The Arkansas Project

Files Out For GOP Chair

By David Kinkade - November 25, 2008 4:00 pm

More on state party chairmanships: Michael Tilley at the City Wire in Fort Smith reports that former Rep. Jake Files, who was recently considering a run for chairman of the Arkansas Republican Party, has taken himself out of the running:

Files said he is considering running for the state Senate seat in Fort Smith in 2010, and believed it would be difficult, if not impossible, for him to run for that seat and be the state party chairman. State Sen. Denny Altes, R-Fort Smith, is term limited and can’t run for the office in 2010.

Joseph Wood (left) with Sen. John McCain; Doyle Webb (right)

Meanwhile, Arkansas Project reader Teddy Republican notes in the comments section of an earlier post that GOP chair hopefuls Doyle Webb and Joseph Wood are currently on KARN radio fielding questions from Dave Elswick and listeners. You can listen online here.

Update: I tried to listen, but after about 10 minutes I wanted to kill myself from boredom. Blogger Jason Tolbert, who has more patience than I, has a summary of the Webb/Wood interview with Team Elswick at his blog.

Rumor Mongering: Should GOP Chair Be Paid?

By David Kinkade - November 18, 2008 9:02 am

This has been raised to me several times over the last few days, to the point where I’m just going to throw it out there as a blind item. Word about town is that at least one of the hopefuls in the race to take on the Arkansas Republican Party chair post expects to be paid for the position.

This rumor’s been floating around, and I’m hearing from several folks who are grumbling about it. Like, say, this individual, who e-mailed me the other day:

I think having a paid Chairman is a terrible idea. The Chairman is supposed to be a figurehead that raises money. If the money being raised goes to pay the Chairman then we aren’t raising any money to spend on candidates.

As the saying goes, I don’t have a dog in this fight. I don’t expect to be advocating for or against any of these characters for chair, because I thought about it for 2 minutes and realized that I don’t care much. But if any of the candidates do think that the party chair position should be salaried work, well, I suppose others will let them know what they think about that.

Is this a good idea? Anyone hearing anything else on this?

Hopefuls Vie for Arkansas GOP Chair

By David Kinkade - November 11, 2008 7:20 am

Joseph Wood (left) with Sen. John McCain; Doyle Webb (right)

The Arkansas News Bureau’s Rob Moritz reports that former state Sen. Doyle Webb of Saline County and businessman Joseph Wood of Fayetteville have both indicated they’re in the running to be the next Arkansas GOP chairman.

Webb is probably well-known to most Arkansas Project readers, due to his time in the state senate and service to the late Lt. Gov. Win Rockefeller as chief of staff.

Wood, the current party treasurer, may be a new face to many, but he’s been active in the Washington County GOP and was a McCain delegate to the Republican National Convention in September. He also keeps up an occasionally updated political blog here.

The Arkansas Project reported on Saturday that current GOP chair Dennis Milligan would step down, following a reasonably successful election season for Republicans in Arkansas.

But wait…There’s more….

It’s not mentioned in this story, but those who would know say that former GOP Rep. Jake Files of Fort Smith is seriously eyeing the post as well. There may be others. Party will choose the new boss at the December 13 meeting in Little Rock.

Milligan Stepping Down as GOP Chair

By David Kinkade - November 8, 2008 12:26 pm

Milligan: Out as GOP Chair

Word is that Dennis Milligan, who has served as the chair of the Republican Party of Arkansas since 2007, told party officials today that he will be stepping down from the post.

I’ve poked some fun at Milligan here on the blog, because that’s what I do. But the fact is that he took on a job no one else was willing to take and did a good job with it, helping to deliver Arkansas to John McCain—by nearly 20 points!—and seeing the party pick up seats in the legislature in 2008. Note that both of these achievements occurred in a terrible environment for Republicans nationally. So give the man some credit for a job well done.

Now, after that bizarre and uncharacteristic detour into earnestness, who are the leading candidates to take on the job of GOP chair?

Update: The ever-industrious Jason Tolbert at The Tolbert Report blog chats with Milligan, who tells Tolbert that he’s not “stepping down,” he’s “just not seeking re-election.” I’m so glad he cleared that up with that completely meaningless distinction. Really, it makes me want to take back all those nice things I said.

Greenberg: ‘The Tom Coburn of Arkansas’

By David Kinkade - November 7, 2008 2:44 pm

Rep. Dan Greenberg

Libertarianish Reason Magazine profiles Rep. Dan Greenberg of Little Rock, who is of course better known as an occasional contributor to The Arkansas Project, with a look at Greenberg’s epic battle against the state Interior Design Board. Check it out.

Arkansas Legislative Races: A Few Things

By David Kinkade - October 29, 2008 8:32 am

Just rounding up a few things that have come across The Arkansas Project threshold the last few days:

Republican Kelly Eichler and Democrat John Edwards are fighting it out for the open seat in Little Rock’s District 38, in a race that’s been dubbed “too competitive to call” over at Under the Dome. A correspondent sends along a sample mail piece, one of several, that Eichler has sent out to voters in the district, reproduced here:

I would say “Click images for larger view,” but the larger versions aren’t displaying. I’ll fiddle with them a bit more, but if I don’t fix them, they’re about education. She’s for it.

Also happening in Pulaski County: The Arkansas Democrat-Gazette endorses Republican challenger Phil Wyrick over longtime incumbent Buddy Villines in the closely watched race for Pulaski County Judge. (Subscription required to read the whole thing.) Yes, I know this isn’t a “legislative” race, but I’m sticking it here nonetheless. Quoth the editorialist:

Phil Wyrick sounds like just what Pulaski County has needed for some time-someone you could trust to balance budgets, hire competent help, keep the lights on, and finally, finally, finally provide the law-abiding public in Little Rock, North Little Rock and Pulaski County with the kind of well-run jail that’s long been needed. At last, a local official who might put public safety first instead of concentrating on tourist attractions, study committees, multiple excuses and other diversions from the basic business of local government.

In other races: In District 87, GOP Rep. Mark Martin is in a tight race with Earl Hunton, son of Washington County Judge Jerry Hunton, to hold his seat. Scott F. Davis at the Northwest Arkansas Times, my journalistic alma mater, sizes up the race here.

But wait, there’s more from Northwest Arkansas: Davis also has a look at the District 89 race between incumbent Democrat Jim House and GOP challenge Gene Long.

And in District 50 over in White County (open seat), Republican Kyle Reeves has to run not only against Democrat Monty Betts, but also the Searcy Daily Citizen newspaper. Reeves better up that radio ad buy.

We’ll have another legislative poll later today.

Fechtelkotter Fundraiser Wednesday

By David Kinkade - October 28, 2008 6:52 am

A note in the overnight mail says that a few Republican legislators will be hosting a fundraiser at 11:30 a.m. on Wednesday in Little Rock for GOP House hopeful Bill Fechtelkotter. Good Lord, what a name. I had to look back at the e-mail three times to make sure I spelled it right. It’s at Republican Party of Arkansas headquarters and tix are $100—call Fechtelkotter at 501.231.8651 for the details.

He’s up against Democrat Linda Tyler for the open seat in District 45 around Conway. Here’s an ad where he admits that his name is a nightmare, so it’s not just me:

Columnist David Sanders took a closer look at the district and at Fechtelkotter a few weeks back.

BREAKING: GOP Chair Takes Strong Stand Against Celebrities

By David Kinkade - October 27, 2008 5:57 pm

Ted Danson and Mary Steenburgen. Does she always look that good? I don't remember her looking that good. Is this a new development?

Just received an alert from the Republican Party of Arkansas that chairman Dennis Milligan will not sit by idly as celebrity Democrats Ted Danson and Mary Steenburgen (an Arkansas native) barnstorm the state on behalf of Barack Obama.

One wishes that Milligan would take as strong a stance in fighting state Democrats as he does in fighting C-list celebrities, but there you go. Here’s the full statement:

Mary Steenburgen may have Arkansas roots, but in no way is her ultra-liberal ideology representative of the Arkansas voters she and her husband, Ted Danson, are attempting to court this week. We have yet to see Senator Obama himself come to Arkansas to ask for support; instead, he continues to send surrogates who fall far short of their assignment.

Arkansas is a conservative state. We care about protecting our country, our families and our pocketbooks. Sen. McCain’s policies of tax relief, strong support for small business, and protection of our family values are right for Arkansas, and right for America.

Milligan then took an unprecedented step in calling on Arkansans to boycott all viewings of “Three Men and a Baby” and “Cheers” re-runs, because Ted Danson was in those, and he’d call on people to boycott movies that Mary Steenburgen has been in, but for the life of me I can’t think of what she’s been in, so this entire punchline just went to hell.

Where on earth was I going with this? I don’t remember. But as a Republican in Arkansas, there are times when I weep for my party.

How Will Presidential Race Affect Arkansas Races?

By David Kinkade - October 26, 2008 3:07 pm

Is this an association Democratic candidates in Arkansas want?

Over at Blake’s Think Tank, my Democratic leaning counterpart Blake Rutherford picks up on a discussion we had last week on “Unconventional Wisdom” (I’ll quit mentioning that now) about the potential for GOP pick-ups in the state legislature. Rob Moritz at the Arkansas News Bureau explores the same question in a story today.

Arkansas Republicans look poised to pick up at least a few seats in the House. While that would not change the complexion of the overwhelmingly Democratic legislature dramatically, it would certainly be a morale-builder for state Republicans—particularly should it happen in a year when Democrats nationwide appear to have the wind at their back.

As Blake points out, John McCain’s double-digit lead in Arkansas could be helpful to Republicans. The flip side of that observation raises a question: Is it possible that Barack Obama could be a drag for Democratic candidates down the ballot in Arkansas? If you’re Democratic Rep. Steve Breedlove in District 67, do you really want your signs sitting next to Obama-Biden signs, as in the photo above?

While John Brummett points out that the state’s Congressional folks and constitutional officers are getting behind Obama, one doesn’t see a lot of Democratic House candidates rushing to throw their arms around the senator from Illinois, does one?

King vs. Stoppel: District 91 House Race

By David Kinkade - October 23, 2008 7:52 pm

The Arkansas Democrat-Gazette continues its examination of legislative races in Arkansas, with an in-depth look at the District 91 House race between incumbent GOP Rep. Bryan King and Democratic challenger David Stoppel.

District 91 covers faraway Carroll County. King is the incoming minority leader, and this race was in the news a few months back when Democratic Rep. Robbie Wills, incoming speaker of the house, and several other Democratic legislators hosted a fundraiser for King.

Noted: For some reason, Stoppel has a prominent link to obnoxious liberal advocacy group “Moveon.org” on the front page of his website, presumably as shorthand so all the dope-smoking hippies in Eureka Springs will know that he’s a “righteous dude.”

Reeves Ad for District 50 Race

By David Kinkade - October 22, 2008 4:19 pm

A look at The Arkansas Project inbox brings a new ad for Republican Alderman Kyle Reeves of Searcy, running for the Arkansas House over yonder in District 50. He’s running against someone whose name I can’t remember and don’t feel like looking up, and that guy didn’t send me any ads for the blog, so screw him.

Since most Arkansas Project readers are functionally illiterate, I like to give you lots of videos and pretty pitchers to look at to keep you occupied:

It would appear that this is an ARKANSAS PROJECT EXCLUSIVE, as the note I received indicates that the ad doesn’t start broadcasting till next week. MUST CREDIT THE ARKANSAS PROJECT!

Nah, I’m just kidding. Wouldn’t you hate it if I was really like that? I don’t care what you do with this. Enjoy.

P.S. Other campaign ads out there that you’d like featured on The Arkansas Project? Let me know. Hit the “Contact” button over there to the right and drop me a note.

Baker Campaign Rally, Monday

By David Kinkade - October 20, 2008 7:45 am

Sen. Gilbert Baker

Going through The Arkansas Project hate mail fan mail, I see a note from one Senator Gilbert Baker, who’s pumping up the troops at 6 p.m. this evening with a Baker for Senate Campaign Rally at Simon Park in downtown Conway.

He’s promising free food, music and appearances by other local GOP candidates. A fundraiser will precede the event at 5:15 p.m. at the Faulkner County Republican Party headquarters.

Arkansas Project Weekend Political Round-Up

By David Kinkade - October 20, 2008 7:33 am

A few notes on the political news that you may have missed this weekend while you were off on a bender or at church camp, or whatever it is you do on the weekend:

The Money Race

The Arkansas Democrat-Gazette takes note of the fundraising totals for Arkansas’ federal officeholders, none of whom face major party opposition this year. All six appear to have continued raising money at a health clip, and in the cases of Sen. Mark Pryor and Rep. Mike Ross, they report cash on hand balances of $2.65 million and $1.05 million at the end of September. Pryor recently told his fundraisers to lay off, he’s feeling so flush.

The Green Revolution

The ADG also continues its “Campaign Focus” series with looks at various local races, which I’ll not link here, and nods to the Green Party opposition in the Congressional races. That includes a look at the race for U.S. Senate between Democrat Mark Pryor and Green candidate Rebekah Kennedy, and the Third District race between Republican Rep. John Boozman and Green challenger Abel Tomlinson, a political science grad student at the University of Arkansas. (I also saw coverage of the Second and Fourth District races in the print editions, but they’re only available online to subscribers, so no links there.)

Arkansas Legislative Races

The Under the Dome blog has a splendid overview of the race in House District 68 between Republican Andrea Lea and Democrat Thomas Akin for the seat of term-limited Rep. Michael Lamoureux. Under the Dome also writes up the District 91 race between GOP Rep. Bryan King and Democratic challenger David Stoppel.

See below for more on the ADG’s coverage of the House District 62 race between Republican Terry Rice and Democrat Bill Walters, which is closely watched by Republicans in Arkansas, at least.

Rice vs. Walters in House District 62

By David Kinkade - October 19, 2008 6:53 am

The Arkansas Democrat-Gazette picks up on the hot race between Republican Terry Rice and newly minted Democrat Bill Walters (he previously served in the Arkansas Senate as a Republican) in House District 62, which covers Scott County over to the west. Reporter Mike Wickline offers a compare-n-contrast on the two candidates.

I’m not sure if I’ve ever actually been to Scott County, because it seems like a terrifying “end of civilization” frontier place where crazy and sordid things are always happening, according to a close friend of mine who hails from Waldron. Like, they pull a human torso out of a catfish pond and nobody blinks an eye. Apparently that’s just like any normal Thursday in Scott County, I guess.

Altes to Run for House in 2010

By David Kinkade - October 18, 2008 5:15 am

Sen. Denny Altes

Republican Sen. Denny Altes of Fort Smith tells the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette that he will run for the House in 2010.

The View from Fort Smith

By David Kinkade - October 16, 2008 4:59 pm

Things have been a little slow today, because I glanced over some of the Arkansas headlines throughout the day and just saw nothing that moved me to blogging action.

However, here’s a story out of Fort Smith focusing on a pair of key legislative races up that way that’s worth a look.

Reporter Rusty Garrett of the Southwest Times Record catches a candidates’ forum in which Terry Rice (R) and Bill Walters (R Turned Opportunistic D), who are vying for the District 62 House seat, and Stephanie Malone (R) and Mike Bock (D), who are vying for the District 64 House seat, squared off on a range of issues.

If you’re looking for striking ideological differences in the candidates, you’d best look elsewhere, as these are both races where the Democrats are attempting to run more or less as Republicans on the issues.

We’ve given ample coverage to the race between Rep. Steve Breedlove (D) and challenger John Van Gorder (R) in the nearby District 67, but have not yet examined these two races. Anyone with pertinent thoughts or intelligence, lay it out in the comment section.

The Rice-Walters showdown, incidentally, is an emotionally important one for many Republicans I’ve spoken with recently. They deeply resent Walters, who previously served in the legislature as a Republican, for his flip to the Democratic side at the last minute. They’re pulling hard for a Rice victory. (I’ll note also that Walters’ wife, Shirley, currently holds the seat as a Republican. Oddly, Bill Walters’ campaign website is found at the URL www.shirleywalters.com, so make of that what you will.)

Warren Stephens on the Tax Burden

By David Kinkade - October 15, 2008 5:54 am

In an unusual move, Arkansas investment banking big wheel Warren Stephens, chairman/CEO of Stephens Inc. and co-chair of the Arkansas for McCain campaign, takes to the bully pulpit to warn of the dire effects of higher taxation under a possible Barack Obama administration:

Warren Stephens

Our system could hardly be more weighted to having the wealthy pay more, yet that is precisely what Senator Obama proposes. I will reluctantly accept (for now) that in our society the top wage earners will pay more (in percentage terms) in taxes, but if Senator Obama wants to raise taxes, he should say so… Senator Obama’s plan is a redistribution of income from those who pay taxes to those who do not. It is nothing more than the granddaddy of all welfare plans and voters need to know it. For Senators Obama and Biden to couch this issue as one of fairness and a “patriotic duty” is an attempt to deceive the American public as to the facts.

Stephens points are well-taken, but I’m gonna go out on a limb and suggest that maybe a billionaire investment banker isn’t the ideal proponent for that message right now, even if he is one of our state’s leading corporate citizens.

ArkProject Debate Squad: Baker vs. White

By David Kinkade - October 14, 2008 9:45 am

Democrat Joe White

Last week we tried our first Arkansas Project Debate Squad experiment with a look at the race in District 67 between Rep. Steve Breedlove and John Van Gorder. I was pleased with the response, so let’s do it again.

Today, let’s focus in on the big race in central Arkansas, where Republican Sen. Gilbert Baker is slugging it out with Democratic challenger Joe White. This has been the premier race in the state in 2008, which isn’t saying much, leading columnist John Brummett to ask in a weekend column, “What the hell?” (It’s also one of only two contested Senate races in the state this year.)

Baker, music director for a Baptist church in Conway, has held the seat since 2001. From 2004 to 2007, he served as chairman of the Republican Party of Arkansas, though he’s commanded support from some big name Democrats in this race, including the Senate Majority Leader Bob Johnson.

Republican Sen. Gilbert Baker

White is a local businessman who has been active in local politics now in his first run for office, but he’s got some big guns behind him, too—notably Gov. Mike Beebe.

In a dull year for Arkansas politics, the District 30 race is one of the few to offer much entertainment value through the contenders’ punches and counterpunches. We’ve covered some of the back and forth here at the Arkansas Project: Two weeks ago, White hit Baker in an anonymous mailing on Baker’s closeness to fallen University of Central Arkansas president Lu Hardin. Baker hit back, saying that White is “mud-slinging.”

Both sides appear to be polling. White told Arkansas Democrat-Gazette reporter Seth Blomeley that he’s down by just two points (subscription required), while Baker claims a 15 point lead. I’m going to surmise that both sides are exaggerating and that it’s closer than that, with Baker up by a few points—comfortable, but not insurmountable for White.

Both sides are running TV ads—here’s a taste.

OK, so there’s a quick snapshot of the race. Now, over to you, Arkansas Project Debate Squad: Time to stand by your man. Where does this race go in the next three weeks? Does Baker hold his lead? Can White keep it competitive and pull it over the top?

Let’s fight it out in the comments section. You’re up.

On the Arkansas Legislative Front….

By David Kinkade - October 14, 2008 9:23 am

A few more notes on Arkansas legislative races:

GOP Chair Optimistic About Gains

Arkansas GOP Chair Milligan: Why is this man smiling?

The Arkansas Democrat-Gazette’s Seth Blomeley takes a look at how this year’s legislative races may shake out, noting that GOP chair Dennis Milligan is confident that Republicans will pick up as many as six seats in November.

House District 81: Karen Hopper (R) vs. Danny Rowe (D) vs. Bonnie Brown (I)

The three-way race to fill the seat of Republican Johnny Key, who’s unopposed in his bid to move to the Arkansas Senate, gets some attention in the Baxter Bulletin today.

Based on this report, the voters of District 81 are blessed with some competent and accomplished choices, though given the past GOP lean of this district, it looks as if it should be a Karen Hopper victory. Head to the comments and show me the error of my ways if you know something I don’t know.

House District 29: Ann Clemmer (R) vs. Scott Smith (D)

This has been floating around for about a week now, though I’ve not seen any news coverage of it: The right-leaning Arkansas Journal blog reports that Democratic hopeful Scott Smith’s company has allegedly been involved in some questionable business practices. Arkansas Journal points to a prohibition order from the Illinois Secretary of State’s office (opens in PDF file) barring Smith’s mortgage consulting company from doing business in the state.

The blogger also points to complaints from a developer in Georgia who claims Smith’s company owes her company $50,000. Arkansas Journal promises to update as the story develops, which could have an impact on this race in Bryant, so keep an eye on this one. (Disclosure: I made a small financial contribution to Smith’s GOP opponent, Ann Clemmer, earlier in the year.)

******

Our next edition of the Arkansas Project Debate Squad, pitting Republican Sen. Gilbert Baker against Democratic challenger Joe White in Senate District 30, is coming up shortly. Ready yourselves.

GOP Debate Watch Party, Wednesday

By David Kinkade - October 13, 2008 2:41 pm

One more time....

If you’re not tired of debates after the last two years of presidential campaigning, you are one very, very sick person.

But if you’ve got the stomach for just one more, why not head down to the Riverdale 10 Cinema in Little Rock on Wednesday night? The Republican Party of Arkansas will be hosting a watch party with a big screen broadcast of the final debate between John McCain and Barack Obama. It kicks off at 8 p.m. at 2600 Cantrell Road (in the shopping center next to Office Depot).