Category Archives: Politics

Why five legislators are going to jail

Arkansas Legislature, Arkansas WorksFour of the 135 members of the 2013-14 Arkansas Legislature probably are going to jail, along with a fifth who served earlier. More might join them before the FBI is finished. Let’s consider why this is happening, beyond the standard explanation that, “All politicians are crooks,” which is not true.

The four ex-legislators – Sen. Jon Woods, R-Springdale; Rep. Micah Neal, R-Springdale; Sen. Jake Files, R-Fort Smith; and Rep. Hank Wilkins, D-Pine Bluff – have been found guilty (Woods) or pleaded guilty (the others) to various financial crimes, a common denominator being misuse of the state’s General Improvement Fund for their own benefit. A fifth ex-legislator, Rep. Eddie Cooper, D-Melbourne, who served from 2005 to the beginning of 2011, has also pleaded guilty to financial wrongdoings including misuse of the fund.

The GIF is a grant program directing state dollars to specific local projects at the behest of individual legislators. The process has changed many times because of political machinations or court rulings, the latest last year. Its latest incarnation sent grants to planning districts that rubber-stamped legislators’ wishes.

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Poll shows why GOP must ride the Trump train

Donald TrumpWe learned this week that it’s statistically possible that the only Republican voters in eastern Arkansas’ 1st District who don’t approve of President Trump are the half a dozen who said so in a poll.

The survey by Talk Business & Politics and Hendrix College found that 96.6 percent of respondents in that district said they approve of Trump’s performance. It polled 676 likely Republican primary voters statewide, or about 169 per congressional district, though it wasn’t exactly that. If it were, that would mean somewhere around six voters in the 1st said they didn’t approve of Trump or didn’t know, while the rest approve.

But the survey had a margin of error of 3.8 percent both ways, and 96.6 plus 3.8 equals more than 100. So who knows – maybe those are the only six? Continue reading →

Looks like the governor is safe

Asa HutchinsonAs the campaigns heat up before the May 22 primary …

I’d been wondering why Gov. Asa Hutchinson hadn’t been spending more of that $1.86 million he had in the bank as of March 31. A recent poll may provide the answer.

The governor has always been an overwhelming favorite to be re-elected, but if he were to face a challenge, it more likely would happen in the May Republican primary rather than the November general election. Primaries are weird because they attract a smaller turnout with more partisan voters. His opponent, Jan Morgan, is pretty good at bringing attention to herself through hot-button issues that are important in a Republican primary – guns, in particular. In the age of Donald Trump, she’s the more Trump-like candidate.

So I thought she might make the governor sweat a little. Continue reading →

A sham vote, and why it happened

tax, taxes, debt, deficits, spending, trillion, State of the Union, deficit hawks, balanced budget amendmentBy Steve Brawner

© 2018 by Steve Brawner Communications, Inc.

The U.S. House of Representatives last week played politics with a serious issue. You should not be disappointed if your congressman participated. You should only be disappointed if he brags about it.

And then more importantly, you should ask yourself why it happened.

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As Ryan leaves, Arkansas’ congressmen seek to stay

Shutdown, impeach, RyanLet’s note the contrast between powerful congressional leaders leaving office and Arkansas’ congressmen – who haven’t started being in leadership until now – who seek to stay.

Speaker Paul Ryan’s announced retirement Wednesday was the blockbuster, but he’s not the only leader going home. Rep. Bill Shuster, R-Penn., chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, is retiring. So is Rep. Trey Gowdy, R-South Carolina, a partisan Republican who told VICE News he’s leaving Congress partly because it’s so partisan. Gowdy said he knows exactly how many flights to Washington he has left – 19 as of the interview.

Ryan is the big news. He’s third in line to be president and is one of Congress’ two most powerful officials. But he had to be talked into taking the speakership, and now he’s walking away from it. His stated desire to spend more time with his family is believable given his history, but the job also has worn him down. Plus, he knows there’s a good chance he’d be handing the gavel next January to Nancy Pelosi. Few jobs are more frustrating than being in the minority party in the U.S. House of Representatives. Continue reading →