Monday, January 31, 2011
Arkansas Politics Judicious spending
So. Back to work after three weeks off
And what does the e-mail bring?
Henry's close friendship with Goodson, a major political player, has been widely known in legal circles for some time. She was sued for divorce June 14, shortly after her election in late May to a seat on the Supreme Court (her campaign focused on her sensitivity to family issues). The list of gifts she reported receiving from Goodson included a $5,500 expenditure June 10 for "lodging, expenditures and entertainment."
Henry, in an effort to fully disclose the benefits she'd received from a member of the bar, somehow forgot to report her income in 2010 as a member of the Arkansas Court of Appeals. She did report that she is in debt to Goodson for more than $5,000. There is no other elaboration on the debt.
Thoughts? There's this. The new justice portrayed herself in a misleading way, many believe, including former supporters, given that her divorce was in the mill long before her election but her expensive TV campaign pitched her interest in families. But that's just politics. More directly. Can a sitting judge receive expensive gifts from an admirer, as long as she reports them? I think the answer is yes. If somebody knows otherwise, let me know.
PS — Yes. She of course will recuse from the cases her boyfriend and his firm might bring before her court.
* I append on the jump the House of Representatives news release on the wondrous ethics legislation. Gerard and Jason Tolbert have dealt with this adequately previously. It's self-serving, insignificant trivia. Republicans got tooled by House Speaker Robert Moore. They got a headline for nothing. And all the insiders know it. Drinks and steaks are on the lobbyists, boys and girls, meet you at Sonny Williams.
Posted by Max Brantley on | Permalink | Comments (32)
He's baaaaaack
OK, I'm back.
It took 39 hours from the boat landing in Hong Kong, through a night in the weirdly empty enormous Beijing airport, to a lucky transit ahead of snow in O'Hare to be here, but here I am.
I regret I wasn't here to note Carol Griffee's passing. There's a famous Arkansas Gazette story about her trip to Washington to cover the Wilbur Mills Tidal Basin scandal in 1974. She'd run younger reporters ragged. When one of them returned to the Gazette bureau after a long siege of coverage, and found Carol no longer on the phone, working sources, he exclaimed, "The Grif is gone."
She arose from behind a desk, where she'd been catching a few winks between investigative duties, and shouted, "Oh, no I'm not."
Same thing for me.
Posted by Max Brantley on | Permalink | Comments (18)
I'm outta here
You pick up the slack.
Posted by Gerard Matthews on | Permalink | Comments (29)
Arkansas Politics Legislative rundown
Ethics reform, schmethics reform: It seems like everybody but the legislators that co-sponsored the bi-partisan ethics bill filed today like it (Don't forget Max's take on the proposals). The bill would grandfather in a "cooling off period" of one year instead of two, meaning it wouldn't apply to any lawmaker that voted for it. Gov. Beebe has said the cooling off period should be two years. Jason Tolbert writes, "It amazes how many legislators are fearful of standing up to Gov. Beebe on the budget but not to protect their own ability to land lucrative lobbyist jobs."
Dropped call: Lawmakers voted down a bill that would have banned the use of cell phones in school zones. I honestly can't imagine why. Seems like a good idea to make sure people aren't distracted by their phones while zooming past kids. The bill's sponsor, Fred Allen, D-Little Rock, says he thinks he can get enough votes to bring the bill back up for a vote.
Limiting lotto benefits: The Joint Committee on Public Retirement and Social Security sent a bill to the full Senate that would limit retirement benefits for top lottery officials like Director Ernie Passailaigue. Benefits would be paid on the employee's base salary under the law, not what they actually make.
Posted by Gerard Matthews on | Permalink | Comments (7)
Environment Planning in Lake Maumelle
As we told you in our December 30th issue, today is the deadline for public input on a proposed land use plan under consideration by Pulaski County government that is intended to, “ensure that growth patterns and intensities of development within the (Lake Maumelle) watershed are consistent with the protection of our water supply, as well as of the scenic, recreational, and economic value of the watershed to our region.”
But good luck to anyone seeking information on where to direct your comments. There is nothing on the Pulaski County website providing guidance and to top that there is not even an announcement the county is seeking public input. You can view the plan, and see other public comments, here. Be sure to read the story above for some background. If you're concerned about developments in, and regulations regarding, the watershed, you can email your comments to Pulaski County's director of planning and development, Van McClendon, at vmcclendon@co.pulaski.ar.us. All comments received at this email address before midnight tonight will be taken into account.
Posted by Gerard Matthews on | Permalink | Comments (1)
Mike Huckabee Huck in the Promised Land
Floridian and Fox News employee Mike Huckabee put on his "Presidential" hat yesterday, appearing with actor Jon Voight at the laying of a cornerstone for a controversial new Israeli settlement in East Jerusalem.
Too many links to link at the site above about Bro. Huck's previous pronouncements on the Israeli/Palestinian conflict, but the one that sums up his feelings on the issue is: In 2007, Huckabee said "there's no such thing as a Palestinian."
The Jerusalem Post has video..
Posted by David Koon on | Permalink | Comments (6)
Politics / Health Care Judge says mandate unconstitutional, winks at Tea Party
Another federal judge ruled that the individual mandate portion of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act is unconstitutional. Judge Roger Vinson, of the federal district court in Pensacola, made the ruling earlier today. He is the second federal judge to do so. Two federal judges, both appointed by our very own President Bill Clinton, have ruled to uphold the law. The New York Times has more details, but Slate's David Weigel found this little nugget contained in Vinson's ruling. Looks like a little bit of a Tea Party shout-out, does it not? From Vinson's opinion:
It is difficult to imagine that a nation which began, at least in part, as the result of opposition to a British mandate giving the East India Company a monopoly and imposing a nominal tax on all tea sold in America would have set out to create a government with the power to force people to buy tea in the first place.
Posted by Gerard Matthews on | Permalink | Comments (9)
Arkansas Politics / Environment Companies used diesel to drill in AR
Gas companies that use the hydraulic fracturing process - a drilling technique that uses millions of gallons of water, combined with a fair amount of chemicals, to crack shale formations and extract natural gas - are exempt from the Safe Drinking Water Act, unless they use diesel as part of the frack fluid. And, guess what? Some of them did. And they did it here in Arkansas, along with 18 other states. Reps. Henry Waxman (D-CA), Edward Markey (D-MA) and Diana DeGette (D-CO) sent a letter to the Environmental Protection Agency today following an investigation into the use of diesel in fracturing fluids. The investigation found that a number of companies injected millions of gallons of diesel into the ground.
Between 2005 and 2009, oil and gas service companies injected 32.2 million gallons of diesel fuel or hydraulic fracturing fluids containing diesel fuel in wells in 19 states. Halliburton injected more than 7 million gallons of diesel fuel or fluids containing diesel; BJ Services injected even more, 11.5 million gallons.According to EPA, any company that performs hydraulic fracturing using diesel fuel must receive a permit under the Safe Drinking Water Act. We learned that no oil and gas service companies have sought—and no state and federal regulators have issued—permits for diesel fuel use in hydraulic fracturing. This appears to be a violation of the Safe Drinking Water Act. It also means that the companies injecting diesel fuel have not performed the environmental reviews required by the law...
In 2008, BJ Services informed the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform that it had used 1,700 gallons of diesel-based polymer slurries in Arkansas and Oklahoma between 2005 and 2007 “in violation of the [memorandum of agreement].” BJ Services now maintains that these injections did not violate the MOA, stating that the “inadvertent use” of diesel-based polymer slurries in Arkansas and Oklahoma occurred “hundreds or thousands of feet” beneath any freshwater-bearing zone. BJ Services confirmed that it “has not used diesel fuel in coalbed methane formations in USDWs since the 2003 MOA was put in place.”
The three largest offenders - Halliburton, BJ Services and Schlumberger - say they no longer use diesel in frack fluids. But that doesn't get the diesel back up out of the ground, now does it?
Posted by Gerard Matthews on | Permalink | Comments (16)
Arkansas Culture and Characters Rep exceeds capital campaign goal
The Rep announced today that it exceeded its $5.4 million, four-year capital campaign plan. Which means that it raised enough to receive a $600,000 Challenge Grant from The Kresge Foundation, bringing the grand total to $6,043,384. Pretty impressive considering the theater had to also raise $1.5 million annually, throughout the last four years, just to support its regular operations.
The theater will use the funds to update the lobby, add seating, expand the restrooms and update the private party room.
The Rep will close on July 1 for renovations and reopen after Labor Day.
See the full release on the jump.
Posted by Lindsey Millar on | Permalink | Comments (0)
Arkansas Media / Environment 'Natural State' looks at Carroll County herbicide fight
From Carroll County comes this good looking new documentary with a strong title, "The Natural State of America."
The conflict captured surrounds Carroll Electric Cooperative Corp. spraying herbicide on right of ways throughout the county, which, naturally, has farmers and environmentalists up in arms. And, if claims of contaminated water reaching the Buffalo River are true, should have you up in arms, too.
The Lovely County Citizen had a good primer on the situation several years back.
The film's Facebook page lists several upcoming private screenings, including one at the Oyster Bar in Little Rock in February. Otherwise, the page says its scheduled to debut this spring. Maybe at the Little Rock Film Fest?
Posted by Lindsey Millar on | Permalink | Comments (10)
Politics Dispatch from Cairo III
Daniel Green from Arkansas Abroad checks in this morning to say that Cory Ellis, a University of Arkansas grad now studying in Cairo as part of a master's degree program (who we told you about Thursday), will be evacuating Egypt along with other American nationals. Ellis believes he will travel to Athens, but he's not quite sure. Green, Ellis and Tony Farm, a Coptic Egyptian-American and a graduate of UALR Bowen School of Law who currently practices law in Dallas, recorded a podcast yesterday that you can listen to here. Green said the last time he spoke with Ellis things were getting ugly.
"He was pretty shook up the last time I talked to him," Green says. "He talked about how the mosques put out a call to create neighborhood militias. Food supplies are running low, the government had cut off water to some neighborhoods and it's getting ugly on the streets. He no longer felt safe so he was going to leave if he could."
CNN has contacted Green in an attempt to find and interview Ellis. We'll keep you posted if that happens.
Posted by Gerard Matthews on | Permalink | Comments (5)
Arkansas Politics Lincoln to Entergy board
Former U.S. Senator Blanche Lincoln will sit on the board of directors for Entergy Corp. Roby Brock has the details. Tolbert has some snark.
Posted by Gerard Matthews on | Permalink | Comments (3)
Arkansas Politics Jackson Co. GOP chair linked to "white rights" group
Spurred on by the discovery of a racist Craig's List ad, the writers over at Blue Arkansas have found a link between the Council of Conservative Citizens (formerly the White Citizens' Council, a group that "has been protecting and advancing the interests of European-Americans for over 20 years" and "the only serious nationwide activist group that sticks up for white rights!") and Jackson County Republican Chairman John Casteel. The email contact for the CofCC in Arkansas is the exact same one listed on the Jackson County Republicans website for Casteel. A call to the telephone number listed on the Jackson County site rings the office of Casteel Insurance. No one was available to speak when we called this morning. Check out Blue Arkansas for the full story, complete with screenshots more background info.
Posted by Gerard Matthews on | Permalink | Comments (30)
Politics Obama to transcend?
John Brummett makes the argument that President Barack Obama will now try to govern as the leader of the American people, not the Democratic Party.
It comes down to this: What happened to Obama over the last two years was that he seemed obsessed with his party’s heritage from 1948, when Harry Truman was the first Democrat to push for universal health care, rather than with his own moment, 2009 and 2010, when the great American concern was fear of a lost competitive position in the world, primarily, but not exclusively, to China.
But didn't Obama already try to transcend party? Didn't he learn that when the other party cares nothing for transcendence, things can get quite grid-locked?
Posted by Gerard Matthews on | Permalink | Comments (2)
Arkansas Politics Health care vote a win-win
Andrew DeMillo says the defeat of David Meeks's bill to absolve Arkansans of the mandate included in federal health care reform was actually good for both Republicans and Gov. Beebe. The state GOP got an opportunity to do the same thing the Republicans did in Washington: make a basically meaningless gesture against health care reform. Beebe got through the debate without taking a really strong position on the issue.
Posted by Gerard Matthews on | Permalink | Comments (2)
Event Calendar
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