Oklahoma Gov. Mary Fallin vetoes constitutional carry bill, dealing blow to NRA

OKLAHOMA CITY — Oklahoma’s Republican Gov. Mary Fallin vetoed a bill late Friday that would have authorized adults to carry firearms without a permit or training, dealing a rare defeat to the National Rifle Association in a conservative state. The NRA had supported the bill’s passage and had urged Fallin to sign it. 

The veto comes after opposition from the business community and law enforcement authorities, including top officials with the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation who have said it could erode public safety. 

• Oliver North named new president of the NRA

In a statement announcing her veto, Fallin stressed her support for the Second Amendment and the right to bear arms and noted she had signed concealed and open carry measures in the past. 

“I believe the firearms laws we currently have in place are effective, appropriate and minimal,” she said. But she added that the bill would have eliminated the requirement for a training course and reduced the level of background checks to carry a gun.

The bill is similar to so-called “constitutional carry” legislation adopted in a dozen other states. It would have authorized people 21 and older and military personnel who are at least 18 to legally carry a handgun, either openly or concealed, without a state-issued license or permit.

The state currently requires a license to carry a handgun openly or concealed.

The NRA issued a statement in Washington blasting Fallin for what it was going back on her commitment to support such a gun carry law when she ran for re-election in 2014.

“Make no mistake, this temporary setback will be rectified when Oklahoma residents elect a new and genuinely pro-Second Amendment governor,” said Chris Cox, NRA executive director for legislative affairs.

The state bureau of investigation, which issues handgun licenses, had opposed the bill, saying it would cost the agency about $4.7 million annually and result in the loss of about 60 full-time positions.

Many business leaders, including local chambers of commerce, also opposed the bill, giving the governor – who cannot run for re-election under term limits – plenty of political cover to veto it.

The Legislature already has adjourned its session so lawmakers will not be able to revisit the issue until next year after the election of a new governor.

The hot-button issue of gun rights energizes Republican voters, particularly those in Republican primaries, said Trebor Worthen, a Republican political strategist.

Several Republican candidates to succeed Fallin as governor urged her this week to sign it.

“Republican voters believe in the Second Amendment and they believe they should be able to exercise that right with as little interference from the government as possible,” Worthen said. “Especially in more rural areas.”

Fallin has vetoed gun bills before. In 2014, she vetoed a bill requiring state authorities to sign off on applications for federally-regulated items such as silencers, short-barreled rifles and automatic weapons within 15 days. But the Legislature overrode her veto and the bill became law anyway. In 2015, she vetoed legislation that restricted businesses from banning guns at parks, fairgrounds and recreational areas, a veto that remained in place. 

Fallin also signed a bill late Friday that gay rights advocates say would allow religious-based adoption agencies to discriminate against same-sex couples, single people and non-Christians in placing children.

The bill written by Republican Sen. Greg Treat provides legal protections to faith-based agencies that won’t place children in LGBT homes because of religious or moral convictions or policies.

Her decision outraged gay rights groups.

The Family Equality Council, which advocates for LGBTQ families, said in a statement that the Oklahoma law targets the gay community and encourages religious-based adoption agencies “to discriminate on the basis of their belief that LGBTQ people should not be raising children.”

Freedom Oklahoma, another LGBT advocacy group, threatened to sue the state over the new law.

“Make no mistake, we will fight for the most vulnerable Oklahomans targeted by this law. Our message to Gov. Fallin and the lawmakers who championed this travesty is simple: We’ll see you in court!” said Executive Director Troy Stevenson.

But Fallin’s action drew support from Oklahoma’s Catholic bishops.

“The new law will bring more adoption services to the state and allow crucial faith-based agencies to continue their decades-long tradition of caring for Oklahoma’s most vulnerable children,” Oklahoma’s Catholic bishops said in a statement.

Treat, the Senate majority floor leader and president pro tem designate, has said he’s convinced some faith-based groups are hesitant to participate in adoptions for fear of being sued for discrimination.

“I would not be standing here on a bill as controversial as this if I didn’t believe it would help more children to get into loving homes,” Treat said during a sometimes testy debate near the end of the legislative session earlier this month. But gay rights groups disagreed, saying it would lead to fewer children being placed because some groups would exclude same sex homes from hosting them.

The new law goes into effect Nov. 1.

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Malaysia’s Ex-Leader Najib Razak Quits Party After Election Loss

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia—Malaysia’s former Prime Minister

Najib Razak

resigned as leader of his political party Saturday and promised to abide by a travel ban, as his successor

Mahathir Mohamad

struggled with factional infighting to assemble a new cabinet.

Mr. Najib and the ruling United Malays National Organization suffered a devastating loss in national elections May 9, paving the way for the first transfer of power in the tropical, resource-rich nation since independence in 1957.

Dr. Mahathir, who is 92 and led the country for 22 years before stepping down in 2003, built much of his campaign on allegations that Mr. Najib has siphoned hundreds of millions of dollars from a state investment fund that is at the center of probes in several countries.

U.S. authorities allege that at least $4.5 billion was misappropriated between 2009 and 2015, including $681 million allegedly received by Mr. Najib, whom lawsuits in the U.S. referred to as “Malaysian Official 1.” Mr. Najib and the fund, 1Malaysia Development Bhd., have denied wrongdoing, and Malaysian investigations carried out during Mr. Najib’s premiership have cleared him.

Dr. Mahathir has said he would reopen an investigation into the scandal. On Saturday, he confirmed to reporters that he had ordered the travel ban on Mr. Najib and his wife Rosmah Mansor. He also said he had instructed police to release from the Official Secrets Act an earlier report from Malaysia’s auditor general into the fund, known as 1MDB. “We have to act quickly because we don’t want to be saddled with extradition from other countries,” he said.

Dr. Mahathir also said that he had removed Mohamed Apandi Ali as attorney general, who was appointed by Mr. Najib and helped quash investigations into the scandal. “At the moment there is no attorney general,” he said, opening the way for Dr. Mahathir to appoint his own choice for the role and increasing the pressure on Mr. Najib as the new administration continues to collect evidence against him.

Earlier Saturday, the country’s immigration chief said Mr. Najib and Ms. Rosmah had been banned from leaving the country. Mr. Najib acknowledged the travel ban and promised to stay within the country.

The move came after a flight manifest emerged showing that Mr. Najib and Ms. Rosmah were booked to fly on a private jet to Indonesia Saturday morning. Large crowds swarmed the small terminal that handles charter flights, demanding that cars entering the site open their windows to show that the couple weren’t inside. “Open! Open!,” they chanted, with some pressing their faces to the windows of the vehicles to get a closer look.

Later, at a press conference at UMNO’s headquarters, he announced he was stepping down from the party. Flanked by deputies and wearing a powder-blue jacked, he said that the party lost the election because it lost what he called “the battle of perception” with Dr. Mahathir.

While Mr. Najib was announcing his resignation, Dr. Mahathir was naming the key posts in his cabinet on the other side of town.

‘At the moment there is no attorney general’

—Mahathir Mohamad

He appointed as finance minister

Lim Guan Eng,

the former chief minister, or governor, of the industrial hub Penang. Economists said one of Mr. Lim’s chief roles will be to revise a series of large-scale construction projects undertaken by Mr. Najib’s administration.

The home ministry will be headed by a staunch Mahathir loyalist, Muhyiddin Yassin, while the defense portfolio will be handled by Mohamad Sabu, the leader of a small Islamist party.

People familiar with the situation said there had been significant wrangling over the composition of the new cabinet. Dr. Mahathir leads a diverse alliance that includes a predominantly Chinese party and a large multiracial group, as well as smaller Islamist and other ethnic-based groups. The announcement of the cabinet lineup was delayed several times, and its full composition remains unclear.

“There is a lot of last-minute wrestling,” one of the people said.

Dr. Mahathir also named a council of elders who he said would advise the government on key policy matters. It includes prominent figures who will likely help reassure financial markets when they reopen for trading Monday after closures for election day on Wednesday and then two special holidays on Thursday and Friday.

Among them are the widely respected former central bank Governor Zeti Akhtar Aziz and Malaysian-born Hong Kong tycoon Robert Kuok. Another prominent name is Daim Zainuddin, who worked closely with Dr. Mahathir during his first stint in government.

Write to James Hookway at james.hookway@wsj.com and Yantoultra Ngui at yantoultra.ngui@wsj.com

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