Arkansas' delegation relishes spotlight at GOP convention

LITTLE ROCK -- With four of its top political figures tapped for primetime speeches, Arkansas Republicans heading to the GOP's national convention will have a much higher profile than it did when it was a Democratic stronghold.

The convention that begins Monday in Cleveland will be the first since Arkansas Republicans swept statewide and federal offices two years ago and won control of the state Legislature in 2012. Arkansas' top elected Republicans hope to highlight the party's rise to power in the adopted home state of presumptive Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton.

"The Republican Party of Arkansas is probably the best success story the national party has over the past six years," said U.S. Sen. Tom Cotton, who's expected to speak at the convention Monday night.

Gov. Asa Hutchinson, Attorney General Leslie Rutledge and former Gov. Mike Huckabee are also on the convention speaker lineup. For state Republican Party Chairman Doyle Webb, it's the biggest spotlight he's seen the state receive at a national convention.

"Certainly that role signifies that people have been listening to what has been occurring in Arkansas," Webb said.

The convention comes as some of the state's top Republicans are still wary of Trump after a divisive primary season. The billionaire and reality television star won Arkansas' primary in March, but the state's top GOP leaders had backed other hopefuls. Hutchinson had initially backed Huckabee and then U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio in the presidential contest. Texas U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz had also enjoyed the support of some of the state's top Republicans in the White House race.

State Rep. Bob Ballinger, a delegate who had co-chaired Cruz's campaign, said last week he was not sure whether he'd support Trump in the fall election and held out hope the party could nominate someone else. Ballinger said he hoped to see Trump act more presidential at this week's convention.

"I hope (Trump) doesn't do anything so stupid that it makes it where people can't rally around him," Ballinger said. "I would love for him to grow up and be a presidential nominee, but at this point he's not shown he can sustain that for more than 10 minutes."

Hutchinson said he thinks the state's 40-member delegation is unifying behind Trump, saying the presumptive nominee's choice of Indiana Gov. Mike Pence as his running mate will help. Hutchinson praised Pence as the "perfect choice" for balancing the ticket.

He acknowledged that some Republicans have had concerns about Trump.

"I wouldn't say they're totally diminished," Hutchinson said. "But the fact that some of the steps that Donald Trump has taken, the selection of his vice president and the passage of time, all of those things have served to bring us all together in support of the nominee and the hard-fought battle that's going to be ahead in November."

Hutchinson, who said he also plans to talk to two or three other state delegations, said he planned to talk in his primetime speech about what's stake in the election and the successes he believes Arkansas has had under Republican control.

The convention will also allow Cotton to raise his profile even further. The freshman senator has enjoyed national attention since taking office and has been touted as a potential presidential hopeful -- speculation that prompted lawmakers last year to pass a measure that would allow him to run for president and for re-election in 2020.

Cotton, who served in the Army in Iraq and Afghanistan, said he planned to talk in his primetime speech about the nation's troops and how he doesn't believe the Obama administration has adequately funded the military. Cotton acknowledged there are areas he's disagreed with Trump, but said those concerns are outweighed by those he has with Clinton.

"I obviously have some disagreements with Donald Trump and when I have those disagreements I've stated them clearly," Cotton said. "But I do believe we would be safer and more prosperous if Republicans win across the board in November."

State Desk on 07/18/2016

Upcoming Events