In a letter to the editor back in February, one writer had this to say about me: "I don't resent his commentary about Gov. Sarah Sanders, former President Donald Trump or any other Republican. But I do resent his negative comments while giving the impression he's writing from a Republican perspective. Rex, you're now a Democrat. It's time to quit pretending."
I give you that comment as Exhibit A when the subject turns to the politicalization of American life. More and more older Americans are camped out watching highly partisan cable news programs at night rather than reading books, watching basketball games, listening to music, getting the garden ready for spring or cooking dinner as they once did. It's a sad thing to witness. For these people, every aspect of life is political.
People like these find it impossible to understand those of us for whom partisan political games aren't a primary concern. For many of us, politics don't even rank in our top five areas of interest. Because he's a hyperpartisan, the letter-writer figures that since I'm not a Republican, I must be a Democrat. Hyperpartisans on the left and right don't understand those who love their state and nation more than a political party.
Hyperpartisans don't know what to make of voters like me who split tickets, supporting people they believe to be the best qualified regardless of party label. In the past three presidential elections, I voted Republican once, Democratic once and Libertarian once.
I've reached an age where it doesn't matter if candidates have a D or R after their names. In state elections, I'm looking for those who care about Arkansas' future rather than those who are looking to extend their political careers.
I would love to see Arkansas voters pass a constitutional amendment that would make all 135 legislative seats nonpartisan. No Democrats. No Republicans. Just Arkansans. There would be an open primary in the spring. The top two candidates in each district then would face each other in November. No party affiliations would be listed on the ballots.
This wouldn't solve all of our problems, but it would go a long way toward curing the crisis at the state Capitol now that the contentious politics of Washington have infected us. What folks like the letter-writer are unable to understand is that my problems with the governor have nothing to do with the fact that she's a Republican. I would be fine with a Republican governor who's focused on Arkansas.
Republican Asa Hutchinson was a good governor. So was Republican Mike Huckabee. I wouldn't have spent almost a decade on Huckabee's senior management team had I felt otherwise. I wouldn't have managed Huckabee's 1998 campaign had I felt otherwise. I was proud to spend almost 14 years working for Huckabee and then President George W. Bush.
Neither Huckabee nor Bush hired me because I had given them a contribution or worked on their campaigns beforehand. I hadn't. To their credit, they made the hires based on my professional qualifications.
My problem with our current governor has nothing to do with partisan politics. It has everything to do with the fact that she seems more interested in spouting MAGA talking points and getting on Fox News than she is in improving life in Arkansas. She's using the governor's office as a vehicle for other things. As a native Arkansan, I resent that.
There have been 11 governors in my lifetime, and I've had the fortune (because of what I do for a living) of getting to know 10 of them. I have tremendous respect for the office of governor and consider it my obligation to speak out when I believe someone is holding office for the wrong reasons. The same is true for Arkansas legislators.
Just as is the case in the governor's office, the Legislature has become nationalized. Much of the legislation introduced these days amounts to nothing more than templates from out-of-state interest groups. The nationalization of legislative politics was illustrated recently when this newspaper had a story on the annual financial disclosure report filed (late) by state Sen. Bart Hester of northwest Arkansas.
Hester is the empty vessel who poses as Senate president pro tempore and salutes when the governor sends down marching orders. He reported receiving thousands of dollars in gifts, including lodging for conferences in Cancun and Toronto. Something called the Alliance Defending Freedom paid for Hester to attend the conference in Cancun. The Alliance Defending Freedom is based in Arizona.
Here's what Hester told the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette's Mike Wickline when he was asked about what he did in Cancun: "There was meetings throughout the entire day where we listened to other states talk about what they have done, clearly mostly regarding social issues, and it was encouraging to me because almost every issue they were bringing up Arkansas was at the top or leading the pack in any of the issues that is considered a social issue today."
Huh? It sounds as if we best be prepared for additional culture wars with our legislators carrying bills written outside the state.
There was also something called the Senate Presidents Forum in Toronto. Hester said that event focused on affordable housing and was held in Canada because "it is not just a United States problem, it's a North America problem."
No, I'm not a Democrat. But I'm not a Republican, either. I'm a proud Arkansan who wants our state to finally achieve its potential. Hyperpartisans like the letter-writer will never understand.
Senior Editor Rex Nelson's column appears regularly in the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. He's also the author of the Southern Fried blog at rexnelsonsouthernfried.com.
OPINION | REX NELSON: Hyperpartisan hyperventilates
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04.04.2024
In a letter to the editor back in February, one writer had this to say about me: "I don't resent his commentary about Gov. Sarah Sanders, former President Donald Trump or any other Republican. But I do resent his negative comments while giving the impression he's writing from a Republican perspective. Rex, you're now a Democrat. It's time to quit pretending."
I give you that comment as Exhibit A when the subject turns to the politicalization of American life. More and more older Americans are camped out watching highly partisan cable news programs at night rather than reading books, watching basketball games, listening to music, getting the garden ready for spring or cooking dinner as they once did. It's a sad thing to witness. For these people, every aspect of life is political.
People like these find it impossible to understand those of us for whom partisan political games aren't a primary concern. For many of us, politics don't even rank in our top five areas of interest. Because he's a hyperpartisan, the letter-writer figures that since I'm not a Republican, I must be a Democrat. Hyperpartisans on the left and right don't understand those who love their state and nation more than a political party.
Hyperpartisans don't know what to make of voters like me who split tickets, supporting people they believe to be the best qualified regardless of party label. In the past three presidential elections, I........
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