Pat Ownbey | |
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Member of the Oklahoma House of Representatives from the 48th district | |
In office November 18, 2008 – November 15, 2018 | |
Preceded by | Greg Piatt |
Personal details | |
Born | Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, US | August 4, 1953
Political party | Republican |
Pat Ownbey (born August 4, 1953) is an American politician who served in the Oklahoma House of Representatives from the 48th district from 2008 to 2018.[1][2] Ownbey is currently[when?] employed by GAP Consulting, LLC, a lobbying firm established by Ownbey's predecessor, Greg Piatt.[3][4]
Pat Ownbey obtained a Bachelor of Science degree in Communications from the University of Oklahoma in 1975. Ownbey married his wife, Kathy on June 12, 1976. Together, they have two children.[5] Ownbey's hometown is Ardmore, Oklahoma, where he owned and managed radio stations in the area. Ownbey attends First Baptist Church of Ardmore.[6]
In a June 2016 interview with Non Doc discussing Ownbey's controversial Facebook post stating "Islam is not a religion, subject to First Amendment protections,"[7] Ownbey expressed he was "unsure"[8] if the First Amendment should cover Islam. Ownbey’s post continued: "The first step in coming to grips with the Islamic threat is to officially declassify Islam as a protected religion in the hearts and minds of western populations.”[7] During the interview, Ownbey stated he received no negative criticism towards his Facebook post, adding, "I do believe there's a lot of issues with the Muslim religion that are concerning to Americans and certainly are concerning to Oklahomans."[8] Adam Soltani, the executive director of the Oklahoma Council on American Islamic Relations, criticized Ownbey's Facebook post, calling it an example of Islamophobia.[7]
Ownbey, among a group of Oklahoma Representatives to quickly become a lobbyist after their term, concerned reporter Trevor Brown of Oklahoma Watch. Brown stated the practice could cause "conflicts of interest to emerge" and lawmakers-turned-lobbyists would have "undue influence over their former colleagues."[3]