Former US Sen. Jim Inhofe, defense hawk who called human-caused climate
change a 'hoax,' dies at 89

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) � Former Sen. Jim Inhofe, a conservative known for his
strong support of defense spending and his denial that human activity is
responsible for the bulk of climate change, has died. He was 89.

Inhofe, a powerful fixture in Oklahoma politics for over six decades, died
Tuesday morning after suffering a stroke during the July Fourth holiday,
his family said in a statement.

Inhofe, a Republican who underwent quadruple bypass heart surgery in 2013
before being elected to a fourth term, was elected to a fifth Senate term
in 2020, before stepping down in early 2023.

Inhofe frequently criticized the mainstream science that human activity
contributed to changes in the Earth�s climate, once calling it �the
greatest hoax ever perpetrated on the American people.�

In February 2015, with temperatures in the nation�s capital below freezing,
Inhofe brought a snowball on to the Senate floor. He tossed it before
claiming that environmentalists focus attention on global warming as it
kept getting cold.

As Oklahoma�s senior U.S. senator, Inhofe was a staunch supporter of the
state�s five military installations and a vocal fan of congressional
earmarks. The Army veteran and licensed pilot, who would fly himself to and
from Washington, secured federal money to fund local road and bridge
projects, and criticized House Republicans who wanted a one-year moratorium
on such pet projects in 2010.

�Defeating an earmark doesn�t save a nickel,� Inhofe told the Oklahoma City
Chamber of Commerce that August. �It merely means that within the budget
process, it goes right back to the bureaucracy.�

He was a strong backer of President Donald Trump, who praised him for his
�incredible support of our #MAGA agenda� while endorsing the senator�s 2020
reelection bid. During the Trump administration, Inhofe served as chair of
the Senate Armed Services Committee following the death of Republican Sen.
John McCain of Arizona.

U.S. Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell called Inhofe a good friend
whose work benefited all the nation.

�Jim�s diligent stewardship of massive infrastructure projects transformed
life across the Heartland,� McConnell said in a statement. �His relentless
advocacy for American energy dominance unlocked new prosperity across the
country and his laser focus on growing and modernizing the U.S. military
strengthened the security of the entire free world.�

Republican Oklahoma Sen. James Lankford called Inhofe a �true patriot� and
an �institution.

�His passion for our military, aviation, energy, infrastructure, Africa,
and our personal freedom was vital for our state and our nation,� Lankford
said in a statement.