Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
Crawford, rivals pitch platforms
Foes say incumbent puts party first
JONESBORO — Three Democrats seeking to be their party’s nominee in the 1st Congressional District said Saturday that Congressman Rick Crawford has put partisan priorities over the wellbeing of his constituents.
But Crawford’s promises to push for a balanced-budget amendment and to loosen environmental and labor regulations that affect farmers, as well as his criticism of the federal health- care overhaul law, were all greeted by applause when he spoke Saturday at the same candidate forum sponsored by the Craighead County Farm Bureau.
“Our Congress is not willing to make tough choices, they’re not willing to roll up their sleeves and fix our problems. They’re more interested in pandering to political leaders or partisan politics or personal agendas than they are in taking care of our people,” said state Rep. Clark Hall, a Marvell Democrat who is running in the May 22 primary.
“I’m going to talk to you about an agenda,” countered Crawford, a Republican from Jonesboro later in the afternoon. “My agenda first and foremost is a balanced-budget amendment to the constitution to make sure that our children and grandchildren are not on the hook for a $15.6 trillion national debt,” he said to applause. “If that squares with you, then that’s your agenda too,” he added.
Campaign finance reports released last week showed Crawford, who was first elected in 2010, raised the most money of any of the four candidates, followed by Hall.
Gary Latanich, an Arkansas State University economics professor, and Scott Ellington, the prosecuting attorney for the 2nd Judicial District, are also running in the Democratic primary. Early voting begins May 7.
Hall has said that Crawford has “flipped-flopped” on issues including extending payroll-tax cuts.
Last month Crawford proposed legislation that would trade a surtax on millionaires for congressional passage of a balanced-budget amendment. Democrats have criticized it as a disingenuous political maneuver.
“We send our representatives to Washington and we expect them to do the right thing. We expect them to get the job done. We really expect them to act like adults and not children,” Hall said Saturday. “When they’re more interested in coming home and getting their picture in the paper, or standing on Capitol steps and talking against a bill today and voting for it tomorrow, they’re not really taking care of our problems,” Hall said Saturday.
Ellington also criticized Crawford for being too partyminded.
He said as a prosecutor who has to dispose of thousands of cases every year, he has experience compromising.
“I’m not one that’s going to play the red team against the blue team. I’m willing to reach out, compromise,” he said.
Crawford received more audience applause when he spoke of reining in Environmental Protection Agency rules that affect farmers and spoke against rules proposed by the Department of Labor that would ban children from working with certain tools and on certain farm jobs.
Facing pressure from farm groups, the department agreed earlier this year to include more exemptions for children whose parents own or operate farms or have a substantial interest in a farm partnership or corporation.
The audience also applauded when Crawford criticized the 2010 Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, and said he had cast votes to repeal it. Latanich was the only Democratic candidate to mention the health- care overhaul law, which the Supreme Court is expected to rule on this summer.
Describing provisions of the Affordable Care Act, such as one that would require companies to insure people with preexisting conditions, Latanich asked, “Who should be opposed to this?”
He described Republican economic policies as “scary.”
“We need better policies out of the House of Representatives and we’re not getting them,” he said.