Author: Talk Business

Talk Business

Drug Court Funding Gets Band-aid Until Fiscal Session

After a late summer funding shortfall threatened their financial stability, Arkansas’ drug courts may make it until the 2012 fiscal session.

Jane English: The Crawfishin’ Candidate

It appears that Republican Senate candidate and current State Representative Jane English may be known as the "crawfishin’ candidate" based on my blogger colleague Jason Tolbert’s latest post.

State Gas Fracking Groups React To Forthcoming Federal Regs

The fracking debate may soon include new regulations from the federal government, with U.S. Interior Secretary Ken Salazar saying that proposals may emerge in about a month to regulate how the natural gas industry operates on federal lands.

Griffin Raises $225,000 In Third Quarter

Second District Congressman Tim Griffin (R) has turned in another solid quarter of fundraising in his re-election bid.

Perry Press Release Backfires – Highlights Eroding Support

Last Thursday, the Rick Perry Campaign sought to do some damage control in Arkansas following the endorsement of Mitt Romney by Lieutenant Governor Mark Darr and Congressman Tim Griffin. He quickly sent out a press release highlighting his Arkansas endorsements. However, it looks like he was a bit too quick.

The press release highlighted the endorsement of State Land Commissioner John Thurston and 19 GOP state legislators. Two big problems.

First, Thurston tells the AP today he has not endorsed Perry and does not plan to. He says they talked to him, but he did not endorse him. He says he also likes Herman Cain.

Another big problem, 19 state legislators is a smaller number than the 20 state legislators that formed Arkansans for Rick Perry encouraging him to jump in the race back during the summer. Missing from the list is State Rep. Jane English. I asked English about this at the Republican Party Governor’s Dinner last week and she declined to comment, but did say my observation that her name was absent was correct. I am also told by reliable sources that a couple of other names on the list are fairly soft at this point as well.

This is just another strike against Perry with his weak performance in the last couple debates.

Insurance Department Continues Push For State Health Insurance Exchanges

The Arkansas Insurance Department used part of what remains from the million dollar grant money received for Level 1 planning of implementing state health insurance exchanges to host a forum that was a mix of continued advocacy for early implementation of state exchanges and a report to the stakeholders on what has been done up to this point. Other than a bit of back-and-forth between some Republican state lawmakers and the speakers brought in to advocate for the state insurance exchange, there was not a whole lot of new territory discussed.

I did speak briefly with one of the keynote speakers – Dr. Joel Ario, immediate past director of the Federal Office of Health Insurance Exchanges. My main question that I have not really heard answered is: How will the federal government outsourcing the health insurance exchange to the state be any different in the end product that the taxpayer uses?

"It depends on how the state chooses," explained Ario. "The most important issues are how do you work with insurers, do you have low bars and essentially have a lot of insurance come into the marketplace so that there is a lot of choice and sort of let the marketplace sort it out, or do you try to do a competitive bidding process and whittle it down to the insurers? That’s a big decision that states have to make."

"What kind of options should be available to small businesses on the exchange? That’s a big decision. Should it be a model where the employer puts the money in and employees choose the plan or should it be a model where the employer picks the plan for the employees? Both of those are possible, you can choose one or the other in the exchange," he added.

"The state would run the exchange in the state exchange model and there would be some federal regulation but a minimum set of standards, a floor regulation if you will, and then states have a lot of flexibility about the floor," responded Ario to my question as to how much flexibility the state would have in setting up the exchange. "If you see the federal government running the exchange, then the federal government is making those decisions. The federal government is still going to reach out to the states and want input, but it is a much different thing for the federal government running the exchange asking for input that it can take or not take versus the state running it and having to meet minimal standards and being accountable only for those standards and making its own choices above that floor."

Indiana Trucking Firm Reportedly Making Bid For Usa Truck (updated)

Reuters reports that dry goods hauler Celadon Group has asked to meet with USA Truck’s management to discuss a potential merger between the two firms.

West Virginia Offers Arkansas Democrats A Blueprint For Success

A week ago today a Democrat won the race for Governor in West Virgina and that victory may have implications for next year’s general election in Arkansas.

Egs Wagers Continue To Climb

Everything continues to come up aces with gambling wagers at the state’s two permitted electronic gaming centers.

Conway, Morrilton Ink Economic Development Deal

The communities of Conway and Morrilton are making plans to work more closely on regional projects.

Gene Jeffress Makes It Official In The Fourth (updated)

Term-limited State Sen. Gene Jeffress (D-Louann) has been saying publicly he would jump in the Fourth District Congressional race, which is now an open seat thanks to retiring Rep. Mike Ross (D). Jeffress has yet to put a visible campaign structure together or reach out to the media in a formal fashion, but his brother, State Sen. Jimmy Jeffress (D-Crossett), issued this statement on his Facebook page today.

Arkansas’ ‘fifth Congressman’ Dies

Ray Reid, the chief of staff for U.S. Rep. John Paul Hammerschmidt (R) who was often known as Arkansas’ “Fifth Congressman,” has died.

He was 89. Reid, who passed away on Saturday, is survived by his wife, Jean, and three daughters.

Reid served more than 23 years as chief of staff to Hammerschmidt and U.S. Reps. Tim Hutchinson (R) and Asa Hutchinson (R) during their service as Arkansas’ 3rd District Congressmen.

Prior to joining Hammerschmidt’s office as chief of staff, Reid retired from the U.S. Army as a full colonel. During Reid’s more than 30 years in the Army, he worked in various departments in the Pentagon, including a stint as liaison between the Pentagon and Congress.

“Ray Reid was certainly valuable to my entire service to the 3rd District,” Hammerschmidt tells our content partner, The City Wire. “In my opinion, he was the best administrative assistant in the House on Capitol Hill in those days. … I’m very grateful to him for 23 years of public service.”

‘PART OF THE GENIUS’

Hammerschmidt said early in his Congressional career that a staffer suggested the recently retired Reid would be a good chief of staff.

“He (staffer) told me he (Reid) was a retired colonel, and I said, ‘I don’t need one of those, because I’ve been one of those,’” joked Hammerschmidt, who was an Army Air Corps pilot during World War II.

The Hammerschmidt-Reid team is credited by several as producing one of the best constituent services programs in Congressional history.

U.S. Rep. Steve Womack, R-Rogers, who now serves the 3rd District, said he did not personally know Reid but is aware he was “part of the genius” of the work that came out of Hammerschmidt’s office.

“I can tell you that a Congressman is only as successful as his staff, and that begins with the chief,” Womack noted.

GUIDING FORCE

Rep. Uvalde Lindsey, D-Fayetteville, was part of the management team at the Northwest Arkansas Council during Reid’s time with Hammerschmidt.

“Ray was the guiding force to John Paul Hammerschmidt’s constituent service record. John Paul, as we all know, was the very best elected official at taking care of constituent problems and their requests for help,” Lindsey explained. “Ray put together a process and trained the staff to ensure all that happened. John Paul told Ray what he wanted to happen with constituent service, and Ray had to create that. … Ray had to instill that spirit of constituent service.”

Lindsey said Reid also knew how to open just the right doors during efforts to authorize and fund construction of the Northwest Arkansas Regional Airport and Interstate 540 between Alma and Fayetteville.

“Ray would be the one to make the calls to the appropriate chief of staff” for the appropriate committee and “get you an appointment,” Lindsey said. “Sometimes the only reason you could get in the door was because Ray had made the calls. … But the thing is, Ray made the calls on behalf of John Paul.”

Reid also could dish out tough love when constituents would ask for something impossible or inappropriate.

“I can tell you that sometimes he would say, ‘Uvalde, this idea isn’t going to hunt.’ So, he would be very frank with you if he had to,” Lindsey said.

FIFTH CONGRESSMAN

“Anything good that’s happened for this part of the state … Ray Reid somewhere had his hand on it,” said Billy Dooly, former president of the Fort Smith Chamber of Commerce. “People don’t realize how much he did for Arkansas and this (Congressional) district, but it was more than we’ll ever know and that’s why he was often called our ‘Fifth Congressman.’”

Dooly worked with Reid in several different phases of their lives. First, Dooly was a young Army officer assigned to the Pentagon and frequently reported to Reid. When Dooly became chamber president, they worked together while Reid was Hammerschmidt’s chief of staff.

And in the late 1990s, Hammerschmidt was appointed by then Gov. Mike Huckabee to draft a report on Arkansas’ highway needs. Reid served as Hammerschmidt’s aide during that process, and, because the funding and construction of Interstate 49 was a top chamber priority, Dooly and Reid again worked together.

“That was yet another contribution he made to our state,” Hammerschmidt said of the highway report. “Ray really loved Arkansas.”

When Hammerschmidt’s work with the highway report ended, Dooly helped convince the I-49 Coalition to hire Reid as a consultant.

“In the Pentagon and in his Army time, he was a soldier’s soldier. Ray was respected by everyone on the Washington scene, at all levels,” Dooly said when asked to summarize his thoughts about Reid.

MENTOR, GENTLEMAN

David Olive said Reid was instrumental during the January 1997 transition when Olive became chief of staff for U.S. Rep. Asa Hutchinson, R-Fort Smith.

“He was just a magnificent mentor and a gentleman,” Olive said.

Olive, the founder of Catalyst Partners, a Washington D.C.-based government relations and public affairs firm, said Reid is still remembered as tops in providing constituent service. Olive said Reid would “read every single letter” to a constituent written by a staffer to ensure the grammar was correct, the name was spelled correctly and the most recent info was in the letter.

“That office might send out 1,000 to 1,500 letters a week, but to the person who received a letter, it was the only letter they received from their Congressman. And Ray knew that,” Olive explained.

BIG LESSONS

Olive said Reid provided three “big lessons” during the early 1997 transition.

• Oversight

“He stepped back from his role as an active day-to-day leader and moved into a mentor role with great ease. … He allowed us to learn, but protected us from things that had been tried before but didn’t work.”

• Avoid partisanship

“He literally knew everybody. He had been in some of the biggest issues when they (Republicans) were in the minority, and he was there when the (House Speaker) Newt Gingrich era took over the House. But there was never an arrogant or partisan attitude with him or among the staff. … Also, there were very few disputes in his career that were of a personal nature. If he disagreed with you, you knew it was on philosophy or maybe on protocol, but it was never personal.”

• Seek long-term relationships

“Obviously there are some things you have to do on a short-term basis, but it’s always better to consider the long-term. And we learned from that (Reid mentoring) approach that better policy, better legislation often comes when you build a larger and stronger base” of support.

Olive also said the office of U.S. Sen. John Boozman, R-Ark., still employs the “Ray Reid rule.” The rule requires staffers to leave the office by 5 p.m. on a Friday — barring any special legislative action.

“Mr. Reid insisted that people have a life outside the office,” Olive explained. “It was designed to keep people from burning out, and it has definitely been practiced and handed down for many, many years.”

Olive said the rule is “indicative of how Ray looked after the young idealistic kids who would come to Washington, because it’s so easy to get caught up in 18 hour days.”

FUNERAL PLANS

Hammerschmidt said he spoke with Jean, Reid’s wife, and the plans are for a funeral ceremony in Fairfax, Va., on Saturday (Oct. 15).

Following that, Reid is scheduled to be buried at Arlington National Cemetery. However, Jean told Hammerschmidt there is a waiting list for burials and it could be several weeks before a military graveside service is conducted.

Hammerschmidt used the delay to exemplify his thoughts about Reid.

“I told someone today that if Ray was here he could get himself moved to the front of the (burial) line.”

Michael Tilley with our content partner, The City Wire, is the author of this report. He can be reached by e-mail at [email protected].

Darr Challenges Beebe ‘partisan’ Comment

Lt. Governor Mark Darr (R) took slight issue in his bi-weekly column with a recent comment from Gov. Mike Beebe (D).

Meet Mike Ross’ Democratic Successor

In case you missed it, State Sen. Gene Jeffress (D-Louann) announced today that he will seek the Democratic nomination to succeed Congressman Mike Ross in south Arkansas. If you did miss it, you are not alone – even the press missed this one. Why? It seems Sen. Jeffress did not send out a press release. We found out about it from his brother (and fellow per diem collector) state Sen. Jimmy Jeffress’ Facebook page.

"My brother, Senator Gene Jeffress, made an official announcement this morning of his candidacy for U. S. Congress in Arkansas’ 4th District. He is seeking the post being vacated by Rep. Mike Ross. The 4th District encompasses almost half of the geography of the state of Arkansas," posted Jimmy.

Anyway, it looks like the Jeffress campaign is off to a slow start. How slow? He tells the Associated Press last week that his campaign so far "hasn’t raised a penny." By contrast, his potential Republican opponents combined have raised over a half million dollars.

Darr Takes Exception To Beebe’s Partisanship Comments

Lieutenant Governor Mark Darr uses his bi-weekly column this week to take on Gov. Mike Beebe’s comments last week saying that the state legislature has become too partisan. I think it is worth a read…

Governor Beebe was quoted recently in the state newspaper saying that partisanship in the Arkansas House of Representatives is “scary”. No disrespect to the governor, but from what I’ve seen, I would have to characterize the situation in the Legislature a bit differently.

For over 100 years in Arkansas, the Democratic Party in Arkansas has operated in an environment in which they were virtually unchallenged in the state’s legislative chambers and for the most part, the executive branch. At present, the Republican Party is still the minority party.

There are, of course, some legacies of prolonged partisan dominance that have continued. For example, on the powerful House Rules committee, Democrats maintain a 2-to-1 majority. Is that a fair balance? Some in the legislature yearn to cling to the idyllic times when the Speaker of the House, always a Democrat, assigns all committee chairmanships to Democrats. Fortunately, this practice has changed over the past few General Assemblies, as some Republicans have received appointments.

Currently in the Arkansas Senate, Democrat senators get to choose their committee preferences first before a single Republican gets to choose the committees on which they wish to serve, regardless of seniority. We’ve seen over the years that when a majority is too comfortable in government, things like transparency and accountability weaken.

Now, the Governor was elected as a Democrat. I was elected as a Republican. We both represent the same constituents. Arkansans expect both of us, along with our other elected colleagues to do what’s best for Arkansas, regardless of what party we belong to. However, this does not mean that we will not both speak out on issues from divergent perspectives.

Naturally, partisanship is going to exist in the Capitol. Political parties wouldn’t exist otherwise. But, it’s not all bad. The truth is that divided government can be good for democracy. It fosters debate on issues rather than allowing the whims of the majority to be imposed by default. We’ve seen this scenario at the federal level in Washington many times.

The go-along-to-get-along approach can be nice and collegial, sure, but is it what’s best for constituents? The Legislature debates serious issues that affect people’s daily lives. The focus should be on doing what’s right, not just appeasing a colleague. With as many bills as are filed during a legislative session, there are myriad opportunities for and examples of bipartisan cooperation.

We need legislators to engage one another in the arena of ideas. State capitols are often called the laboratories of democracy. New models of government efficiency and policy are developed across the country by state governments. Some are successful and some are not. But, what’s important is that competing ideas are discussed. The norms of government are challenged. When policies that have been in place for decades are proven not to work, there needs to be a push for change and if that happens to come from an opposition party, then so be it.

Also, executives should never assume that members of their own party will always support their proposals. Earlier this year, President Obama submitted a budget proposal to Capitol Hill. Not one member of the United States Senate, from either party, supported it. We have separation of powers for a reason and it’s a good thing.

I hope that you don’t take away from this article that I want our state lawmakers to withdraw to their respective partisan camps and fight constantly and contentiously like the politicians in Washington. The point I want to communicate is that competitive ideas and disagreements are natural components of our republic. Change is inevitable. At the end of the day, the citizens still hold the power, with their voice and their vote. And, if those they elect do what’s right, there should be nothing scary about that.