Congressional Candidates Seek Social Conservatives’ Votes

The three Republican candidates for Congress in central Arkansas’ Second District appealed to socially conservative voters Wednesday in a forum sponsored by the Family Council that touched on education, abortion, illegal immigration and other issues.

On education, banker French Hill expressed support for charter schools and school choice and said the federal Department of Education should be eliminated.

State Rep. Ann Clemmer, R-Benton, pointed to her votes for school choice, for lifting the state’s cap on charter schools, and for allowing home-schooled students to participate in extracurricular activities. She criticized the Arkansas Scholarship Lottery for providing too small a percentage of its proceeds for scholarships.

Clemmer and Reynolds both were asked about their support for the Common Core State Standards, a series of shared educational standards originally adopted by 45 states until Indiana recently dropped out of the movement. The issue has become a divisive issue in the Republican Party.

Clemmer complained about the federal government’s involvement in education, but said schools need to be measured on their performance. A professor at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock, she said too many students require remediation after making A’s and B’s in high school.

Col. Conrad Reynolds expressed opposition to Common Core. “Let’s get rid of it,” he said. “It’s rotten to the core as far as I’m concerned, and it’s not something that I want the federal government mandating to the states.”

After the event, Hill’s campaign responded to a request for his position on Common Core with this quote:

“With respect to Common Core, I believe that parents, school boards, administrators, and state officials should make curriculum and education decisions at the local level.  We must also set high, measurable standards and demand accountability for all students,schools, and teachers,” Hill said.

Regarding abortion, Hill described the need to create a “culture of life,” while Clemmer spoke at length about her support of a 2013 bill passed by the Legislature banning abortions after 12 weeks. She mentioned her endorsement by the Susan B. Anthony List, which supports pro-life candidates, usually women.

“I think Washington needs more conservative women speaking on the issue of life,” she said.

Reynolds and Hill took decidedly different tones on illegal immigration.

Reynolds emphasized the need to limit benefits for illegal immigrants and said that Arkansas’ passage of the so-called Medicaid private option could attract illegal immigrants from neighboring states.

Hill expressed support for border security verification and called for expanding access for students from overseas who might then earn advanced degrees and start businesses. He said consensus is needed to address the current illegal immigrant population.

“If I’m elected, you’ll view me as a constructive person to work on what is a super-complicated topic,” he said.

Each candidate had 15 minutes to speak and take questions. This was a tame affair compared to a spirited debate Saturday before the Arkansas Federation of Young Republicans, when Hill, the presumed frontrunner, took fire for donating money to Democrats in the past and for his support of a citywide tax increase. Reynolds did say he was a “loyal Republican” who had never given to a Democrat or advocated for a tax increase. Hill did not respond in his remarks, and Clemmer did not pursue the issue.

The winner of the Republican primary in the Second District faces Democrat Pat Hays and Libertarian candidate Debbie Standiford in November.