Free Republic

For Sen. Blanche Lincoln, the moderate Arkansas Democrat, the nation’s health-care woes may lead to more headaches than any medicine could alleviate. Lincoln is a pivotal vote on the motion to begin debate on Senate majority leader Harry Reid’s health-care legislation; if the motion passes, she could be the swing vote on the eventual motion to close debate. Her decision isn’t simply a calculation about winning the right number of concessions, as perhaps President Obama and the Democratic leadership hope; it’s about her political survival. The pressure in Washington may be significant — Lincoln has had sit-down meetings with Obama...

It is up to you Arkansas. You make your voices heard now! Blanch Lincoln has got to go in the next election! Ni nice anymore. Same goes for you in Louisianna!

Yesterday, The Arkansas Hands-Off Healthcare Bus Tour went through Arkansas. Guest speakers included Dick Morris, Jim Miller of 60 Plus, Dr. Kathy Chenault, and Teresa Oakle. Here is some video footage of that event. More footage will come soon. http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-5433-Little-Rock-Immigration-Examiner~y2009m11d20-Healthcare-video--Events http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rho6J-7Jr6w http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=skJGUUmVsRU Same video in case there are problems with youtube. http://keeparkansaslegal.blogspot.com/2009/11/hands-off-healthcare-video-footage.html Saturday November 21st. We will need as many Secure Arkansas Volunteers as possible for the Arkansas Razorbacks game. You can show up on your own or call 501-412-4063 to meet with other Secure Arkansas members. You will be called back within a few minutes. Sunday November 22nd The...

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) -- A police officer testified Wednesday that a 15-year-old girl told investigators she killed a 9-year-old neighbor because she wanted to know what it felt like to kill someone, and a judge ruled the teen should stand trial as an adult. Authorities have not publicly identified the suspect, but her attorney referred to her in court Wednesday as Alyssa. Police testified that Elizabeth Olten did nothing to provoke the attack against her, and that the teenage suspect led authorities to the girl's body after they questioned her. Asked by juvenile justice attorney Samantha Green whether Alyssa...

Called to a home to help control an "unruly child," an Ozark, Arkansas police officer was given permission by the girl's mother to a taser to subdue the child. According to 40/29 News the girl's father is outraged that the police would use a taser on such a young child. "I would like to say Ozark police Tased this little girl right here," the girl's father, Anthony Medlock, told 40/29 News. "Ten years old and [they] shot electricity through her body, and I want to know how the heck in God's green earth can they get away with this." According...

OZARK, Ark. — Ozark Police Chief Jim Noggle says one of his officers used a Taser on a 10-year-old girl who was combative when the officer tried to get the girl into a patrol car to be taken to a youth shelter. Noggle said Tuesday that officer Dustin Bradshaw went to the girl's home after her mother called police woman called police. According to a report filed by Bradshaw on Thursday, the officer found the girl on the floor of the house screaming and crying. She refused to follow her mother's instructions and the mother told Bradshaw to use his...

A 10-year-old Arkansas boy named Will Phillips has decided that he cannot in good conscience pledge allegiance to the flag as long as the country for which it stands refuses legal equality to its LGBT citizens. The West Fork School District fifth grade student clashed with a substitute teacher for his refusal to stand for the pledge, prompting a call to Will’s mother, Laura Phillips. When the principal acknowledged that Will has the right to refuse to say the pledge, Ms. Phillips asked that her son receive an apology — a request that the principal declined to honor. Laura Phillips...

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. — A jury sentenced a man to life in prison Thursday for the beating death of a popular Arkansas television personality, sparing him the death penalty after hearing testimony about his rocky upbringing by an abusive, drug-addicted mother. Jurors deliberated less than three hours before recommending that Curtis Lavelle Vance, 29, be sentenced to life in prison without parole for the death of Anne Pressly. They also handed down a life sentence for rape, 20 years for burglary and 10 years for theft.Pressly, 26, was an anchor on KATV's "Daybreak" program and had a bit part in...

Prosecutors rested their capital murder case against Curtis Lavelle Vance, 29, after testimony from the state's deputy medical examiner, who spoke about Pressly's final moments of consciousness. Vance, of Marianna, has pleaded not guilty to murder, rape and burglary. If convicted, he could face the death penalty. Dr. Stephen Erickson said an examination of Pressly's body after her death revealed that her face shattered "like an egg" during the attack. "I could feel crunchiness" while examining Pressly's face, he said. A photo he used showed her nose pushed to one side. Erickson said some type of object likely was used...

Live Threads of the Healthcare Debate that could be voted on this weekend. http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2380972/posts?q=1&;page=251 http://www.c-span.org/Watch/C-SPAN_wm.aspx Different reports are coming in about what some of the Arkansas Representatives will do. John Boozeman is a solid NO vote. Rep Berry has "concerns regarding how the plan is paid for", but Obamacare is often changed to give the apperance of not costing as much. Mike Ross has expressed concern over public option, but that is also not a definite NO. According to David Meeks, Rep Snyder's office had said that he wouldn't for a bill that "funds abortion", however Obamacare supporters had claimed...

Man charged in soldier's death seeks trial delayPosted: October 27, 2009 - 12:40pm LITTLE ROCK (AP) — Attorneys for the man charged with capital murder of an Army soldier at a Little Rock recruiting station are asking for a delay in the start of his trial. Lawyers for 24-year-old Abdulhakim Muhammad say in a motion filed last week that they need more time to go through evidence in the case. The current trial date is Feb. 15. Muhammad was born Carlos Bledsoe. He's charged in the June shooting death of 23-year-old Pvt. William Long of Conway and in the wounding...

SEARCY - A customer may have unknowingly foiled an attempt to abduct a child in a Wal-Mart store Tuesday, police said.An 11-year-year old girl, who has not been identified, was alone in the toy department of the Searcy store about 9 a.m. when a man approached her."I don't think she ever saw him approach her," said Aaron Murphy, a spokesman for the Searcy Police Department.The girl was browsing while her grandmother shopped elsewhere in the store."The man walked up to her, got ahold of her arm and tried to lead her away," Murphy said. "They took a couple of steps...

Army Col. Conrad Reynolds is one of several Republicans vying to take on Sen. Blanche Lincoln (D) for Arkansas’ Senate seat in 2010. Reynolds’ campaign issued a press release last week blasting Lincoln for a vote, and among those who received it was Greg Chance, the news director of an NPR affiliate based at Arkansas State University. It seems Chance attempted to forward the e-mail to Katie Laning Niebaum, Lincoln’s Washington-based communications director. In his forward, which HOH obtained, Chance mocked the press release and even the campaign’s logo, which features the Army colonel insignia. “There was another one from...

Army Col. Conrad Reynolds is one of several Republicans vying to take on Sen. Blanche Lincoln (D) for Arkansas’ Senate seat in 2010. Reynolds’ campaign issued a press release last week blasting Lincoln for a vote, and among those who received it was Greg Chance, the news director of an NPR affiliate based at Arkansas State University. It seems Chance attempted to forward the e-mail to Katie Laning Niebaum, Lincoln’s Washington-based communications director. In his forward, which HOH obtained, Chance mocked the press release and even the campaign’s logo, which features the Army colonel insignia. “There was another one from...

Guard Offices To CloseBy Hicham Raache Times Record Tuesday, October 6, 2009 8:37 AM CDT Arkansas Army National Guard recruiting offices across the area and throughout the state will close today as a precautionary measure for National Day of Resistance against Military Recruiters. Although the Times Record did not learn of any planned local protests in correspondence with the resistance effort, which is promoted on a Facebook page as lasting from midnight to noon today, Guard recruiting offices will be closed to ensure the safety of recruiters and guard members at the offices. Other Stories Of Interest “They are shutting...

Another Democratic senator may be at-risk in 2010. Arkansas' Blanche Lambert Lincoln trails all four of her leading Republican challengers in the first Rasmussen Reports Election 2010 survey in the state. Lincoln fails to get 50% of the vote in any of the match-ups, and any incumbent who falls short of that level is considered vulnerable. In three of the match-ups, however, she is virtually tied with the challengers at this

Thamail Morgan took the kickoff and headed up the field. He was at the 20 ... 30 ... 40 He had been avoiding, dodging or just simply running through tacklers on the way. Football always had come easily for Morgan. This game was no different. By the time he hit midfield, only open space was ahead of him. The two-time Arkansas all-state selection was headed for a touchdown. 40 ... 30 ... 20 He glanced at the clock and saw the final seconds ticking away. He realized his team, Cave City, was on the way to a victory over Yellville-Summit,...

Did the August town hall protests have an effect on Congress? Enough so that at least one Blue Dog Democrat admitted it convinced him to oppose the public option in the health-care overhaul bill. Rep. Mike Ross (D-AR) announced his opposition this morning, crediting his constituents for his moment of clarification: Rep. Mike Ross (D-Ark.), the Blue Dog congressman who battled with Democratic Party leaders for much of July before reaching an agreement on health-care reform legislation, said Tuesday that he could no longer back the government-insurance option included in the bill he voted for before the congressional recess. “I...

Here is a collection of video footage taken over the past week or so. There were a lot of other events that took place. Vic Snyder didn't allow any media during his townhall debate, so the internet is the only place you will see footage of that event. Video 1 of the Tea Party Express in Little Rock,AR http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TP0A-cKJgWQ Video 2 of the Tea Party Express in Little Rock,AR http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=64rWOtRUmOg -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Blanche Lincoln's Townhall at the University of Arkansas Pine Bluff http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dQj-PYgW8lYhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NGlqsvMnsow -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Vic Snyder's Townhall at University of Central Arkansas http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KLtXoNZHilkhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S6At0NHSFKs

Does anybody know if there is any effort going on to reverse the open primary system that gave us John McCain? According to Wikipedia the following states have open primaries: * Alabama * Arkansas * Georgia * Idaho * Indiana * Michigan * Minnesota * Mississippi * Missouri * North Dakota * South Carolina * Tennessee * Texas * Vermont * Virginia * Wisconsin I've run a google news search and come up with blanks.

Woo hoo!! The Tea Party Express has a busy schedule today: 11:00 AM – Rally in Dallas, TX – Cape Buffalo Grille, 17717 Addison Rd, Dallas, TX 75287 2:45 PM – The Whistle Stop – Mile Marker 143; 1 hour and 45 minutes east of Dallas, TX; 170 miles east on Interstate 30; 4 miles west of Mt. Vernon, Franklin County, TX 6:00 PM – Rally in Little Rock, AR – State Capitol (North Grounds Near Liberty Bell) Woodlane & Capitol Ave, Little Rock, AR 72201 10:00 PM – Rally in Memphis, TN – Draper’s Catering (Parking Lot) 6116 Macon...

Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, who left office without much of a Republican bench of viable statewide candidates under him, is hosting a fundraiser for Republican Senate candidate and businessman Curtis Coleman. The $500/person fundraiser is being held on September 21 at Huckabee’s Little Rock home. Coleman, who managed Huckabee’s unsuccessful 1992 Senate campaign, is one of six Republicans to challenge Sen. Blanche Lincoln (D-Ark.). He drew controversy earlier this year when he suggested people “might as well get visas and shots” when traveling to southeast Arkansas. Coleman’s chief Republican rival for the nomination is state senator Gilbert Baker, who...

LITTLE ROCK — The Catholic Diocese of Little Rock announced today it has been awarded a $151,500 grant to provide services to immigrant crime victims across Arkansas. The U.S. Department of Justice provided the funding to Arkansas under its STOP (Services, Training Officers and Prosecutors) Violence Against Women program, created by the federal Violence Against Women Act of 2005. The state Department of Finance and Administration awarded the two-year grant to the diocese. The money will be used to create a Crime Victim Services Unit under the diocese’s immigration services program. Two additional employees will be hired to provide education...

Oklahoma police found the naked, mutilated body of a murdered pastor stretched out in a "crucifix position" behind her church altar last Sunday, sources close to the investigation told The Oklahoman. The bloodied corpse of 61-year-old Carol Daniels appeared to have been left in the form of a cross with both arms outstretched at her sides. Her head was nearly decapitated by the force of deep stabs to her neck and throat, according to forensic pathologist Dr. William Manion, who reviewed her autopsy report. Daniels' clothing had been removed, possibly to hide evidence or as a kind of trophy from...

"In addition, under H.R. 3200, a “Health Insurance Exchange” would begin operation in 2013 and would offer private plans alongside a public option. The Exchange would provide eligible individuals and small businesses with access to insurers’ plans, including the public option, in a comparable way. Individuals would only be eligible to enroll in an Exchange plan if they were not enrolled in other acceptable coverage (for example, from an employer, Medicare and generally Medicaid). H.R. 3200 does not contain any restrictions on noncitzens participating in the Exchange—whether the noncitizens are legally or illegally present, or in the United States temporarily...

Umm, whoa! The latest numbers from Democratic polling firm Public Policy Polling: Do you approve or disapprove of Democratic Senator Blanche Lincoln’s job performance? Approve .......................................................... 36% Disapprove...................................................... 44% Not Sure.......................................................... 20% Here is the breakdown among ideology: Lincoln Approval Base Liberal Moderate Conservative Approve 36% 66% 51% 17% Disapprove 44% 18% 31% 61% Not Sure 20% 16% 19% 22% And among party: Lincoln Approval Base Democratic Republican Other Approve 36% 62% 14% 27% Disapprove 44% 20% 65% 51% Not Sure 20% 17% 21% 22% So again, just how conservative is Sen. Lincoln?

An unemployed Arkansas woman — and her unborn son, whose name she tried to auction on eBay — can't seem to catch a break. After five auctions on the Internet marketplace, Lavonne Drummond, 36, saw a winning bid of $6,800 was dashed Tuesday when the winning bidder, a producer at an Internet radio talk show, told the mother of six that he had no intention of paying for the naming rights of her seventh child. "They just apologized," Drummond told FOXNews.com. "They just wanted to help but didn't think they would actually win." Drummond, whose first four auctions were removed...

RNC Chairman Michael Steele paid a visit to Little Rock last night and held a presser to discuss health care reform, calling on President Obama to quit blaming Republicans and pass a bill. From the Tolbert Report: Chairman Steele became quite animated when asking about the possibility being discussed of passing the health care bill in the Senate without the sixty votes needed to close debate. “Do it!” said Steele. “We are down 20 votes in the Senate, 78 in the house. Don’t come up in my face talking about how I’m an obstacle and we’re blocking this process. You’ve...

FAYETTEVILLE — Supporters of the administration's push for health care reform hosted a listening tour in Fayetteville on Wednesday evening, but didn't want to be overheard. "We want people to feel free to express their opinion and their very personal stories about experiences they've had with health care," said Kyle Simon of Organizing for America after he refused access to the media. The group hosted an event billed as part of "The Arkansas Listening Tour," at a rented room in a downtown Fayetteville restaurant. "Please join us and let us know how you'd like to see Arkansas Organized," the announcement...

The first notice came on Drudge just after 8 p.m. Eastern time, but we all knew a long time ago that this was going to happen. The New York Times is reporting that Democrats in the House and Senate have drawn their line in the sand, tossed any semblance of bipartisanship (not that Republicans were even part of the conversation) and threw their Blue Dog colleagues under the Obamacare bus as they will "go it alone" to ram a health care bill through, even though it is opposed by a near majority of the country.snip... What this means for Arkansans...

It looks like Sen. Blanche Lincoln is coming out into the public and will actually hold "town hall-style" meetings the first week of September. Per her DC office: U.S. Senator Blanche Lincoln today announced her schedule of events for September 1-4. In addition to Lincoln’s previously scheduled meetings, the Senator will hold three “town hall-style” forums across the state in response to requests from her constituents. So much for relying on her meetings from April. On the docket for Mrs. Lincoln: September 2: 12:30-2:30 p.m., Russellville Town Hall Meeting. Arkansas Tech University’s Doc Bryan Auditorium. 1605 Coliseum Drive, Room 109,...

Four Democratic senators want to put off the proposed cap & trade legislation. Blanche Lincoln of Arkansas, Ben Nelson of Nebraska and Byron Dorgan and Kent Conrad both of North Dakota are urging the Senate to delay legislation that puts caps on greenhouse gas emissions and instead, pass a narrow bill that sets requirements on the use of renewable energy. Senators Lincoln and Dorgan are up for re-election in 2010 and are from states that would be hurt economically from a cap and trade bill similar to the one passed by the House in June. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid...

This spring we wanted chicken manure spread on the pastures because it is incredibly rich in nutrients, the best “natural” fertilizer known to man, and quite inexpensive, comparatively speaking. So I asked one of my truck driver friends, who cleans out houses for Sanderson Farms affiliates, to bring me several dump truck loads. “No can do, because they aren’t having it done, this year,” quoth he. How odd. I mulled that over off and on for months, and today I got the answer. The greenies are at it again! THIS time they are claiming that litter (sawdust and, ah, processed...

We hear it all the time: A Democrat in Arkansas asking Arkansans to send them to Washington, D.C., by promising to act like an Arkansan and not one of those liberals like Nancy Pelosi.We read op-ed columns from senators promising to fight for us, to work for us and to keep us foremost in their minds.We see the liberals of the Congress gnash their teeth at our state, not understanding why those Democratic voters back home can't just get with the program and quit giving them grief.We witness our Democrats in Washington do everything they can to maintain "the wall"...

Surfing around today, gleaning more reaction to Sen. Blanche Lincoln's remark that those showing up to protest the government takeover of their health care are somehow "un-American". While surfing, I came across the website of Tom Cox, one of the many Republican candidates thinking about running against Sen. Lincoln in 2010, to read his release on her gaffe. Once there, I noticed his new campaign logo on his much-improved website - which looks very familiar:

From the Arkansas meeting... What I Saw at a Health Care Forum The forum I attended included a soccer mom, a small business owner and a grandmother. 8/6/09 "Most town hall attendees are hard working, freedom loving people who say they’re scared at the prospect of a government run health care. These are people who have taken the time to read the 1,000+ page health care bill and don’t like what they see. They are common sense people who say if it’s good enough for us, it should be good enough for our elected officials. These are not rabid extremists’...

Link to video footage of the Vic Snyder and Mike Ross poorly scheduled townhall meetinghttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kVpa5IoiF_g Another video link http://keeparkansaslegal.blogspot.com/2009/08/healthcare-townhall-meeting-httpping.html

Here is video from an Arkansas Town Hall Meeting where a man told Congressmen Mike Ross and Vic Snyder, "You need to get the Government the hell out of our way." This followed the two Democrats trying to make the case for why they support a Government take-over of Health Care. . . . . . (Watch Video)

At Wednesday's health care forum in Little Rock with Rep. Vic Snyder, Rep. Mike Ross said this to the audience - most of whom were there to show their disapproval with the Obamacare plan: "I've said this several times but let me see if I can make it a little more clear," Ross said. "I don't represent Speaker (Nancy) Pelosi or President Obama or (House Finance Committee Chairman) Barney Frank." In order to let you make your own conclusion as to the "truthiness" of Mr. Ross' remarks, I point you to the fact that he voted for the Obama-Pelosi-Frank-backed...

Man could face death penalty for slaying of soldier in ArkansasBy The Associated Press Story Updated: Aug 1, 2009 at 3:30 PM CDT LITTLE ROCK, Ark., -- Prosecutors say they'll seek a death penalty against a man accused of killing a soldier outside an Army recruiting center. Abdulhakim Muhammad pleaded not guilty on Friday at a Pulaski County court hearing to charges that he shot and killed Pvt. William Andrew Long. The judge set a trial date of Feb. 15. Muhammad's lawyer says his client is in good spirits but wouldn't say whether his client's calls to reporters to claim...

It would appear that she might be, on the fundraising front. I offer this note sent on behalf of Randy Zook of the Arkansas State Chamber of Commerce.

Congressman Vic Snyder (D, Ark.) has in the past claimed that he is braver than his opponents because he has the back bone to face the hard questions in open debate. But that was before Obamacare came along. Now, Snyder is hiding behind sick kids at a local hospital where he is holding a townhall meeting. Snyder is telling opponents of Obamacare that an "angry protest" would not be appropriate at a hospital where sick kids are being treated. So why hold a townhall there in the first place? Perhaps for the very reason that he can eliminate opposing views...

I want to alert you of Max Brantley's "Teabagger Alert" on his Arkansas Blog. (snip) As you can see from the screenshot, the language used by Mr. Brantley paints the efforts of conservative (Republican and Democratic) and libertarian activists to apprise their elected representatives of their various issues with the various incarnations of the Obamacare program in the Senate and House in a somewhat negative light. By using the junior-high-school-and-MSNBC-inspired sobriquet "Teabagger," linking to posts which use the negative descriptors "harassment strategy" and "anti-government," and wondering if activists would attempt to "shout down" Democrat Rep. Vic Snyder, it is clear...

Just minutes ago, the Senate held a roll call vote on the concealed carry amendment to the 2010 defense funding bill. Arkansas two Democrat Senators, Blanche Lincoln and Mark Pryor, split their vote with Lincoln - up for re-election in 2010 - casting an "aye" vote. But, right before the president pro temp announced the result, Mr. Pryor went back to the clerk and changed off "no" to "aye". The Thune amendment ended up with 58 votes for and 39 opposed, meaning it failed. Failed with 58 votes? Yes. How?

There's an entire unit at the Fort Smith Police Department dedicated to keeping the streets of Fort Smith clean. Their sting operations have netted hundreds of people in the past few years. We're told the unit has made almost 300 arrests at Fort Smith park alone since their start in 2005. The public park has become a hotspot for homosexual activity. Prostitution is also a problem that plagues the city and one that isn't limited to a particular location. "Just when I think I've seen it all there's something that comes along that you know causes me to raise an...

Arkansas blue dogs: No timetable for health care reform legislationBy John Lyon / Arkansas News Bureau Thursday, July 16, 2009 12:22 PM CDT LITTLE ROCK — Two members of Arkansas’ congressional delegation who helped put the breaks on legislation to reform the nation’s health care system said Friday they don’t believe the reform effort should follow a timetable. U.S. Reps. Mike Ross, D-Prescott, and Marion Berry, D-Gillett, were among 40 members of the Blue Dog Coalition of centrist Democrats who wrote to Democrat Party leaders Thursday demanding changes in health care legislation the leadership was drafting. Party leaders had said...

TEXARKANA, Ark. — A woman who said evangelist Tony Alamo "married" her when she was 8 years old told federal jurors Thursday that he sexually assaulted her repeatedly until she dodged security cameras and roving guards to escape from his compound in 2006. Her testimony came after another former underage bride of Alamo said she "married" the pastor at 14 through hurried whispers during visiting hours at a federal prison. That woman later noted inside a Bible the date Alamo first forced her to have sex, but left the name blank out of fear Alamo would beat her.

Sen. Blanche Lincoln caved to liberal interest groups by coming out in support of the public option for health care when they threatened to run television ads against her as she prepares for her re-election campaign. Apparently, Sen. Lincoln's column was not enough to dissuade her liberal supporters. For today, we are given a new twist: an actual television ad slated to run in Arkansas. But it is not from some liberal nutroots group like MoveOn, it is from Blanche Lincoln's own beloved Democratic Party.

WASHINGTON – Conservative Democrats in the House rebelled against their party leaders Thursday, raising concerns about the cost of President Barack Obama's health care overhaul and seeking to put the brakes on legislation. The fiscally conservative Blue Dog Coalition planned to present a letter to House Democratic leaders asking for more time, members of the group told The Associated Press. Democratic Rep. Mike Ross of Arkansas said that if the Democrats' liberal legislative plan came to the floor as proposed, an "overwhelming majority" of his group would oppose it. The Blue Dogs claim 52 members, so that could endanger the...

I just read an email from the re-election campaign of my state's senior senator, Blanche Lincoln, which proudly touts her column which appeared this morning in the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette entitled "Health Care for All". After reading this op-ed, it has become obvious that Sen. Lincoln has started to feel the pressure from liberal groups who disliked her stance on the "public option" touted by President Barack Obama and showing that she has become a bit more concerned as to her chances of keeping her job in Washington (where she has spent virtually all her adult life). Sen. Lincoln's acquiescence to...