Gov. Hutchinson appears on ‘Meet The Press,’ talks Clintons, gay rights

Gay rights, the White House Correspondents Dinner, and a potential scandal involving Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton were among the topics discussed Sunday on a national television news show by Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson.

Hutchinson was a panelist on the NBC show “Meet the Press” discussing a recent book called “Clinton Cash” by Peter Schweizer.

The book, which will be released May 5, alleges a quid pro quo between donations accepted from the Bill, Hillary and Chelsea Clinton Foundation by foreign companies and countries, money paid for speeches given by the former president, and Hillary Clinton’s record as Secretary of State.

Opponents have called the book a political hatchet job, while supporters of Schweizer have said the book was fully vetted by media outlets like the New York Times and Washington Post. Host Chuck Todd asked Hutchinson about the issue.

“Governor Hutchinson, you’re from the Clinton’s home state. They have had accusations thrown at them, time and again. And they politically always survive. Do you think this time is different?” Todd asked.

“Does it impact her base? The Republican base? Impact the middle?” Hutchinson responded. “What this does is reminds everyone that everything about the Clintons is complicated and this story has three ramifications that bear looking at. First, it is an awful, ungodly amount of money involved. It involves a foreign source and then it involves high positions in government and important decisions (being made).”

Hutchinson also said the issue provides an interesting history lesson.

“(There has been) no evidence of a quid pro quo and Republicans need to be careful not to overstate their case. But it reminds us that the Clintons are complicated and they tend to make mistakes,” Hutchinson said.

SAME SEX MARRIAGE
The show also had a discussion about an upcoming United States Supreme Court case, Obergefell v. Hodges, involving same sex marriage. The case will be heard Tuesday in the nation’s capital.

According to the United States Supreme Court website, the case is expected to answer two questions “does the 14th Amendment (of the United States Constitution) require a state to license a marriage between two people of the same sex and does the 14th Amendment require a state to recognize a marriage between two people of the same sex when their marriage was lawfully licensed and performed out of state?”

Hutchinson said attempting to determine how justices will rule on the case was difficult, calling the situation “unpredictable.”

However, he did say he felt justices could defer to the states on some aspects of the case and that the issue has definite generational and political overtones.

Hutchinson, who attended Saturday night’s White House Correspondents Dinner, was asked what voters in Arkansas might think of the black tie comedy-laden banquet. His reply, “Peculiar.”