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 →

After 100-plus foster homes, a family at last

Walk for the Waiting

The Walk for the Waiting at War Memorial Stadium in 2017.

Meghan raced into Christie Erwin’s arms and hugged her excitedly. And then she was given a red armband because she no longer needs Erwin’s help to find a family.

The reunion occurred at the Big Rock Fun Park, where Erwin’s organization, Project Zero, brought waiting foster children and potential adoptive parents together in hopes of finding matches.

Meghan, 17, whose name is changed here, has been in foster care since she was two years old. She’s one of 4,729 Arkansas foster children who have been removed from birth parents who were drug addicts or abusive or had other issues – a number that’s down from last year’s 5,113. There are programs to help the birth parents get their lives together and get their kids back, but eventually some lose their rights.

It is not an easy life for the children. Meghan had been in more than 100 foster homes until moving in with current foster parents Jason and Karen Johnson, whose names also have been changed. 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.

Continue reading →

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 →