Major Controversies Surrounding Jim Inhofe: A Detailed Timeline

Controversies are a part of history. Explore the biggest scandals linked to Jim Inhofe.

James Mountain Inhofe was a prominent American politician who represented Oklahoma in the U.S. Senate from 1994 to 2023. As a Republican, he held the distinction of being Oklahoma's longest-serving U.S. Senator. His career in Oklahoma politics spanned nearly six decades, beginning in 1966 and continuing until his retirement in 2023. He held various elected positions within the state government before ascending to the national stage.

Sections (5)

Full Timeline Early Life & Education Career & Achievements Success & Recognition Controversies & Scandals

1959: Inhofe Allowed to Participate in Graduation Ceremonies

In 1959, Jim Inhofe was allowed to take part in graduation ceremonies, though he was a few credits short of completing his degree.

1972: Inhofe Retracted Support for Equal Rights Amendment

In 1972, Jim Inhofe initially filed a resolution for Oklahoma to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment but retracted his support later that year.

1990: Inhofe Involved in Litigation Over Companies

In 1990, Jim Inhofe ended up in litigation with his brother over the family companies, resulting in Perry paying $3 million to Jim.

1994: Use of "God, guns, and gays" phrase in Senate campaign

In 1994, Jim Inhofe campaigned for his Senate seat using the phrase "God, guns, and gays."

1994: Inhofe Campaigned for U.S. Senate

Until his 1994 campaign for the U.S. Senate, Jim Inhofe's biographies indicated he had graduated in 1959, which he initially denied before acknowledging the discrepancy.

1995: Vote to Ban Affirmative Action Hiring

In 1995, Jim Inhofe voted to ban affirmative action hiring with federal funds.

December 1997: Called Kyoto Protocol a "Political, Economic, and National Security Fiasco"

In December 1997, Inhofe called the Kyoto Protocol, an international treaty to reduce greenhouse gas emissions into the atmosphere, a "political, economic, and national security fiasco."

1997: Vote to End Special Funding for Minority- and Women-Owned Businesses

In 1997, Jim Inhofe voted to end special funding for minority- and women-owned businesses. The bill he voted for would have abolished a program that helps businesses owned by women and minorities to compete for federally funded transportation; it did not pass.

June 1999: Retaliation for Appointment of James Hormel

In June 1999, Jim Inhofe held up seven more Clinton appointees in retaliation after President Bill Clinton appointed James Hormel, a gay man, as US Ambassador to Luxembourg in a recess appointment. Inhofe had stalled Hormel's nomination for over 20 months due to Hormel's sexual orientation.

2001: Vote to Loosen Restrictions on Cell Phone Wiretapping

In 2001, Jim Inhofe voted to loosen restrictions on cell phone wiretapping. The bill, which passed, removed the requirement that a person or party implementing an order to wiretap a private citizen's cellphone must ascertain that the target of the surveillance is present in the house or using the phone that has been tapped.

November 2002: Compared EPA to Gestapo Bureaucracy

Before the Republicans regained control of the Senate in the November 2002 elections, Inhofe had compared the United States Environmental Protection Agency to a Gestapo bureaucracy, and EPA Administrator Carol Browner to Tokyo Rose.

2002: ACLU Rating of Jim Inhofe

In 2002, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) rated Jim Inhofe at 20%, indicating that he held an anti-racial civil rights record.

July 28, 2003: Senate Floor Speech on Climate Change

As Environment and Public Works chairman, Inhofe gave a two-hour Senate floor speech on July 28, 2003, in the context of discussions on the McCain-Lieberman Bill. He said he was "going to expose the most powerful, most highly financed lobby in Washington, the far left environmental extremists", and laid out in detail his opposition to attribution of recent climate change to humans.

December 2003: Distributed Climate Change Brochure in Milan

In December 2003, Inhofe distributed copies of a 20-page brochure reiterating his "hoax" statement in Milan at a meeting about the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change.

2003: Promoting Climate Change Denial

Beginning in 2003, when he was first elected Chair of the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works, Inhofe was the foremost Republican promoting climate change denial.

October 2004: Senate Speech on Global Warming Hoax

In an October 2004 Senate speech Inhofe said, "Global warming is the greatest hoax ever perpetrated on the American people."

2004: Addressed Abu Ghraib Prisoner Abuse

In 2004, as a member of the Armed Services Committee, Inhofe was among the panelists questioning witnesses about the 2004 Abu Ghraib prisoner abuse, saying he was "outraged by the outrage" over the revelations of abuse.

January 2005: Global Warming "Second-Largest Hoax"

In January 2005 Inhofe told Bloomberg News that global warming was "the second-largest hoax ever played on the American people, after the separation of church and state".

August 28, 2005: Crichton Appeared as Expert Witness

On August 28, 2005, at Inhofe's invitation, Michael Crichton appeared as an expert witness at a hearing on climate change, disputing Mann's work.

2005: Environmental Regulation Prevention

In 2005, Jim Inhofe included a midnight rider in that year's transportation bill preventing federally recognized tribes in Oklahoma from administering Environmental Protection Agency regulations.

2005: Detainee Treatment Act of 2005

In 2006, Inhofe was one of only nine senators to vote against the Detainee Treatment Act of 2005, which prohibits "cruel, inhuman or degrading" treatment of individuals in U.S. Government custody.

September 2006: Senate Speech on Global Warming

In September 2006, during a Senate speech, Jim Inhofe argued that the threat of global warming was exaggerated by "the media, Hollywood elites and our pop culture". He stated that the media had previously warned of global cooling in the 1960s and then switched back to warming in the 1970s to promote "climate change fears".

2006: Voted Against the Detainee Treatment Act

In 2006, Inhofe was one of only nine senators to vote against the Detainee Treatment Act of 2005, which prohibits "cruel, inhuman or degrading" treatment of individuals in U.S. Government custody.

2006: Introduction of Senate Amendment 4682

In 2006, Jim Inhofe introduced Senate Amendment 4682 with Kit Bond (R-MO), which aimed to modify oversight responsibility of the Army Corps of Engineers. This action drew criticism from the League of Conservation Voters, who claimed that analyses for corps projects were manipulated to favor large-scale projects that harm the environment.

2006: "The Republican War on Science" Written

In his 2006 book The Republican War on Science, Chris Mooney wrote that Inhofe "politicizes and misuses the science of climate change".

The Republican War on Science

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December 31, 2006: NAACP Rating of Jim Inhofe

On December 31, 2006, the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) rated Jim Inhofe at 7%, indicating that he held an anti-civil rights and anti-affirmative action record.

February 2007: Fox News Interview on Climate Change

In February 2007, Jim Inhofe stated on Fox News that mainstream science increasingly attributed climate change to natural causes, and that only "those individuals on the far left, such as Hollywood liberals and the United Nations", disagreed.

2007: Receipt of Funds from Fossil Fuel Industry

In 2007, Jim Inhofe received $20,500 from the fossil fuel industry, according to the Dirty Energy Money database maintained by Oil Change International.

2008: Statement on Hiring Gay Staffers

In 2008, Jim Inhofe stated that his office "does not hire openly gay staffers due to the possibility of a conflict of agenda."

2008: Campaign Ad with Anti-Gay Overtone

In 2008, Jim Inhofe's campaign was noted by the Associated Press for running an ad with "anti-gay overtones" featuring a wedding cake with two male figures on top, fading into his opponent's face.

November 23, 2009: Response to Climatic Research Unit Email Controversy

On November 23, 2009, following the emergence of the Climatic Research Unit email controversy, Jim Inhofe stated that the emails confirmed his belief that scientists were "cooking the science".

February 2010: Release of Report on CRU Controversy

In February 2010, the minority group of the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works prepared a report on "the CRU Controversy", which listed 17 scientists as "Key Players". Inhofe stated that the report showed unethical and potentially illegal behavior by some of the world's leading climate scientists.

July 2010: Statement on a Cold Period

In July 2010, Jim Inhofe stated, "I don't think that anyone disagrees with the fact that we actually are in a cold period that started about nine years ago. Now, that's not me talking, those are the scientists that say that."

2011: Testimony on Global Warming

During a House committee hearing in 2011, Jim Inhofe testified, "I have to admit—and, you know, confession is good for the soul ... I, too, once thought that catastrophic global warming was caused by anthropogenic gases—because everyone said it was."

2011: Inhofe Claimed Boren and He Were Upset with Hall

In a 2011 interview, Jim Inhofe claimed that he and David Boren were both upset with Hall, so the pair decided to both campaign against him.

2012: Published "The Greatest Hoax: How the Global Warming Conspiracy Threatens Your Future"

In 2012, Inhofe's The Greatest Hoax: How the Global Warming Conspiracy Threatens Your Future was published by WorldNetDaily Books, presenting his global warming conspiracy theory.

The Greatest Hoax: How the Global Warming Conspiracy Threatens Your Future

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2012: Receipt of Funds from Oil and Gas Industry

Since 2012, Jim Inhofe had received over $529,000 from the oil and gas industry, according to OpenSecrets.

May 2013: Oklahoma Tornado Relief

In May 2013, Jim Inhofe argued for and voted for federal aid after tornadoes ravaged Oklahoma, defending his differing stance from Hurricane Sandy relief by claiming the situations were "totally different".

2014: Response to reports of warmest year

In 2014, after reports from NOAA and NASA indicated it had been the warmest year globally in the temperature record, Jim Inhofe responded by saying, "we had the coldest in the western hemisphere in the same time frame", and attributed changes to a 30-year cycle, not human activities.

January 21, 2015: Return to Chairing Senate Committee and Climate Change Remarks

On January 21, 2015, Jim Inhofe returned to chairing the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works. In response to reports about 2014 being the warmest year globally, he attributed changes to a 30-year cycle, not human activities. He also endorsed an amendment stating "Climate change is real and not a hoax", which passed 98–1, clarifying his view that climate is always changing but disputing human influence.

February 26, 2015: Snowball on Senate Floor

On February 26, 2015, Jim Inhofe brought a snowball to the Senate floor and tossed it while arguing that environmentalists continued to discuss global warming despite the cold weather.

2015: Condemnation of Obergefell v. Hodges Ruling

In 2015, Jim Inhofe condemned the Supreme Court ruling in Obergefell v. Hodges, which held that same-sex marriage bans violated the Constitution.

March 2016: Supreme Court Nominee Argument

In March 2016, Jim Inhofe argued that the Senate should not consider Obama's Supreme Court nominee.

October 2017: Co-sponsorship of Israel Anti-Boycott Act

In October 2017, Jim Inhofe co-sponsored the Israel Anti-Boycott Act (S. 720), which aimed to make it a federal crime for Americans to encourage or participate in boycotts against Israel and Israeli settlements in the occupied Palestinian territories if protesting actions by the Israeli government.

2017: Support for Polisario Front and Blocking Nomination

In 2017, Jim Inhofe blocked the Trump administration's nomination of J. Peter Pham for Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs, citing a disagreement over Western Sahara. Inhofe supported the Polisario Front and had traveled to Algeria to meet with its leaders, urging Morocco to hold a referendum on independence for Western Sahara.

2017: Blaming Sanctuary Cities for Las Vegas Shooting

In the aftermath of the 2017 Las Vegas shooting, Jim Inhofe blamed the "culture of sanctuary cities" for the shootings.

December 2018: Raytheon Stock Purchase

In December 2018, Jim Inhofe bought $50,000 to $100,000 worth of stock in Raytheon, a major defense contractor, and later sold the stock after conflict of interest concerns were raised.

December 2020: Criticism of Trump Administration's Recognition of Morocco's Claim over Western Sahara

In December 2020, following the Israel–Morocco normalization agreement, Jim Inhofe sharply criticized the Trump administration for recognizing Morocco's claim over Western Sahara, calling the decision "shocking and deeply disappointing" and stating he was "saddened that the rights of the Western Sahara people have been traded away".

2020: Remarks on troop presence in Afghanistan

In 2020, Jim Inhofe suggested maintaining a relatively small troop presence in Afghanistan until the conditions outlined in the 2020 U.S.-Taliban Agreement are fully implemented.

2021: Opposition to Withdrawal of U.S. Troops from Afghanistan

In 2021, Jim Inhofe opposed the withdrawal of U.S. troops from Afghanistan under President Biden, arguing that Biden should maintain "a relatively small troop presence until the conditions outlined in the 2020 U.S.-Taliban Agreement are fully implemented."