Floyd (DOKC) said “words have consequences” and that Woods’ remarks were “unbecoming” of a state senator.
It is unclear whether Woods will face reprimand or censure this week in the Senate. In recent years, former Sen. Kim David (RPorter) and Sen. Nathan Dahm (R-Broken Arrow) both faced internal consequences for controversial remarks, and Treat will surely be asked about the issue today.
Of course, Friday was not the first time Woods has made headlines. While running for office, he somehow received mental health records for one of his opponents and made a tacky statement about the man at a public forum.
Then, shortly after his 2022 election in a Republican runoff, Woods got into a fight with a truck mechanic, Dustin Stanley, who said Woods had welched on paying a bill. An argument ensued following the Westville Melon and Barbecue Festival, Stanley punched Woods in the face, and both men were written municipal tickets. Eventually, a court dismissed the ticket written to Woods because the officer had not seen the fight personally.
At the time, Woods expressed concern that stories about his beef with Stanley would be the top result on Google when people searched his name. Stanley, meanwhile, insisted that Woods is disliked by many for how he treats people and, in particular, business owners.
“He’s not good for business around here,” Stanley said in 2022. “If anybody actually knows Tom, they did not vote for him in this election.”
Some responses this weekend on Woods’ Facebook page, however, indicated strong support for his latest statement.
Nonetheless, Woods has his own behavior to mind in the State Capitol. Since taking office, he has earned a reputation for thinking highly of himself and being eager to date women, some of whom have found his pursuits unsettling.
As we wait to learn whether Woods faces repercussions or offers apology this week, it will be interesting to see if other stories of “filth” resurface.
