The Government Mule

Ethan Hutchins

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Government

Get an inside look at how the 𝐓𝐮𝐥𝐬𝐚 𝐂𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐭𝐲 𝐛𝐮𝐝𝐠𝐞𝐭 is built, managed, and finalized.

Sep 15

The Government Mule Episode 9 - People, Paws & Public Service

Send us Fan Mail 🐾 NEW EPISODE OF THE GOVERNMENT MULE PODCAST! 🎙️ This week, Tulsa County Clerk Michael Willis sits down with Sherri Carrier, former Tulsa County Court Services leader and current Director of Tulsa Animal Services. Sherri shares her nearly 30-year journey in public service, the connection between helping people and helping animals, and the exciting work happening at Tulsa Animal Services, from foster and adoption programs to their new facility. Plus, they talk second chances, community partnerships, and a few memorable animal stories. 🐶🐱 🎧 Listen or watch the latest episode of the Government Mule Podcast! Adopt, don’t shop! ❤️
Aug 21

The Government Mule Episode 8 - From Delinquent Taxes to the Auction Block

Send us Fan Mail 🎙️𝐍𝐞𝐰 𝐆𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐧𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐌𝐮𝐥𝐞 𝐏𝐨𝐝𝐜𝐚𝐬𝐭 𝐞𝐩𝐢𝐬𝐨𝐝𝐞! Tulsa County 𝑻𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒔𝒖𝒓𝒆𝒓 𝑱𝒐𝒉𝒏 𝑭𝒐𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒈𝒊𝒍𝒍 joins 𝑪𝒐𝒖𝒏𝒕𝒚 𝑪𝒍𝒆𝒓𝒌 𝑴𝒊𝒄𝒉𝒂𝒆𝒍 𝑾𝒊𝒍𝒍𝒊𝒔 to explain how 𝐂𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐢𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐞𝐫’𝐬 𝐒𝐚𝐥𝐞𝐬 work, why certain properties end up there, and how you can explore the 23 to 24 parcels currently available. Some of these properties are 𝙪𝙣𝙞𝙦𝙪𝙚 𝙥𝙞𝙚𝙘𝙚𝙨 𝙤𝙛 𝙡𝙖𝙣𝙙, 𝙞𝙣𝙘𝙡𝙪𝙙𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙣𝙚𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙗𝙤𝙧𝙝𝙤𝙤𝙙 𝙧𝙚𝙨𝙚𝙧𝙫𝙚𝙨 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙨𝙢𝙖𝙡𝙡 𝙥𝙖𝙧𝙘𝙚𝙡𝙨, 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙨𝙤𝙢𝙚 𝙢𝙖𝙮 𝙨𝙩𝙖𝙧𝙩 𝙖𝙩 𝙖𝙨 𝙡𝙞𝙩𝙩𝙡𝙚 𝙖𝙨 $1. Thinking about bidding or just curious about the process? Make sure you 𝐝𝐨 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐡𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐤 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐤𝐧𝐨𝐰 𝐞𝐱𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐥𝐲 𝐰𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐛𝐮𝐲𝐢𝐧𝐠. Visit 𝐭𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐮𝐫𝐞𝐫.𝐭𝐮𝐥𝐬𝐚𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐭𝐲.𝐨𝐫𝐠 or call 𝟵𝟭𝟴-𝟱𝟵𝟲-𝟱𝟬𝟳𝟬 to learn more. 🎧 Give the latest episode a listen and 𝒔𝒆𝒆 𝒊𝒇 𝒐𝒏𝒆 𝒐𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒔𝒆 𝒖𝒏𝒊𝒒𝒖𝒆 𝑻𝒖𝒍𝒔𝒂 𝑪𝒐𝒖𝒏𝒕𝒚 𝒑𝒓𝒐𝒑𝒆𝒓𝒕𝒊𝒆𝒔 𝒎𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕 𝒃𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒑𝒆𝒓𝒇𝒆𝒄𝒕 𝒇𝒊𝒕 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒚𝒐𝒖!
Jul 30

The Government Mule Episode 7 - Beyond the Bench with Judge LaFortune

Send us Fan Mail 𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐝𝐨𝐞𝐬 𝐚 𝐝𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐢𝐜𝐭 𝐣𝐮𝐝𝐠𝐞 𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐮𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐲 𝐝𝐨? How does a career in public service begin? And what keeps someone passionate about 𝒔𝒆𝒓𝒗𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒊𝒓 𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒎𝒖𝒏𝒊𝒕𝒚 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒅𝒆𝒄𝒂𝒅𝒆𝒔? In our newest episode, County Clerk Michael Willis sits down with 𝐉𝐮𝐝𝐠𝐞 𝐖𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐢𝐚𝐦 𝐋𝐚𝐅𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐮𝐧𝐞 to discuss his journey 𝒇𝒓𝒐𝒎 𝑻𝒖𝒍𝒔𝒂 𝒎𝒂𝒚𝒐𝒓 𝒕𝒐 𝒅𝒊𝒔𝒕𝒓𝒊𝒄𝒕 𝒋𝒖𝒅𝒈𝒆, 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒊𝒎𝒑𝒐𝒓𝒕𝒂𝒏𝒄𝒆 𝒐𝒇 𝒑𝒖𝒃𝒍𝒊𝒄 𝒔𝒆𝒓𝒗𝒊𝒄𝒆, 𝒍𝒆𝒂𝒅𝒆𝒓𝒔𝒉𝒊𝒑, 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒘𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒉𝒂𝒑𝒑𝒆𝒏𝒔 𝒃𝒆𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒔𝒄𝒆𝒏𝒆𝒔 𝒊𝒏 𝑶𝒌𝒍𝒂𝒉𝒐𝒎𝒂'𝒔 𝒄𝒐𝒖𝒓𝒕 𝒔𝒚𝒔𝒕𝒆𝒎. Judge LaFortune also 𝒔𝒉𝒂𝒓𝒆𝒔 𝒊𝒏𝒔𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕𝒔 𝒊𝒏𝒕𝒐 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒅𝒂𝒚-𝒕𝒐-𝒅𝒂𝒚 𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒑𝒐𝒏𝒔𝒊𝒃𝒊𝒍𝒊𝒕𝒊𝒆𝒔 𝒐𝒇 𝒂 𝒋𝒖𝒅𝒈𝒆, 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒊𝒎𝒑𝒂𝒄𝒕 𝒐𝒇 𝒋𝒖𝒓𝒚 𝒔𝒆𝒓𝒗𝒊𝒄𝒆, 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒘𝒉𝒚 𝒄𝒐𝒏𝒏𝒆𝒄𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒘𝒊𝒕𝒉 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒄𝒊𝒕𝒊𝒛𝒆𝒏𝒔 𝒐𝒇 𝑻𝒖𝒍𝒔𝒂 𝒄𝒐𝒏𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒖𝒆𝒔 𝒕𝒐 𝒃𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒎𝒐𝒔𝒕 𝒓𝒆𝒘𝒂𝒓𝒅𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒑𝒂𝒓𝒕 𝒐𝒇 𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒄𝒂𝒓𝒆𝒆𝒓. Whether you're interested in local government, the judicial system, or the people who serve our community, this is a conversation you won't want to miss.
Jul 15

The Government Mule Episode 6 - The Renaissance Man of the Clerk's Office

Send us Fan Mail For nearly three decades, 𝐃𝐞𝐫𝐞𝐤 𝐂𝐨𝐰𝐚𝐧 has been one of the friendly faces greeting customers at the 𝐓𝐮𝐥𝐬𝐚 𝐂𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐭𝐲 𝐂𝐥𝐞𝐫𝐤'𝐬 𝐎𝐟𝐟𝐢𝐜𝐞. In this episode of 𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙂𝙤𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙣𝙢𝙚𝙣𝙩 𝙈𝙪𝙡𝙚, Derek sits down with Tulsa County Clerk Michael Willis to talk about 𝙝𝙚𝙡𝙥𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙥𝙪𝙗𝙡𝙞𝙘 𝙩𝙝𝙧𝙤𝙪𝙜𝙝 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙧𝙚𝙘𝙤𝙧𝙙𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙥𝙧𝙤𝙘𝙚𝙨𝙨, 𝙢𝙚𝙢𝙤𝙧𝙖𝙗𝙡𝙚 𝙢𝙤𝙢𝙚𝙣𝙩𝙨 𝙛𝙧𝙤𝙢 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙛𝙧𝙤𝙣𝙩 𝙘𝙤𝙪𝙣𝙩𝙚𝙧, 𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙥𝙖𝙨𝙨𝙞𝙤𝙣 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙢𝙪𝙨𝙞𝙘, 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙬𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙝𝙖𝙨 𝙠𝙚𝙥𝙩 𝙝𝙞𝙢 𝙨𝙚𝙧𝙫𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙏𝙪𝙡𝙨𝙖 𝘾𝙤𝙪𝙣𝙩𝙮 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙢𝙤𝙧𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙣 28 𝙮𝙚𝙖𝙧𝙨. Get to know one of the people who helps keep county government running every day.
Jun 22

The Government Mule Episode 5 - The Keeper Project

Send us Fan Mail A conversation about service, sacrifice, resilience, and the power of community. In this episode of The Government Mule Podcast, Michael Willis sits down with the team behind The Keeper and the Keeper Project, including George Eshleman, whose extraordinary real-life journey inspired the film. Following the loss of his best friend, George embarked on a 2,000-mile trek that became a powerful story of survival, purpose, and hope. The discussion explores veteran mental health, PTSD, suicide prevention, and how communities can support those who have served. Through personal stories and honest conversations, this episode highlights the challenges many veterans face after service and the mission of the Keeper Project to build community, foster understanding, and help save lives.
Jun 12

The Government Mule Episode 4 - Making Every Dollar Count

Send us Fan Mail One day during the pandemic, local governments across the country woke up to something they had never seen before: millions of dollars in federal relief funding suddenly available to help their communities respond to an unprecedented crisis. But what happened next? In this episode, Tulsa County Clerk Michael Willis sits down with Tulsa County Commissioner Stan Sallee to discuss the CARES Act, ARPA funding, and what it was like helping lead Tulsa County through one of the most challenging periods in recent history. As the only Tulsa County Commissioner who served throughout the entire pandemic, Commissioner Sallee offers a firsthand perspective on the difficult decisions, unexpected challenges, and opportunities that came with managing federal relief dollars. Whether you're curious about where the money went, how local government responded during COVID-19, or simply enjoy hearing the stories behind the headlines, this conversation offers a fascinating look at a moment in history that affected all of us.
May 11

The Government Mule Episode 3 - Michael Willis & John Fothergill

Send us Fan Mail 🎙️ New Podcast Episode! Tulsa County Clerk Michael Willis sat down with Tulsa County Treasurer John Fothergill for a conversation about how the Tulsa County budget works and how their offices work together to responsibly manage taxpayer dollars. In this episode, they give an inside look at how county funds are managed, how different offices work together to serve the public, and how taxpayer dollars support essential services across Tulsa County. It’s a quick and informative overview of the systems and partnerships that help keep the county government running smoothly. Give it a listen! 🎧
Apr 22

The Government Mule Episode 2 - Behind the Numbers: How the County Budget Comes Together

Send us Fan Mail Get an inside look at how the 𝐓𝐮𝐥𝐬𝐚 𝐂𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐭𝐲 𝐛𝐮𝐝𝐠𝐞𝐭 is built, managed, and finalized. In this episode of 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐆𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐧𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐌𝐮𝐥𝐞, we sit down with: • 𝙈𝙞𝙘𝙝𝙖𝙚𝙡 𝙒𝙞𝙡𝙡𝙞𝙨, 𝙏𝙪𝙡𝙨𝙖 𝘾𝙤𝙪𝙣𝙩𝙮 𝘾𝙡𝙚𝙧𝙠 • 𝙈𝙞𝙮𝙪𝙠𝙞 𝘿𝙬𝙮𝙚𝙧, 𝘽𝙪𝙙𝙜𝙚𝙩 𝘿𝙞𝙫𝙞𝙨𝙞𝙤𝙣 𝘿𝙞𝙧𝙚𝙘𝙩𝙤𝙧 • 𝘼𝙖𝙧𝙤𝙣 𝙒𝙞𝙚𝙙𝙢𝙖𝙣, 𝙎𝙚𝙣𝙞𝙤𝙧 𝘽𝙪𝙙𝙜𝙚𝙩 𝘼𝙣𝙖𝙡𝙮𝙨𝙩 Together, they break down the county budget process from early planning and financial analysis to final approvals and implementation. Whether you are a resident curious about how public funds are allocated or someone interested in local government operations, 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐨𝐟𝐟𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐚 𝐜𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐫 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐚𝐜𝐜𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐛𝐞𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐜𝐞𝐧𝐞𝐬 𝐯𝐢𝐞𝐰 𝐨𝐟 𝐡𝐨𝐰 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐭𝐲’𝐬 𝐟𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐩𝐫𝐢𝐨𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐞𝐬 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐥𝐢𝐟𝐞.
Apr 7

The Government Mule Episode 1: Where It All Began

Send us Fan Mail In this episode, County Clerk Michael Willis and former Communications and Outreach Manager Maggie Cooksey chat about her time with Tulsa County as she moves on to a new adventure.

9 Episodes

Get an inside look at how the 𝐓𝐮𝐥𝐬𝐚 𝐂𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐭𝐲 𝐛𝐮𝐝𝐠𝐞𝐭 is built, managed, and finalized.

Creator

Ethan Hutchins
Years Active

2026
Episodes

9
Rating

Clean
Show Website

The Government Mule

The Government Mule

Episodes

The Government Mule Episode 9 - People, Paws & Public Service

The Government Mule Episode 8 - From Delinquent Taxes to the Auction Block

The Government Mule Episode 7 - Beyond the Bench with Judge LaFortune

The Government Mule Episode 6 - The Renaissance Man of the Clerk's Office

The Government Mule Episode 5 - The Keeper Project

The Government Mule Episode 4 - Making Every Dollar Count

The Government Mule Episode 3 - Michael Willis & John Fothergill

The Government Mule Episode 2 - Behind the Numbers: How the County Budget Comes Together

The Government Mule Episode 1: Where It All Began

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