The 2028 Summer Olympic Games in Oklahoma City? Meet OKC Mayor David Holt

David Martin: This is the good government show.

David Holt: We’ve moved in my lifetime from being the 37th largest city in the United States to the 20th largest city. Mayors are generally not people who say, well, I am X, I’m a Republican, so don’t even bother talking to me. If you got some sort of Democratic idea, you know, like that’s just not the way mayors operate. We just want the best ideas.

I always like helping people. I always like being a part of the group of people who are trying to make the world a better place.

I think they need to remember that government is us. And that was obviously what the perpetrators of the bombing fundamentally misunderstood. You know, the government is not there. The government is us in America. This form of government we enjoy in America, and the rule of law and freedom and all of these things. And government by the people like this is an outlier in the history of human civilization.

So it needs to be like protected and cultivated.

David Martin: An American tragedy took place in Oklahoma City back in 1995, but since then, the city has bounced back, and they’re set to be an Olympic city, hosting two events for the 2028 Olympics. Welcome to the Good Government show. I’m your host, Dave Martin. On this episode, I talk with Oklahoma City Mayor David Holt. He’s also the 2025 incoming president of the U.S. Conference of Mayors.

We talk about sports, housing, Washington and being Oklahoma. We talk steak first. Help us and share the message of good government by liking us and sharing us where we are on Facebook, Instagram and Blue Sky. Please share our show with your friends and don’t forget to review us! Let’s get everyone excited about good government. Mayor David Hold must be doing a very good job in Oklahoma City because he’s gotten voters to support new taxes.

And he’ll explain in part, it’s because the taxes raised had a little something for everyone. He talks about his approach to governing. He says you govern for the 70%. And he said, as long as you come in with a good idea that works for most people, then you too could help improve his city. So coming up, Mayor David Holt of Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, and a lot of good government.

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Welcome to the Good Government show. I’m happy to have with me Mayor David Holt of Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. Welcome to the Good Government Show. Nice to have you.

David Holt: Well, thank you. It’s my honor to be here. I like the name of your show. You’ve already got me as a fan.

David Martin: Good good good good good. And, we met, last year at the Conference of Mayors. And you’re about to be the president of the Conference of Mayors. And actually, by the time this comes out, you’ll be the president of the Conference of Mayors. What’s your agenda? What do you what do we what we look forward to in your term?

David Holt: So, yeah, we we rotate this, once a year. And, it’s my honor to get this opportunity from June of 25 to June of 26. And in that year, I think I’m going to be honest, I’m probably going to be a little inward looking. And by that, I mean we’re we’re emerging from a period where the federal government was very supportive of cities.

I mean, we had some of our biggest wins in American history. We, you know, had direct funding through the CARES act and through Arpa. And then obviously, we had the bipartisan infrastructure bill, and mayors were literally on the front row of the South Lawn at the bill signing, because we were such contributors to the passage of that piece of legislation.

And there were a few other things in that time period. But, you know, obviously now it’s a little different climate in Washington. And so the one of the, one of the legs of the stool of the U.S. Conference of Mayors is to advocate together for our interests in Washington. There are other legs to that stool, sharing best practices, supporting each other.

And I think that’s to some extent what I’ll probably be thinking a lot more about in my year. Nothing will completely ignore DC. But, but we may be playing more defense than offense.

David Martin: One of the things I’ve noticed is that the Conference of Mayors has put out a sort of a steady stream of, press releases, sort of, supporting mayors and cities around the nation, you know, taking a look at sort of the, somewhat adversarial, approach, as you mentioned, coming out of, Washington. Do you feel like the mayors are really holding the line on good government in America right now?

David Holt: Oh, absolutely. I mean, I think in general and I think this has been true for a long time. I mean, we are the last bastion of of effective unifying, you know, forward thinking government in this country for a lot of different reasons. I mean, we we sort of have to be because, like, as executives, we have to get things done.

It’s not considered an accomplishment to send a clever tweet or officially like, we have to like, produce like, we have like hundreds of thousands of people who literally depend on us every day, for their core services that that literally make life, possible. And also, though, most of us, for whatever historical reasons, are elected in a different system than most everybody else.

So I run in a system where all the voters get to see all the candidates for mayor, all the mayor, all the candidates for mayor have to face all the voters. And it it really creates a totally different incentive structure than the one that has sort of destroyed Washington, which is this close Partizan primary process where really it’s true of the far left and the far right.

You know, people are having to cater and pander to the extremes. That’s not really where Americans are. But if the process is set up to elevate those extremes, that it’s going to produce that effect. So in cities, though, like we’re still the last kind of political leaders who are doing it the way it was done for, I would argue, 200 years or sort of trying to find a political center of gravity somewhere in the middle.

We’re building a coalition of kind of 50 to 70% of, normal Republicans, Democrats and independents. So, yeah, I think that, that we’re the best class of political leaders left in the United States. And I hope we can hold that line. And I think what you referenced, when you talk about how we sort of hold the line against Washington sometimes, that’s definitely one thing that certainly unifies us as mayors because we are bipartisan.

I’m a registered Republican. We obviously have, more than more than our fair share of Democrats among our ranks. But we all sort of stand shoulder to shoulder for the idea that local governments ought to make these most important decisions. And so anytime DC is sort of interfering with us, it’s easy and bipartisan for us to stand against that.

David Martin: The last two presidents, the conference, one sort of advocated for mental health. The one just before you, focused on affordable housing. Anything, that you’re going to be focused on in particular, I know you talked about government unity. Anything else?

David Holt: Yeah, I think yeah. I mean, that’s a great question. As you and I talk, I still have a couple of months. And so I.

David Martin: Yes, we are recording this at the, the end of April. You’ve got, you’ve got about another month in June. You take over.

David Holt: Right. I’m not ready today to debut it yet, but okay, we your point. And following on my earlier comment, I don’t necessarily think that it’s a Washington policy issue, as maybe it has been in the last few years. I just don’t think that’s, I think we’re going to be spinning our wheels. I’m not to say that we’re not going to advocate anytime we can for mental health and housing.

Those things, those priorities don’t go away. Obviously, there’s more consistency across Conference of Mayors presidencies than that. But as far as my own personal interest, I mean, as president, I think it’s going to be about, more of the larger themes, the role we play in American lives probably, I suspect, than, than any like, Bill we’re hoping to pass in DC because I just think that that’s there’s just the environment is not a place for that.

David Martin: All right. Well, let’s talk about your hometown. You are the you’re in your second term as mayor. You’ve been serving for seven years. How are things in Oklahoma City? And, I, I was just chastised before we started for not knowing that the Thunder are having a great season. How’s the team doing due to a.

David Holt: Ten year run? In a couple months after this conversation, we don’t know. It’s all around us. Perhaps by now. But as we sit here, the thunder are, the number one seed in the NBA playoffs. At least in the Western Conference. Actually, they had they did have the best record in the whole league this year. All right.

So we have high hopes. But that actually does get to the what happens on the court is just the cherry on top. The existence of the team is emblematic of sort of the golden age that we’re enjoying here in Oklahoma City. And you would expect maybe mayors to say things like that, but honestly, it would be certainly validated by our voters.

And, and, if I could get them all on the zoom here, I would mostly agree with me. And they show that in the in the way they have continued to support our initiatives and continue to support my elections. I mean, we we have not just been passing tax initiatives for the last ten years. We’ve been passing them with over 70% time and time again.

I mean, we got 71% a year ago for $1 billion arena that keeps the thunder here. We got 72% for a $1.1 billion investment. And our quality of life, which is a continuation of, an initiative we call Mapps here, which is kind of our local brand for investing in our quality of life. Whatever the we seem to put forward, our voters believe in it because they have seen, a true renaissance in our city over the last 30 years.

It started with the passage of the original maps back in the early 90s, which came in the wake of, economic depression, a destruction of our downtown through urban renewal, a banking crisis. I mean, we were just, at our lowest ebb in every way. And then the bombing happened in 1995. Maps actually passed in 1993, but the projects from it began to, unfold in, late 90s.

And really from there, you know, we’ve moved in my lifetime from being the 37th largest city in the United States to the 20th largest city. We’re currently in a record streak of unemployment below 4%. We have the thunder, which I often argue in American life, like it or not. Like having a major league professional sports team is sort of the, quickest way to symbolize that you are in the upper tier of American cities, and we attained that 17 years ago.

And so, yeah, now we’re going to have seven events for the Summer Olympics in 2028. Just seems like here in Oklahoma City, there’s just so much, exciting development happening every month and with much more to come and a lot to look forward to, we’re going to open up $1 billion arena. We’re going to host those Olympic events.

We’re going to continue to roll out a $1.1 billion of maps for projects. And a little later this year, we’re going to vote on a multi-billion dollar investment in kind of just core infrastructure like streets and bridges and drainage. And, and I have every reason to believe that will pass as well, because we just, residents really see the benefits in investing in ourselves.

So I get to cut a lot of ribbons and break a lot of ground, and, and, and I’m very grateful for that opportunity. I recognize not every mayor finds himself in that position, but this city is very dynamic right now. And, entered the top 20 during my tenure here as mayor and doesn’t look like we’re going to look back.

I think we’re going to stay as a top 20 city for for many years to come. And, it’s a fun place that we’re in, a fun time in the life of our city, for sure.

David Martin: Yeah. Jumped ahead to a whole bunch of things I wanted to talk about. So let me go back a little bit. Yeah. The Olympics. How did this come about? How does Oklahoma City, host events for the LA Olympics in 2028? You’ve got, canoeing, and I think there are to it. There are two sports. Yeah.

David Martin: You know, stuff.

David Holt: Yeah. So so it’s a reasonable question. Olympics are generally hosted by cities, not nations, you know, and there is certainly, a lot of precedent for events being in the suburbs of those of those host cities. But for them to be a thousand miles away, is very unlikely and rare. But I do.

David Martin: The lobbying by the mayor.

David Holt: Now. Well, sure thing. But I do think that what is happening here could be, could emerge more and more as a model because the IOC, the International Olympic Committee really wanted to get away from this history of building venues that end up being covered in weeds or becoming sort of a, an obligation and an albatross around the neck of the host cities as the years go on.

And so, you know, in choosing LA, they chose a place that has most of the venues, but not all. And L.A. really went into this, they got their their designation in 2017. They really went into this enterprise, intending not to build anything. And, and they, they, I think, kept to that, which is.

David Martin: Both good government and good Olympic planning. Right?

David Holt: Yes, yes. So, so we, however, had invested in two things that they needed that would help them achieve that. We have the only whitewater facility west of the Mississippi, and we have the largest softball stadium in the world by two and a half times. And, those are just historical things. The original maps put dams on our rivers, so it had water in it.

A rowing community developed, the philanthropy supported that rowing community, built a bunch of boat houses and then in maps three to kind of build it out and have a comprehensive paddle sport facility. We built this, you know, $50 million whitewater course, and that was ten years ago. I was a guy by $100 million today. And we built this awesome whitewater course.

David Martin: Have you been on it? Have you been on it? Have you done a little whitewater?

David Holt: I have I as a matter of fact, we ran in a raft and, and so that Whitewater course, obviously attracted the attention of LA. We’re the softball capital, the world. We happened to host the Women’s College World Series every year, which is kind of the biggest event in American softball. And, and we, our taxpayers that invested in that stadium to the tune of about $30 million back in 2017.

David Martin: Let me ask you about that. I let me stop. Yeah. A lot of cities have turned their back on sports franchises and investing in stadiums and and the like. Why did you decide it was worth it? Why did you decide it was a good.

David Holt: Use of money? You know, clearly every time we’ve invested. So we invest in a stadium. We got a commitment from the Women’s College World Series through 2035. We invest in whitewater and softball, and we’re getting events for the Summer Olympics, which is kind of like beyond our wildest imagination. We could have something like that in Oklahoma City. We invest in an arena and now another arena, a new modern arena.

And we’re going to have a commitment from the Oklahoma City Thunder in the NBA for 25 more years. I mean, it’s just every single time we’ve done it, invested in sports, we’ve been rewarded. So I think that’s the that’s the feeling our, our residents have is that this has been good for the city. I it’s it is become really a strategy.

I mean, you really could say, hey, you know, this is a community that has clearly and intentionally used sports as leverage to elevate itself, both economically and, and, branding level around the world. But but to finish out that, that those investments ultimately attracted the attention of LA. My good friend, Mayor Garcetti, first approached me a few years ago about it and began a conversation that, and finally culminated just in the last few months in the official approvals and everything is done.

And now our planning is well underway, and we’re very much excited for the summer of 2028 here in Oklahoma City, where we will have sort of a once in a lifetime opportunity for people from this part of the country, to experience the Summer Olympics. We’ll have events every day of the 15 days, that events are held.

David Martin: I want to talk to you about something completely different. We talk about sports all day. You declared April fair housing month. You also have something called Key to Home. It looks like you’re doing a lot of work on, mitigating homeless issues and making sure it has got a place to live. Tell me a little bit about what Key to Home is.

David Martin: And why did you need to declare a fair housing meant you’re.

David Holt: Well, you know, we’ve got a great relationship with our homelessness service provider community. We have a great relationship with our realtors as well. All of us are kind of aligned around these issues. And so Fair Housing Month was, it’s a it’s a reflection of the long held National Fair Housing Month, but certainly, I think, declaring it locally just reflects this has been a high priority for us for a few years.

In 2017, we approved our voters, approved a bond issue that had $10 million of incentives for developers to build affordable housing. And then that was kind of our first sort of foray into the into public funding around affordable housing. And then in 2019, in Max for. So that was the maps we did do in these $0.01 temporary sales taxes for 30 years now dubbed maps, metropolitan area projects and kind of each mayor of Oklahoma City for the last 30 years has had their own version.

And so mine was maps for their like numbered like a movie series. Now. Right. So maps for. Yeah, maps one was $1.1 billion, but 55 million of that was for truly affordable housing. And so that, money is continuing to be deployed today. And it looks like we’ll have, we’ll, we’ll go to the well again with our bond issue later this year, for another probably 50 million plus for housing.

So it’s a it’s a high priority for us. You know, we’re we’re probably historically known as a place where the cost of living and the cost of housing is low. But as I often say, both things can be true. You know, you can have a lower cost of housing than other places, but still not be low enough for everybody in your city.

And certainly, certainly it drives it’s a, it’s, you know, a primary driver behind homelessness. We are a as far as homelessness goes. I mean, we’re we’re middle of the pack. We’re not exceptionally high or exceptionally low, but, but we certainly recognize it is still an important challenge. And we also recognize that with our growth just as a city, I talked about how much we’ve moved up to population rankings like that’s going to continue to put pressure on the situation.

So if we want to stay middle of the pack and best, we need to, you know, we need to really double down on our efforts regarding homelessness. So that’s what Key to Home is. So Keenan’s kind of our umbrella for our, our current efforts around homelessness, which I should say are really modeled after Houston, which is kind of the the national best practice right now.

Houston has a very I mean, Houston’s a top five city, but they had a very low per capita rate of homelessness because what they’ve done is the only thing that’s been proven to work. You know, I you can’t you can’t give people bus tickets and you can’t give people littering tickets either. I mean, none of that is going to elevate them out of homelessness.

What you got to do is you have to go into those encampments with wraparound services, housing and job training and mental health and substance abuse services. And when you do that, and that is expensive, but when you do that, you will have results you will have, it will stick and you will elevate people out of homelessness permanently. And so that’s what Houston did.

And it is work. And again it’s expensive. So you need like communities support around it. But it’s the only thing that works. Everybody wants some sort of quick and easy solution that’s cheap and maybe just involves a police officer. But none of that actually works. This is what works. And that’s what we’re doing here in Oklahoma City. And we just released our numbers yesterday for this year, and we only grown 2.8%, which that’s, that’s basically flat.

And that is and that is a good, I would say a good sign for us because we had had some growth over the last few years that certainly exceeded that. So I think Key to Home, which we’ve really, instituted in the last year or two, is doing some good work.

David Martin: You seem to have people in Oklahoma City not unhappy with paying taxes. I read something that you you, from an initiative, back in 2018 and 2019, you had and sales tax, which it says provided over 1.1 billion, parks, senior citizen centers, more transit, bike lanes, 100 miles of trail systems, more bike lanes, more bike lanes than ever.

How were you able to pull off, tell all the other mayors who are listening and how you got people, to pay taxes to support some of these really great projects?

David Holt: Yeah. So in Oklahoma, like a lot of places, if you want to have these nice things, you got to have taxes and if you’re going to have taxes, you have to take it to a vote of the people you know, we can’t do anything, just like with a council vote or a mayoral edict, like we got to go to these big elections that get a lot of attention and get a lot of discourse in the community.

But we haven’t failed one since the 80s. And really, it all traces back to the to the, success, successful passage of maps in 1993. But maps passed in that year with 53%. You know, we were that close to not realizing this renaissance. But today, that initiative you just were describing, that’s maps for. So that is all of the 16 quality of life projects, $1.1 billion.

And when I say quality of life, I guess what I mean by that is what you just described. None of those things are like necessary for human survival. You know, they’re not, streets. They’re not water pipes, they’re not police stations. They are kind of the the extras that make life in a community, better and more desirable.

And, but we have been making those investments consistently since 1993, and maps four was the latest iteration. And I think, people now supported at such high levels that got 72% because they, they’ve seen the results. We kept our promises. We passed these things. We build them as we said we did. And then we go back with another list.

And I would also say maps were got the highest percentage. Yeah. Partly because I also am very conscientious about including the kind of everybody in the outcome. And, if you were to look at the list, you would say and you kind of like lined it up against the modern American political spectrum, you would say, you know, there’s some things on this list that probably, would be more pleasing to a stereotypical Democrat.

So some things on this list that might be more pleasing to a stereotypical Republican. And I think that’s how policy initiatives used to work in this country. I see that it is. I’m aware that that feels exceedingly rare now, that now it tends to be like, let’s create the initiative that is absolutely perfect for one side or the other.

And in fact, if the other side says they want something that we’re going to make sure that’s not in there, you know, it’s all about, you know, winning and getting exactly what you want and not compromising. But maps for was very much a distillation of what I think is our political culture, which is to be compromising, to find something that pleases everybody because we’re a very purple city.

There’s not enough of either side. Okay, to dominate the other. And so that’s also why we succeed in passing these tax initiatives is there’s something there for everybody. And there’s nothing wrong with that. Like, know somebody, you know, might say to me occasionally like, but.

David Martin: There is a crowd of people that just go, oh, taxes, I don’t care. I’m not paying it. No, no, no, I don’t want to go into this no increase.

David Holt: Sure, sure. Well, that’s the 30% that voted no, right. Like that.

David Martin: Okay. Yeah. Yeah I did that. Six. Perfect. I want to ask you about something else. April 19th, 1995, the Oklahoma City bombing. You’re mayor of the city. You know, you you addressed this, again recently on the anniversary. How does how does a mayor manage something like this? And how does this sort of, you know, cast a shadow over the entire city?

David Holt: Yeah. I mean, obviously it was one of the it was the worst day in our city’s history. It is, you know.

David Martin: And one of the worst days in the nation’s history.

David Holt: Right? Yeah. It will always be a part of our story and a part of our, you know, our experience here in Oklahoma City. Of course, as the years go on, it becomes more historical and less of a direct event that people experienced. I mean, you could obviously, if you’re, you know, younger than, 40, you have almost no memory of it.

Right? So, you know, this 30th anniversary, though, is certainly another moment to both respect and pay honor to those who were died, those who, you know, those who were killed, those who survived and those who were changed forever. But it was also another moment to to use as a lesson for the future as well, you know, and I see it here in Oklahoma City.

That’s one thing we’ve tried to hold off. We had a great memorial and museum that I think isn’t just about the history, but it’s also about, hey, what are the lessons from this? You know, about violence, about political extremism, about, you know, the, the, the, the past that creates the ecosystem for things like this is it always just starts with words and ideas, you know, but eventually it becomes dehumanizes that dehumanization.

And then it ultimately ends with, you know, this, this, this insanity that you blow up a building full of, you know, innocent government workers and their children and think that somehow that makes sense. I mean, it all begins with a path of rhetoric that that all too often we see today in American politics. So I think we’ve you ourselves as a reminder.

And we try I certainly as mayor, I try to say, hey, look, look, all of America, all of the world. Look at what harm, look at the scar and our downtown. Please remember that next time you you say that your political opponents are your enemies, you know that you say that the media is the enemy of the people.

Or said when you dehumanize people, this is what happens. And we shouldn’t need more reminders because we have them all over the world. But here’s one more that, should remind us to treat each other better and find ways to use this amazing democratic process we have in America to settle our conflict without violence.

David Martin: Well, I hope everybody heard that message. All right. That was the easy part. We’re going to come back and we’re going to go. It’s the hard part. Are you ready?

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All right. So we have the Good Government Show questionnaire. We’re going to get to the heart of your philosophy and thinking about government. Are you ready. Here we go. Yes. So seven years as mayor define good government.

David Holt: Well, I think it’s it’s, it’s government that is finding outcomes that represent as much of a consensus as you are likely to create in American life, which I think is about 70%, I think is about 70% of people who, who are who are willing to compromise and, and settle. And that’s the right word, settle for an outcome that is good enough.

If you have an outcome that any particular group of people thinks it’s perfect, you probably failed in providing good government for the maximum number of people. So I’m very much a believer that my role is not to be an ideologue. It is to find that, that middle ground, and that’s where a good government lies, is finding that place, that outcome where about 70% of people say, this is this, I can I can live with this.

David Martin: This guy, I can live with this. I like that, when people feel frustrated with government, with your administration, you know, what should they do? And how can they make an impact?

David Holt: Well, I think it’s, you know, I think I’m pretty accessible. I think the government is pretty accessible. Of course, local government, I mean, you can literally show up, it’s true here at some other places. You can come and, you know, Tuesday morning the city council and you can, you know, right in our face, you know, but I would I would suggest yelling is probably not the best way to to get results.

But I think that, our ears are open to thoughtful and persuasive, arguments. And, again, I think, like, in our form of government and in the way that I lead, you know, we are receptive almost from whatever perspective you’re coming from. You know, I’m not, mayors are generally not people who say, well, I am X, I’m a Republican, so don’t even bother talking to me if you got some sort of Democratic idea, you know, like, that’s just not the way mayors operate.

We just want the best ideas. And, you just.

David Martin: Want to get the potholes on the road filled.

David Holt: Yeah. I think if somebody in Oklahoma City doesn’t like our direction, they absolutely can make their case and probably influence the outcome if they’re coming way off to the right or way off to the left. Yeah, they’re probably going to be disappointed because they’re probably not going to go that direction. But if they’re anywhere reasonable in the 70% in the middle there, there’s a place for them here.

And I think they can find an outlet for their for their thoughts and their ideas.

David Martin: What drew you to public service and what inspires you?

David Holt: You know, I’m all you know, I was like class president and student council. I’ve been doing this forever. I, I always like helping people. I always like being a part of the group of people who are trying to make the world a better place. I went to got a political science degree at George Washington in DC. I worked there for President Bush.

I came home, I worked as chief of staff to my predecessor, Mayor, and then I served in the state Senate here in Oklahoma for eight years before becoming mayor. So this is all I’ve ever done, and I love it, you know, and I find it, very, very rewarding. Obviously, you don’t do it. It’s not a financial reward.

But I love money, but it provides the emotional reward that I think everybody is looking for. And, and I just, I just I just love it. And I think here in Oklahoma City, it’s such a fun time. And we’re, we’re like the best of what government can do here is we have we have absolutely. City government here is absolutely played the leadership role in elevating this community into its golden age.

David Martin: What would you like people to know about government? You served at different levels, but you’re, you know, a government insider. What should people know about government? They don’t know?

David Holt: I think they need to remember that government is us. And that was obviously what the perpetrators of the bombing fundamentally misunderstood. You know, the government is not they. The government is us in America. Right? So, you know, we’re all kind of in this thing together and, and people who work in government and drive themselves to work and have kids and, and bills and everything else, just like everybody else.

So, I think there’s been way too much, you know, othering. You know, when you hear, like, the deep state and all this crazy nonsense, you know, like it’s the life is not that interesting, you know, and there’s no grand conspiracy. Government is full of people at local, state and federal level who are just regular folks.

Who who actually probably have just chosen, in many cases to make a little bit of a financial sacrifice for the fulfillment that I just described a minute ago. And, you know, like, just like, don’t get so wound up in this, in some of these crazy conspiracy theories or treat government as entertainment. It’s just us. It’s just us trying to make a better community for ourselves and for our family and our neighbors.

David Martin: I wanted to ask you about this before, and I will do it now, because this is what we’re talking about. You wrote an editorial and you outlined, your thoughts on, who should be competent and who should be working in government. And you, targeted something called the three C’s. Can you explain that?

David Holt: Yeah. I wrote this before the last presidential election. It didn’t name names. I mean, people can draw their own conclusions. But you know what has happened in American politics, especially at the presidential level over the last ten years, really forced me to focus in on on the reality that maybe my conservative ideology is secondary to some core, some core traits that that actually I was taking for granted when I was choosing presidential candidates.

You know, for the first, 30 years of my life. And what has happened in the last ten years has caused me to go back and say, okay, you know what? Above all else, way above, like what your your policy is on the marginal tax rate. Above all else I care about whether you have character, good character.

I care about whether you are competent and I care about whether you are committed to our form of government like this, this form of government we enjoy in America and the rule of law and freedom and all of these things, and government by the people. Like this is an outlier in the history of human civilization. So it needs to be like protected and cultivated.

You can’t have anybody serving as president who wants to be a dictator, because that’s the that’s likely to happen because that’s where America, that’s where humans have been. Most of human, civil, most of human history and certainly are in most places around the world right now. I mean, what we have here is really special. So. So to preserve it, you need character, you need competence, and you need a commitment to our form of government.

And yeah, if you Google, your listeners want to Google David Holt and, Philadelphia Citizen. Now that was where it was published. They would probably be able to find it, and I certainly commend it to them. It was, a thoughtful distillation of what I think is ultimately the most important qualities that really I it was kind of written in the context of a presidential race, but really is is applicable to anywhere.

David Martin: Yeah, sure. We will put a link to that in the show notes. So thanks for that. What’s the best part of your job and then what keeps you up at night?

David Holt: Gosh, there’s just I love being mayor. I think it’s the best job in American politics. And, I think it’s. Yeah, it’s it’s coming up with ideas, selling to the public. And obviously we’ve been very successful at that in Oklahoma City for a long time. So, so I think of that as a fun process, not a frustrating or disappointing one.

And, and so I just, I think we all, we, you know, creating a vision and, and implementing it is something that we do a lot here. And that’s certainly what it’s fun. You know, you get to be a part of that. Right. Something so dynamic and then I guess, you know, keeping you up at night.

I mean, honestly, I try not to live with regret, so I, I, I don’t necessarily lie awake at night worrying about things. I think, you know, I’ve got a pretty realistic view on that, but certainly I want, you know, if anything I know will be left undone when I leave office simply because it’s it’s it’s challenge every city and always will.

It’s just the inequality. And and I will be proud that I made efforts to address that in many ways. But ultimately I will I will leave office knowing that not everybody in my city has equal opportunity. I hope that they have more equal opportunity than the day I took office, but that is probably the, the challenge of any American leader is just trying to to make good on the promise that everybody has equal opportunity in this country.

David Martin: So I’ve never been to Oklahoma City, I’m sorry to say, if I’m coming out for a basketball game and we’re going out, where are you taking me? What are we having for dinner? What’s the what’s the dish of Oklahoma City? Where are we going?

David Holt: Oh, so you’re you’re probably going to want a steak. You’re going to think you’re in cow country, and then you should get yourself a steak.

David Martin: I should I will.

David Holt: So yes. Absolutely. Yeah. You know, we, I went to dinner with President Clinton two weeks ago, and we went to a steakhouse. So I suspect that’s, that’s where we’re going to take you, probably. Right. And you’re going to have a very good one.

David Martin: Okay. Good, good. Oklahoma State, anything else? I mean, what else you got out there?

David Holt: Oh, you’d be surprised. You know, we have some James Beard Award winning chefs out here doing very different things that have nothing to do with steak, that are very unique. And we also have a thriving. This is actually, as we talk. This is the 50th anniversary this week of the fall of Saigon. We have a thriving Vietnamese community.

We have a, great forcing that, if you’re into that, you you. So there’s a lot here.

David Martin: All right. So there’s a lot to do. Well, this is the good government show, and we always try to bring it back to good government. Tell me about a good government project that you’ve, that you’ve done a large or a small project you’re pretty proud of?

David Holt: Well, I think, you know, in school where we have some very special things that are really life changing. We have youth centers. These are going to be for, state of the art, like $20 million youth centers in some of our most challenged parts of the city. I mean, I know that’s going to change lives for young people who need a better outlet than whatever it is they have today.

We’re going to have a family justice center. So this is a that’s a phrase of art that maybe people that are familiar with the fundamental needs, providing wraparound services for, for survivors of domestic violence. And it’s called Calamar. And when that’s done, it’s going to be a national model. We’re going to build $42 million animal welfare center.

That probably be the best in the country. I mean, I love all those projects. Those earlier maps were really focused on like, arenas and stadiums and later maps. Maps for is kind of more of these, like human and neighborhood needs. And, and I can’t wait to see kind of how they play out. And I think that they really will.

We will. And all of those little niches. I think we’re going to have some national models here in Oklahoma City. I’m very proud to put all that together, pitched it to the people of Oklahoma City. They bought into it and now we’re building them.

David Martin: David Holt, the mayor of Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, it is a pleasure to talk to you finally and meet up. I appreciate your time and I look forward to seeing you in person when we meet up in Tampa this summer.

David Holt: Sounds good. Great talk. Thank you, David.

David Martin: Thank you very much. County government affects more people than any other form of government. That’s why we like talking to so many representatives of county government here on the Good Government. Show. They are the voice of public service. The National Association of Counties, or Naco, supports all 3069 counties across the USA. This year, their annual conference is in Philadelphia in July, planned to attend the conference and join them in their efforts to bring good government to America’s counties.

Check out the details@naca.org. That’s Naco dawg.

After you get done with this episode, hear more good government stories with our friends at How to Really Run a City for mayors Kasim Reed of Atlanta and Michael Nutter, a Philadelphia, and their co-host, journalist and author Larry Platt talk with guests and other mayors about how to really get stuff done in cities around the nation. Check them out where you’re listening now or through their nonprofit news site, The Philadelphia Citizen.

Org slash podcasts.

It’s just us. Government is just us. What a great perspective. And I agree, the people who work in government are doing it for the right reasons, and they do it for all of us. There’s a lot going on in Oklahoma City and a lot of progress. And as I mentioned, a lot of new bike lanes. So I’ll have to find a way to get in a good bike ride.

Yeah. Right after my steak, of course. Well, that’s our show. Thanks for listening. Please like us and share this with your friends and are with us right here where you’re listening. And check out our website. Good government show.com for extras. Help us keep telling stories of good government and action everywhere. Join us again for another episode right here.

I’m Dave Martin and this is the Good Government show.

The Good Government show is a Valley Park production. Jim Ludlow, Dave Martin, that’s me and David Snyder are the executive producers. Our show is edited and produced by Jason Stershic. Please subscribe, then share and like us and review us. That’s the best way to make sure we’re able to keep telling these stories of our government working for all of us.

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**This transcription was created using digital tools and has not been edited by a live person. We apologize for any discrepancies or errors.