GOP chair: State should ‘take advantage of’ federal health care dollars; Trump on track

The chairman of the state Republican Party said Arkansas should “take advantage of” federal money for health care as long as it’s offered and predicted that Donald Trump would win the Indiana primary, setting him up to reach the 1,237-delegate threshold to win his party’s nomination on the first ballot.

Doyle Webb made those comments Tuesday (May 3) during a joint appearance with Democratic Party of Arkansas Chairman Vince Insalaco before the Political Animals Club at the Governor’s Mansion.

After praising Gov. Asa Hutchinson, Webb pointed to two of the governor’s initiatives: a plan to raise about $50 million next year for highways and continue raising money in later years in order to qualify for matching federal funds; and Arkansas Works, Hutchinson’s plan to continue using federal Medicaid funds to purchase private health insurance for a quarter million Arkansans.

“Yes, it’s time that we take advantage of offerings from the federal government, whether it’s a highway program that if we come up with $200 million in match, we can build and improve our highways. Whether it’s health care, if it’s offered from the federal government, then we should seize upon it to help the quality of life of our people,” he said.

Arkansas Works recently was enacted despite strong opposition from some Republican legislators, including 10 senators. Asked afterwards if his comment is an endorsement of the program, Webb said, “It has now passed. We now have it. It is law, it is funded, and it is a conservative method of taking advantage of a federal offering and putting a conservative spin on it. The majority of the majority chose to go in this direction, and certainly I support the majority of the majority, and I certainly support the minority that has opposed it, because they have the right to oppose it as well.”

Webb also predicted that Trump would “potentially” win the Indiana primary, setting him up to win the party’s nomination without a floor flight at the Republican National Convention in Cleveland. Webb said Trump’s vice presidential choice will play an important role.

Insalaco, meanwhile, said the contest on the Democratic side would be tight, but because the Democrats award delegates on a proportional basis, the impact would be minor. He said Democrats will have to marry the different coalitions created by Hillary Clinton and U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders, and called Clinton “maybe the most qualified person to ever run for president of the United States.”

The two chairmen argued back and forth on several occasions. Insalaco referred to Conner Eldridge, the Democrats’ candidate for U.S. Senate, as “Senator Eldridge.” Webb later responded by saying that Eldridge had been appointed U.S. attorney by President Obama.

“It’s Obama’s man vs. John Boozman in Arkansas. John Boozman wins,” he said.

Insalaco responded by saying, “You know, I thought we were going to try and graduate from that kind of thing, but obviously, we’re not, so I’ll just get right to it.”

He said Eldridge is his own man and that U.S. Sen. John Boozman has accomplished little while in office besides renaming four post offices in Northwest Arkansas. He criticized Boozman for saying he would support Donald Trump if he is the party’s nominee. He said Arkansans are turning the page on the Obama presidency, which has been unpopular here, and Democrats will pick up seats in the state Legislature this year.

Webb predicted that the party will win Arkansas’ six electoral votes, that it will maintain all six congressional seats, and that it will make gains in the Arkansas House and Senate. He said 400,000 Arkansans, or 64% of this year’s voters, voted in the Republican primary. The party now has 75 active county committees and is building a Rockefeller Republican Center “that will seat all 135 Republican legislators.” The party had 800 candidates file at the county level, more than 500 of them running unopposed.

Insalaco said Republicans have moved in his party’s direction on health care. After his party’s candidates have been getting killed over Obamacare, state Republicans embraced Arkansas Works and may one day come to his party’s side when it comes to pre-K education, he said. He said pre-K education will be one of the party’s top priorities.

The two also disagreed about the length of time Republican domination will continue. Insalaco said, “I believe there are no such things as permanent majorities anymore.” Webb said, “We’re here to stay. We’re here to stay as the majority party.”