Hutchinson Says He’ll Vote For Minimum Wage Ballot Initiative

The Republican nominee for governor said Thursday that he will support a ballot measure to raise the minimum wage as he and his Democratic rival argued over the issue.

Former Congressman Asa Hutchinson was in Newport talking to Jackson County Republicans during a lunch at Hunan Restaurant.

After the talk, Hutchinson, who is being challenged by Democrat Mike Ross, Libertarian Frank Gilbert and Green party candidate Josh Drake, spoke with Talk Business and Politics about a series of issues.

In the past several weeks, Hutchinson has touted a plan to teach computer coding in Arkansas schools as part of a way to help create skilled jobs.

He told fellow Republicans that he was impressed by a recent tour of the Arkansas State University-Newport campus. The campus, along with several area colleges and technical centers, have worked in a program called ADTEC or Arkansas Delta Training and Education Consortium. The program teaches career and workforce training classes, as well as works with businesses to meet their training needs, according to the program’s website.

“There is a strong partnership but I think the state can do a better job,” Hutchinson said. “We should use career education to teach a skill that will lead to a job.”

Hutchinson said the state’s business community and educators can work to build a better program, noting he would like to see funding go to the state’s two-year colleges and high schools to help meet the need.

Ross, who was in Jonesboro on Wednesday, said he supports building partnerships between business and government.

“We need greater partnership with our community colleges and existing industry to help more Arkansans get the skills and training they need to land a good-paying job for themselves and their families,” Ross said.

He said he also supports offering more school-to-work programs, as well as tech prep, career academies and internships for students.

HIGHWAYS
Another issue that has gotten interest in Northeast Arkansas has been highway construction.

Among the areas of frustration among residents in the region is a lack of a complete 4-lane highway from Northeast Arkansas to Little Rock as well as problems with state highways and bridges.

Hutchinson said the four-lane issue would be taken care of if he is elected governor.

“The four-lane to Jonesboro has taken too long to happen. I am committed to it and it will happen during my terms as governor. When an industry looks at an area, one of the first things they look at is infrastructure,” Hutchinson said, noting an overall goal is to help existing businesses and new businesses alike. “But Arkansas has to compete with other areas on regulatory issues, incentives and economic development.”

If elected, Hutchinson said that he would appoint someone from the Jonesboro area to serve on the Arkansas Highway Commission when a vacancy occurs on the five-member board in January. The 10-year term of Chairman John Ed Regenold of Armorel, who was appointed by Gov. Mike Huckabee in 2005, will end in January 2015.

Ross said the highway issue is a key part of the state’s future.

“Northeast Arkansas is a growing part of our state with a lot of potential and I am absolutely committed to ensuring Northeast Arkansas’s representation on the Arkansas Highway Commission and that we fully fund infrastructure to support the region’s growth, such as U.S. 67 and Arkansas 226,” Ross said in a statement. “Jonesboro, in particular is a trade hub for Northeast Arkansas and important to our state’s overall economy and I’m committed to ensuring they have the infrastructure necessary to grow, move commerce and attract and create jobs.”

MINIMUM WAGE
On Wednesday, Secretary of State Mark Martin qualified a ballot request to raise the state’s minimum wage incrementally from $6.25 per hour to $8.50 per hour by 2017.

On Thursday, Hutchinson reiterated a statement he made on Wednesday about the November ballot proposal.

“It is ridiculous for Congressman Ross to continue attacking me on this issue as I have consistently supported raising Arkansas’s minimum wage and even publicly stated my support in December of 2013 while Mike said he was studying whether Arkansas should raise the minimum wage,” Hutchinson said Wednesday.

“Furthermore, I believe it should be raised to match the federal level. Historically, the legislature periodically adjusts upward the minimum wage and it is appropriate to do so now. I would prefer that the legislature address the matter so that in the future, the minimum wage can be increased, as needed, with a simple majority which is an easier process. On the ballot initiative, if passed, it will accomplish my overall objective of seeing the minimum wage increased and any further action by the legislature will depend upon the November vote.”

However, Hutchinson did express reservations that raising the rate too high — such as a federal proposal to raise the minimum wage from $7.25 to $10.10 per hour — could be a job killer.

“There is also the CBO (Congressional Budget Office) study that shows if you raise it too high, it will cost 100,000 jobs. The other day, I was talking to a blue-collar group and people came up to me. They said ‘if you raise it too high, you will lose jobs.’ And people do understand it.”

On Thursday, the Ross campaign challenged Hutchinson on the issue.

“I support the ballot measure and Congressman Hutchinson does not,” Ross said. “In Congress, I consistently voted to raise the minimum wage and since then I have consistently called for increasing the minimum wage. I supported the ballot measure, signed the ballot’s petition and will vote for the ballot measure this November to give hardworking Arkansans a raise. My opponent, Congressman Hutchinson, voted against raising the minimum wage multiple times when he was in Congress and has consistently opposed the ballot measure to raise the minimum wage and he opposes raising the minimum wage to $8.50 by 2017.”

But Hutchinson countered that he did plan to vote for the state minimum wage ballot measure this November, even though he disagreed with the route to raising the wage.

“Even though it is not the ideal way to raise the rate, I will vote for the initiative because it is in line with the main objective of raising the rate,” Hutchinson told Talk Business & Politics.

BATTLEGROUND REGION
It has been said that Northeast Arkansas may provide the difference in who wins and who loses Nov. 4.

Ross was in Jonesboro Wednesday to campaign while Hutchinson was in Newport and Paragould Thursday.

According to a state map measuring political strength released last year by Republican strategist Clint Reed, both Craighead and Greene counties are “purple” or so-called battleground counties while Jackson County leans Democrat.

Hutchinson said his message has built a connection with voters.

“I am very pleased on where we are in the campaign,” Hutchinson said. “We are leading in most of the polls and have concentrated our focus on economic development and jobs. My being the jobs governor, I believe, has resonated with voters.”

Hutchinson said the campaign may come down to about 10 percent of the vote, with disaffected Democrats possibly being a decisive factor.

“There are two kinds of Democrats. There are Democrats who have switched to the Republican identity. They recognize that the Democratic party has left them and that number is growing,” Hutchinson said. “Then there are Democrats, but who will vote Republican this year. They understand that Republicans have voted against bigger government, against government run healthcare and for freedom.”

Ross said Northeast Arkansas will definitely play a role this year.

“I absolutely agree that Northeast Arkansas will be a battleground for the rest of the campaign, which is why I’ve spent so much time traveling through the area, talking to voters and listening to them and their concerns,” Ross said. “This race is getting a lot of national attention and Congressman Hutchinson’s old Washington pals are doing everything they can to help him win, including airing a TV ad smearing my wife and me with accusations proven ‘false and defamatory’ by the independent FactCheck.org.”

Late Thursday, Hutchinson responded to the remark about the commercial.

“Mike needs to look at the attack ads that his DGA allies in D.C. have been running against me and my wife that have been called false. Did he call for those to be taken down? No, he did not and he has not. Voters don’t like negative ads but they don’t like hypocrisy either,” Hutchinson said. “The fact is that outside groups are spending too much money on negative ads when the voters want to hear what the candidates will do for Arkansas. I have as much control over the RGA as Mike Ross has over the DGA, and he knows that. My campaign has been positive, and I’m excited about the response from Arkansas voters about my plan for job creation and economic growth for our great state.”