Former Oklahoma Senator Jim Inhofe dies at age 89

Miranda Nazzaro and The Hill

16 mins ago

(The Hill) — Former Sen. Jim Inhofe (R-Okla.) has died at the age of 89, his family announced Tuesday.

Inhofe died shortly before 5 a.m. on Tuesday surrounded by his wife Kay and his three surviving children Molly, Jimmy and Katy, the family said.

Inhofe’s family said he suddenly became ill over the holidays, but did not provide details.

His death comes nearly two years after the former senator retires from the upper house in 2023 after serving in Congress for more than 20 years. He was Oklahoma’s longest-serving U.S. senator.

Before his time in the Senate, Inhofe served for seven years as a member of the House of Representatives. Before his time on Capitol Hill, Inhofe served for six years as mayor of Tulsa, Oklahoma, and served multiple terms in the state legislature.

Inhofe was born in Des Moines, Iowa, in 1934, grew up in Tulsa and received his bachelor’s degree from the University of Tulsa. He later served in the U.S. Army in 1955 and worked in aviation, real estate and insurance before entering politics, according to the Oklahoma Historical Society.

During his time in the Senate, Inhofe chaired the Armed Services Committee and the Environment and Public Works Committee. In 2015, he made headlines when he threw a snowball on the floor of the Senate to refute claims that the earth’s temperature was rising due to greenhouse gas emissions.

Republican Rep. Kevin Hern of Oklahoma paid tribute to Inhofe in a statement on Tuesday, calling the late senator a “dear friend and mentor, a titan in Oklahoma and a more influential leader in Washington DC.”

“He will always be remembered as a fighter, especially for our military members,” Hern wrote in a statement. “Jim’s legacy of service, leadership and faith reflects the Oklahoma standard and the pride he took in his work.”

“Along with my family, friends and many Oklahomans who knew and loved him, I mourn the loss of a great man,” he added.

Republican Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell said he was saddened by Inhofe’s death.

“For nearly three decades, the Senator from Oklahoma lived up to his unique and distinguished middle name: Jim was a mountain of a man,” McConnell wrote in a statement. “The people he served, a much larger group than the proud residents of the Sooner State, were better for it.”

“Jim’s diligent leadership of massive infrastructure projects has transformed lives across the Heartland. His tireless advocacy for American energy dominance has brought new prosperity to the entire country,” he added. “And his uncompromising focus on expanding and modernizing the U.S. military has strengthened the security of the entire free world.”

Republican Rep. Mike Carey of Ohio described Inhofe as a “good man and a champion for working Americans.”

The Oklahoma Republican Party expressed condolences to Inhofe’s family, and Nathan Dahm, chairman of the Oklahoma Republican Party, said the state had “lost a giant.”

“He served the people of this state at the local level and rose to leadership at the national level, where he represented us so well in Washington, D.C. He was a staunch defender of our military even before he became chairman of the Armed Services Committee,” Dahm wrote.

Inhofe leaves behind his wife, three surviving children and more than a dozen grandchildren. His son, Perry Inhofe, died in a plane crash near Tulsa in 2013. Like his father, Perry Inhofe was a licensed pilot and also a flight instructor.

Al Weaver contributed to this report, which was updated at 11:46 a.m. EDT.