Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt (R) has defended his recent decision to veto funding for the state’s PBS station, calling the station’s LGBTQ programing directed at kids a form of “indoctrination.”
Among the station’s shows was an educational segment featuring a drag queen named “Lil Miss Hot Mess” reading a book titled The Hips on the Drag Queen Go Swish, Swish, Swish.
In April, Gov. Kevin Stitt vetoed a bill that would have continued taxpayer funding for the state’s Oklahoma Educational Television Authority (OETA), through 2026. In a recent interview with Fox News, he cited the station’s “indoctrination and over-sexualization” of children.
“OETA, to us, is an outdated system. You know, the big, big question is why are we spending taxpayer dollars to prop up or compete with the private sector and run television stations?” he told the cable news channel.
“And then when you go through all of the programming that’s happening and the indoctrination and over-sexualization of our children, it’s just really problematic, and it doesn’t line up with Oklahoma values.”
He said the station has ceased being an educational outlet and that taxpayer dollars would be better off spent elsewhere.
“Oklahoma taxpayers are going, ‘Hey, hang on, time out for just a second. That’s not my values’,” he said. “I’m just tired of using taxpayer dollars for some person’s agenda. I represent the taxpayers.”
A third of OETA’s funding for taxpayers and the state holds the station’s license, Bob Spinks, who is on Friends of OETA board, told local station KOCO. Without the bill’s approval, he said the station would shut down.
As Breitbart News reported, Gov. Stitt recently signed a bill into law outlawing transgender surgery on children, as well as the prescribing of puberty blockers to a child.
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