John Burris: Asa And Cool Hand Luke

The leadership of the Arkansas House of Representatives convened all new members last week for the Legislative Institute.

It’s a weeklong series of events meant to prepare for the approaching storm. I participated in a couple of mock sessions, a courtesy they extend to old has-beens like me. The leadership did a good job organizing. The new class is talented and will do well.

As I stood on the floor of the House, looking at all the new political faces, I remembered how easy it is to forget all the things that the not-so-new faces have seen before. We all have a tendency to think that a party doesn’t start until we arrive.

Governor-elect Asa Hutchinson is one of the not-so-new faces, which is a compliment of course. He’s an unassuming but quietly confident man who has seen a lot.

During House orientation, I wondered if I were to describe a series of previous events involving a not-so-new face, what would the talented new politicos of 2014 remember?

Would they know about a 1980’s event involving a cult named “The Covenant, The Sword, The Arm of the Lord?” Some would know nothing. Most would probably be like me, which would be to remember some of the details of that one event back then, but not enough to speak specifically.

The basic story is this: Asa Hutchinson, a young Reagan-appointed U.S. Attorney, confronted the dangerous group. With their compound surrounded but progress at a standstill, Asa put on a flack jacket, walked past hundreds of highly trained Federal law enforcement officers and into a compound full of armed white supremacists who were refusing to cooperate. He successfully negotiated their surrender. No shots were fired. And remember, all this was at a time before politicians could do things for Twitter traffic or Facebook likes.

Moving on, sometimes I fail to recall that Congressman Hutchinson served as a lead prosecutor in the impeachment of his home-state President. Read that last sentence again. It’s a big deal. It’s a topic I’ll likely get scolded by some for discussing, but I have a point. Even in that emotional and tense time in our country’s history, most I talk to acknowledge that Asa was consistently the adult in the room. Even if he didn’t relish his role, he performed it respectfully and calmly.

More recently, after the Sandy Hook school shooting tragedy, as the country reeled into a debate about our 2nd Amendment rights, the National Rifle Association (NRA) called on Asa Hutchinson, then a private citizen, to be its representative on the national stage. He led the task force, served as a spokesman for our right to bear arms, and waded with a level head through an emotionally charged debate.

What am I trying to say? Our soon-to-be Governor has a career full of competent and courageous leadership in difficult times. He’s a problem solver, not a problem manager.

Why is this history relevant? State government is full of problems bubbling just under the surface, such as ones I dealt with from the Forestry Commission, Veterans Home and the Lottery. They’re like a dumpster fire: contained unto themselves, but they’re hot and hard to put out, so it’s easier to let them burn. Most walk away. But Asa has never been the walk away type. He’s been the guy that steps up when most needed.

I’ve heard much chatter from the Capital Hotel Bar crowd about a thing they call “brain-drain.” Apparently the CHB thinks the only way state government will survive is if it keeps being run by the same people for all of eternity.

But alas, the party didn’t start on Sunday, December 7th when talented new members rolled into Little Rock for orientation. It won’t end when a bunch of laudable and competent government folks exit the stage come January. Thankfully, we’ll have a quiet, competent Governor who’s handled a few things in his day. A little bit of a Cool Hand Luke, I would say.

So, the party will go on. The attendees change, sometimes for the worse, but often for the better.