Free Republic

Arkansas—No sign announces the purpose of this little storefront. It's a Democratic Party field office. Democrats aren't advertising this office and 39 others; their locations are a closely guarded secret. Arkansas is home to one of the nation's most intense Senate races. Democrat Mark Pryor and GOP Rep. Tom Cotton. Democrats have mounted an ambitious organizing effort of technology intensive on-the-ground engagement. The Republicans don't have an office in Pine Bluff. They have 11 offices open across Arkansas. They've recruited "hundreds" of volunteers, and the RNC has had staff here for almost a year. "We clearly have the largest mobilization...

Arkansas has had its share of political dynasties, first and foremost the Clintons. The Pryor family may run a close second.David Pryor was a Democratic fixture in the state, serving in the U.S. House and U.S. Senate, and as governor. His son, Mark Pryor, now holds the Senate seat he vacated in 1997 and is seeking a third term.Are Arkansans finally getting Pryor fatigue and ready for a fresh face? If so, few Senate candidates nationwide may be more attractive than Republican challenger Tom Cotton.“Roll Call just came out with an article that rated Pryor as the second-most-vulnerable senator...

Late last year, vulnerable Democratic candidates worried that deep problems with the health care law could sink their chances of keeping a majority in the Senate. Now, suddenly, one red-state Democrat is praising the law in a new television ad — an indicator that public opinion of health care reform might have turned a corner. In the ad, Sen. Mark Pryor and his father, former Sen. David Pryor, recount Mark Pryor's own bout with cancer and his struggle finding health insurance that would cover it. "Mark's insurance company didn't want to pay for the treatment that ultimately saved his life," David Pryor says in the ad. "No one should be fighting...

Slip of the tongue? Yesterday on CNN’s “The Situation Room” Hillary Clinton spoke about what she would do about licensing illegal immigrants when she is president again. Watch:

There’s no worse assignment for a Secret Service agent than protecting Hillary Clinton, if claims in a controversial new book are to be believed. Ronald Kessler’s book, “First Family Detail,” is filled with salacious revelations about the secret personal lives of the nation’s most high-profile political leaders. “She is so nasty to agents that being assigned to her detail is considered a form of punishment,” Kessler told “Top Line” of Clinton. “It shines a light on her character,” Kessler said. “She claims to be a champion of the little people, and she's going to help the middle class. And, in...

A reality TV Star on TLC's Cheer Perfection has been sentenced to ten years behind bars for raping a 13-year-old boy. TMZ reports that Andrea Clevenger, 34, pleaded guilty to sexual assault and engaging in sexually explicit conduct with a minor at a court hearing on Thursday

PPP's newest Arkansas poll continues to find an incredibly tight race for the Senate. Republican Tom Cotton is at 41% to 39% for Democratic incumbent Mark Pryor, 4% for Green Party candidate Mark Swaney, and 3% for Libertarian Nathan LaFrance. All four PPP surveys of this race in the last year have found the candidates within 3 points of each other one way or another. When supporters of the third party hopefuls are asked who they would choose between the two major party candidates, Cotton's lead remains 2 points at 43/41, suggesting this may be a race where their presence...

It's not every day that the New York Times blog devoted to photography -- it's called Lens -- runs a piece about Pine Bluff, Ark. (pop. 47,000). But it did just the other day when Evelyn Nieves' blog post featured the work of William Widmer, a photographer out of New Orleans who was driving through Pine Bluff on his way back home from an assignment in Kansas City, and was stopped cold by what he saw. The town had captivated him. The photographer would wind up spending the rest of the day in Pine Bluff walking its streets, snapping...

A study released by the National Association of Manufacturers (NAM) on Thursday said the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) new ozone standards could cause Arkansas to lose more than 10,000 jobs, pay more than $240 million in environmental compliance costs, and shut down most of the state’s coal-fired electric generation. “Manufacturing in the United States is making a comeback, and we’re reducing emissions at the same time, but tightening the current ozone standard to near unachievable levels would serve as a self-inflicted wound to the U.S. economy at the worst possible time,” NAM President and CEO Jay Timmons said. “This rule...

Democrat Senators Kay Hagan of North Carolina and Mark Pryor of Arkansas have both now warned Barack Obama against taking “any steps without the approval of Congress" when it comes to dealing with the current illegal immigration crisis. “I’m not for government by executive order. He needs to have statutory authority before he acts,” said Pryor. Meanwhile, via Politico, a spokeswoman for Hagan said, “this is a problem that needs to be solved legislatively and not through executive action.” Additionally, Democrat Senators Landrieu of Louisiana and Begich of Alaska are also urging Obama to act with restraint. “We want him...

It's the highlight of my year: a visit to Governor's School at Hendrix College in Conway, which brings together promising young people from every corner of the state during the summer between their junior and senior years in high school. It's something for an old man to anticipate, then enjoy, and most important of all, learn from. I always leave refreshed, cheered, buoyed. There's hope after all. It is the great indulgence of the old to lecture the young, and it is the great kindness of the young to pretend to listen. It is a curious experience to be...

Former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee angered his Facebook fans after endorsing Sen. Lamar Alexander against conservative state Representative Joe Carr last month. Carr has been endorsed by former Alaska Governor Sarah Palin and conservative talk radio host Laura Ingraham for the August 7th primary. And Carr has been relentlessly hammering Alexander for voting for the Senate's amnesty bill even after law enforcement officials warned Alexander that it would lure more illegal immigrants from Central America. Nearly every one of close to 450 comments beneath Huckabee's announcement on his Facebook page blasts Huckabee for supporting Alexander. One Huckabee fan said, "We...

Reports of suspicious individual. No more info available.

Much has changed since Bill Clinton grew up in this sleepy Arkansas town. The former Clinton home is now a well-appointed museum. The old two-lane road in front grew into a bustling artery leading to a Wal-Mart. Across the street sits a taco truck, whose owner, immigrant Elvia Bello, sells her famous tamales to the small but growing Latino population in the once-segregated community. But perhaps the biggest change of all in a state that once had reliably elected Democrats is the sandwich-board sign on a corner with hand-painted letters announcing: "Tea Party Meeting 4th Thursday 7 p.m." This busy...

The former Clinton home is now a well-appointed museum. The old two-lane road in front grew into a bustling artery leading to a Wal-Mart. Across the street sits a taco truck, whose owner, immigrant Elvia Bello, sells her famous tamales to the small but growing Latino population in the once-segregated community. But perhaps the biggest change of all in a state that once had reliably elected Democrats is the sandwich-board sign on a corner with hand-painted letters announcing: "Tea Party Meeting 4th Thursday 7 p.m." The Arkansas target is Sen. Mark Pryor thoroughly embraced by his state six years ago...

LITTLE ROCK (KATV) - The Pulaski County Sheriff's Water Patrol Unit, in addition to Little Rock and North Little Rock Fire Departments responded to the Arkansas River for reports of a body in the water. Authorities say the body is that of a Little Rock man who was reported missing on July 10.

Arkansas Sen. Mark Pryor has been buying up fall airtime for a race critical to nearly every hypothetical Republican path to the Senate majority. The two-term Democrat, who faces the fight of his political life against GOP Rep. Tom Cotton, has so far reserved several hundred thousand dollars worth of TV time for the closing six weeks of the race, according to a media-buying source. The Pryor campaign would not comment on its media strategy, but that’s just an opening salvo in a state already seeing a plethora of spending from outside groups and both campaigns. Amid a vigorous on-air...

Republicans from Washington to Little Rock are privately distressed that Rep. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., – a candidate once hailed as their most talented U.S. Senate recruit of the cycle – has lost his luster in his challenge to second-term Democratic Sen. Mark Pryor. The overarching problem: While Cotton’s resume is sparkling, his persona is flat. He speaks with authority, but lacks warmth. His wooden delivery is more often academic, lacking an everyday, common touch that’s still essential in a place with slightly less than 3 million people, the smallest state in the south. His slender frame and boyish haircut makes...

Now, thinking about the U. S. Senate race in 2014… if the candidates are Senator Mark Pryor, the Democrat, and Congressman Tom Cotton, the Republican… For whom would you vote? Press 1. Senator Mark Pryor 43% Press 2. Congressman Tom Cotton 47% Press 3. Undecided 10%

PINE BLUFF, AR - A Pine Bluff man has been left with multiple injuries after police say several suspects in an SUV attacked him on June 30. According to the report, 26-year-old Andrew Lawson was forced into a vehicle and then taken to a Pine Bluff hair salon. It was there, surveillance video shows a fight went from the vehicle to the parking lot. Police say Lawson was shot, beaten, and nearly run over. Lawson said, "I was surprised that it happened." "I'm amazed that I survived, and I'm amazed that someone could do that to another person." Lawson doesn't...