Personal phone calls, handwritten letters, and a well-known family history have helped Rep. Tom Cole become a mainstay of Oklahoma Republican politics and one of the most powerful lawmakers in Washington.
Now, he faces a competitive, well-funded primary challenge from a newcomer — to politics and to Oklahoma — who says deep roots are overrated.
Cole, who Oklahoma Republican consultants describe as the consummate builder and maintainer of relationships, rose to one of the most influential positions in Congress this year — chairman of the House Appropriations Committee, the panel that helps steer about $1.7 trillion in annual spending. In his new role he faces the challenge of fixing a broken appropriations process where internecine and partisan disputes have resulted in spending decisions being punted well into the next fiscal year.
“Anytime somebody spends $7 million, I think that makes things competitive,” Cole said in a hallway interview in the Capitol, referring to an onslaught of television ads criticizing his policies and tenure in Washington.
The official figure is actually closer to $5 million, according to a Federal Election Commission filing by Paul Bondar, Cole’s opponent. Bondar, a wealthy former Illinois businessman who registered to vote in Texas as recently as March, loaned his campaign $5.1 million and has spent about $4.9 million.
The main thrust of Bondar’s campaign is that Cole isn’t a true conservative, and that neither personal connections nor long-term residency can trump ideology.
“This area within America is the best area for me to represent, because the conservative values of CD-4 mesh with the conservative values that I have,” Bondar said in a phone interview. “I can be myself. I can speak honestly, openly, and freely. When I speak as an honest and open individual on my values, I represent the values of this district.”
Cole’s longstanding relationships in the district, combined with an endorsement by former President Donald Trump, give him the edge say those who have followed his ascent in politics. Cole’s deep roots in the area — his mother, Helen TeAta Gale Cole, served in the state House and Senate — create a clear contrast with Bondar, who recently arrived in Oklahoma and has never voted there.
“He knows every superintendent of schools, he’s spoken at every Lions Club, every Rotary Club,” said Chad Alexander, a former state Republican Party chairman who hosts a drive-time talk radio show. “He’s got relationships all over the district.”
Bondar also faces a tall task as so far in this primary season no incumbent has been defeated.
Fits District
Cole’s politics — and his position as the House’s top appropriator — fit his district. He’s a defense hawk whose district includes Tinker Air Force Base and the Army’s Fort Sill. He represents more than 75,000 government workers, according to the Census Bureau, and has argued that agency budgets aren’t responsible for the growing federal debt. His district includes the University of Oklahoma, and he previously led the subcommittee that funds the Education Department. And Cole calls himself a “conventional Republican” who backs and all-of-the-above energy policy in a state that produces oil and gas, as well as wind power.
Cole’s heritage as a member of the Chickasaw Nation — and as the longest-serving Native American in the history of Congress — also helps in a district where more than 94,000 residents are American Indian or Alaska Native, the seventh most of any congressional district, according to the Census Bureau.
Despite those advantages, Cole also represents an area where Republican politics are tinged with skepticism toward incumbents. A 2018 primary challenger, without Bondar’s deep pockets, managed to win 35% of the vote in 2018.
Cole has managed to tactfully cater to powerful interests and conservative voters, at home and on Capitol Hill. As an appropriator, he’s never strayed too far form the party line and has become a consistent ally of top House Republicans. While he complained about spending restrictions for appropriations this year — telling reporters in April he wishes he had more defense funds — Cole stuck to a plan pushed by hard-line conservatives to slash domestic funds by 6% in fiscal 2025. Trump won the district with 64% of the vote in the 2020 presidential election.
Members of the House Freedom Caucus, who traditionally have fought with GOP leaders, love Cole’s approach as Appropriations Committee chairman, said Rep. Andy Harris (R-Md.), a member of the Freedom Caucus and the Appropriations Committee.
“He listens” to hard-line conservatives, Harris said of Cole. “And I think he realizes that we bring something to the table, in terms of making sure that whatever comes out of here is amenable to a large portion of the conference.”
Oklahomans who know Cole aren’t surprised to get a phone call from him — not to raise money, just to say thank you — around the end of the year, said Allen Wright, a Republican consultant. Other times, it’s a personalized letter, said Fount Holland, a Republican consultant who worked for Cole’s 2002 campaign and considers him a friend.
“It’s well-known in Oklahoma — every once in a while, you’d get a nice little handwritten letter from Tom Cole,” Holland said in a phone interview.
Cole’s cordial nature extends to Capitol Hill. Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-Conn.), the Appropriations Committee’s top Democrat, called Cole “a dear friend” and “an honest negotiator,” despite major policy disagreements, at his first markup as chairman.
Big Money
Bondar has spent big money to paint Cole as a Washington insider. One ad — backed by $326,000 in air time, according to AdImpact — criticizes Cole for voting against censuring Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.), who was criticized by Republicans for making remarks tying Trump to Russia. Bondar’s campaign spent $628,000 to air another ad saying Cole “voted with Democrats for billions in new deficit spending,” including “over $160 billion for Ukraine.” Bondar “opposes more Ukraine spending and wants to spend the money sealing our southern border,” the ad says.
Cole, meanwhile, has run ads touting his endorsement from Trump and pointing to Bondar’s status as a recent resident of Texas. Americans for Security PAC, which is supportive of Cole, has aired an ad featuring an embarrassing exchange between Bondar and local news station KFOR, in which Bondar admitted he was not in Oklahoma at the time, after initially trying to sidestep the question.
The PAC has spent more than $2 million in favor of Cole, according to a May 29 FEC filing, reducing Bondar’s advantage. While some of the group’s fundraising comes from undisclosed donors, it also lists contributions from Love’s Travel Stops executives, a private capital management company, several Native American organizations, and the CEO of BancFirst.
Cole’s support from businesses creates a stark contrast between the candidates. Bondar said he’s running to address voters’ dissatisfaction with lawmakers who “sit on their perch in this D.C. aristocracy.” Cole said that while everyday voters may not know about the importance of the Appropriations Committee chairmanship, those who work on a military base, for a defense contractor, or for Oklahoma University understand it.
“Business people and the federal workforce all know how important it is,” Cole said of the committee gavel. “Others, not so much. So it really varies with the individual. But certainly, it’s helpful.”
— With assistance from
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