Jim Inhofe
Jim Inhofe | |
|---|---|
Official portrait, 2007 | |
| United States Senator from Oklahoma | |
| In office November 17, 1994 – January 3, 2023 | |
| Preceded by | David Boren |
| Succeeded by | Markwayne Mullin |
| Chair of the Senate Armed Services Committee | |
| In office September 6, 2018 – February 3, 2021 | |
| Preceded by | John McCain |
| Succeeded by | Jack Reed |
| Chair of the Senate Environment Committee | |
| In office January 3, 2015 – January 3, 2017 | |
| Preceded by | Barbara Boxer |
| Succeeded by | John Barrasso |
| In office January 3, 2003 – January 3, 2007 | |
| Preceded by | Jim Jeffords |
| Succeeded by | Barbara Boxer |
| Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Oklahoma's 1st district | |
| In office January 3, 1987 – November 15, 1994 | |
| Preceded by | James R. Jones |
| Succeeded by | Steve Largent |
| 32nd Mayor of Tulsa | |
| In office May 2, 1978 – May 8, 1984 | |
| Preceded by | Robert LaFortune |
| Succeeded by | Terry Young |
| Minority Leader of the Oklahoma Senate | |
| In office January 1975 – February 1976 | |
| Preceded by | Donald Ferrell |
| Succeeded by | Stephen Wolfe |
| Member of the Oklahoma Senate from the 35th district | |
| In office January 7, 1969 – January 4, 1977 | |
| Preceded by | Beauchamp Selman |
| Succeeded by | Warren Green |
| Member of the Oklahoma House of Representatives from the 70th district | |
| In office December 29, 1966 – January 7, 1969 | |
| Preceded by | Joseph McGraw |
| Succeeded by | Richard Hancock |
| Personal details | |
| Born | James Mountain Inhofe November 17, 1934 Des Moines, Iowa, U.S. |
| Died | July 9, 2024 (aged 89) Tulsa, Oklahoma, U.S. |
| Party | Republican |
| Spouse |
Kay Kirkpatrick (m. 1959) |
| Children | 4, including Molly |
| Relatives | Glade Kirkpatrick (father-in-law) |
| Education | University of Tulsa (BA) |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance | United States |
| Branch/service | United States Army |
| Years of service | 1957–1958 |
| Rank | Specialist 4 |
James Mountain Inhofe (/ˈɪnhɒf/; INN-hoff; November 17, 1934 – July 9, 2024) was an American politician who served from 1994 to 2023 as a United States senator from Oklahoma. A member of the Republican Party, he was the longest-serving U.S. senator from Oklahoma. He served in various elected offices in Oklahoma for nearly 60 years, between 1966 and 2023.
Born in Des Moines, Iowa, in 1934, Inhofe moved with his parents to Tulsa, Oklahoma, in 1942. His father, Perry Inhofe, was an owner of insurance companies and his mother, Blanche Inhofe (née Mountain), was a Tulsa socialite. Jim was a high school track star and graduated from Central High School. He briefly attended the University of Colorado before finishing his college degree at the University of Tulsa. He was drafted to the United States Army in 1956 and served between 1957 and 1958. He became vice-president of his father's insurance company in 1961 and president after his father's death in 1970.
Inhofe was an elected official representing the Tulsa area for nearly three decades. He represented parts of Tulsa in the Oklahoma House of Representatives from 1966 to 1969 and the Oklahoma Senate from 1969 to 1977. During his time in the state legislature he was known for feuding with the Democratic Party's state leadership, particularly Governor David Hall and state treasurer Leo Winters, and spearheading the movement to bring the USS Batfish to Oklahoma. While a state senator, he ran for governor of Oklahoma in the 1974 election and the U.S. House in 1976. He was elected to three terms as the mayor of Tulsa, serving from 1978 to 1984. He served in the United States House of Representatives representing Oklahoma's 1st congressional district from 1987 to 1994; he resigned after his election to the United States Senate.
During his Senate career, Inhofe was known for his rejection of climate science; on one occasion, he displayed a snowball in winter on the U.S. Senate floor as evidence that Earth was not warming. He was also known for his support of constitutional amendments to ban same-sex marriage and the 2006 Inhofe Amendment to make English the national language of the United States. Inhofe chaired the U.S. Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works (EPW) and the Armed Services Committee.