Black lawmakers rip Keating appointment

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) -- Members of the Legislative Black Caucus are planning a march on the Governor's Mansion to express dissatisfaction with Gov. Frank Keating's record on minority appointments

Thursday, February 3rd 2000, 12:00 am

By: News On 6

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) -- Members of the Legislative Black Caucus are planning a march on the Governor's Mansion to express dissatisfaction with Gov. Frank Keating's record on minority appointments to state boards and commissions, a black state lawmaker says.

"For whatever reason, the governor has failed to see the need for diversity," Rep. Opio Toure, D-Oklahoma City, said Wednesday in criticizing Keating for not appointing a minority to the state Regents for Higher Education. "We're going to turn the heat up," Toure said. He said the march, tentatively planned for this spring, will demonstrate that there are "thousands of people who are fed up" with Keating's policies on appointments to state boards and commissions. "Why do we have to draw a line in the sand?" said Rep. Kevin Cox, D-Oklahoma City. "If they promise a Joseph's cloak, then provide it."

Keating's communications director, Dan Mahoney, characterized the comments as a political attack on the Republican governor by members of the Legislative Black Caucus, which Mahoney said is an arm of the Democratic Party. "Representative Toure doesn't care about higher education. He doesn't care about diversity. He only cares about attacking Governor Keating," Mahoney said.

He accused Toure of distorting Keating's record on minority appointments, including the appointment of blacks to judicial seats and the Board of Education. "There has not been a Democratic governor appoint a black judge in Oklahoma," Mahoney said. "The governor doesn't need to be lectured by Representative Toure on this issue. The governor is proud of his appointments."

Toure, Cox and other members of the black caucus have criticized Keating for overlooking blacks, American Indians and Hispanics for positions on state boards and commissions as well as judicial posts. They renewed their criticism one day after Keating named Joseph E. Cappy of Tulsa, chairman, chief executive officer and president of Dollar Thrifty Automotive Group, Inc., to the regents board to replace the late Stephen Jatras of Tulsa.

"There ought to be diversity on our courts, diversity on our regents," Toure said. He said there are no blacks serving on the regents board and that Keating has consistently overlooked minority applicants for state boards and commissions. Toure said Keating's chief criteria for appointments to state boards and agencies appears to be rich white businessmen who are major contributors to political campaigns. "There are plenty of minority business people," he said. "He's not hesitant to appoint Democrats. He's just hesitant to appoint African-Americans. "The message is that you need not apply," Toure said. "It's pitiful. You ought to have a fair representation."