My Announcement

Someone called me last week and said they heard I wasn't going to run for re-election. Nothing could be further from the truth, and I want to put that rumor to rest. I' ll be making my formal announcement in a few days. There isn't any particular reason whyI haven't announced, other than I believe the process starts too early. If someone decides they want to run against me, then I doubt my announcing weeks ago would hold anyone off. I want to say that I am honored to be one of Arkansas's 100 State Representatives, and I am proud of the many accomplishments of the 86th general assembly. The 2009 session is just around the corner, and I want to continue learning and working as a state legislator. So I look forward to all the upcoming fire department fund-raisers, and everything else involved with the campaign season. I just think most folks don't want to fool with it before the time is right.

Emergency Funds

I will be at the Capitol on Tuesday, along with Mayor Bobby Steed of Blevins , to accept $9,000.00 in emergency funding from the Governor's office. The money will be used to replace that City's main water well pump that went out over the Christmas holidays. Blevins has been operating on a back-up system since then, and Governor Beebe has agreed to release that amount to the City. We appreciate the Governor and his staff recognizing the needs that many of our small towns have in their day to day operations. This money will allow Blevins to turn-key the project and have everything up and running shortly.

An Apology

Last July, on this blog, I described my trip to the Powder River Basin and touring the coal mines of that region. I also pointed out that the trip had been sponsored by the Arkansas Electric Cooperatives. I'm glad I made the trip and it provided me with a good bit of information on coal extraction and how each company reclaims the mined land. Unfortunately, the topic came up again this week when an Arkansas Democrat-Gazette reporter called and asked why I didn't show the trip on my annual Statement of Financial Interest. Simply put, I didn't realize I was supposed to include it. I immediately filed an amended report on February 14th, showing this as a gift on my statement. An article in Sunday's paper points out my mistake , along with several other legislators who apparently made the same error. I am personally embarrassed because I should have realized this needed to be on the original report that was due on January 31st. Although my July blog report and a subsequent statement during a civic club speech should show I didn't intend to deceive anyone about the trip, it is a mistake I shoudn't have made; and I apologize for that.

One Million Dollars

The 2:00 news conference at UACCH was a big announcement as expected. But I'm not sure anyone in the overflow crowd expected the one million dollars AEP- SWEPCO endowed to our local college. The money will be earmarked for scholarships that will train local students in the specialized skills needed for employment at the proposed Turk Power Plant. It puts to rest one of the theories by the intervenors, and those against the plant, that SWEPCO had no intention of hiring locally to fill out their work force. This is a big step to help home grown people learn skills for high end jobs, that ultimately makes Southwest Arkansas a better place to live and raise a family. It's been said here and many other places----AEP-SWEPCO has been, and will continue to be, an outstanding community partner for years to come.

UACCH Announcement

Congressman Mike Ross and University of Arkansas President, Dr. Alan Sugg, will be at UACCH today at 2:00 to accept a major endowment from AEP-SWEPCO. Even though the amount has not been made public, I am assured this donation to our college will be of historic proportion. I'll be there with many other local's to see exactly how historic this will be.

Tragedy In Our State

The deadly weather that ripped through our state and much of the South last night has created a tremendous hardship to thousands of Arkansans. We were extremely fortunate in Southwest Arkansas to have missed the brunt of this storm. The Governor toured the damaged areas this morning and mobilized National Guard troops to help in the recovery. Destruction of this magnitude probably reminds all of us of the catastrophic tornado that devastated Arkadelphia just more than a decade ago. Killer storms are a fact of life in Arkansas and sometimes even the best preparation is not enough to stave off nature's wrath. Many of us have friends and family affected by this tragedy, and hopefully, the federal government acts quickly to provide assistance. I know that our State Department of Emergency Management has been on site since last night. I promise to provide any help that may be required legislatively and personally. I know a multitude of prayers will help the thousands of our neighbors in distress; and we can continue providing for their needs by opening our hearts and even our checkbooks during this difficult time.

Super Tuesday Doings

I had a nice visit with Congressman Mike Ross this morning in Prescott. He and wife, Holly, along with several staff members, hosted a community coffee at the Nevada County Library. I appreciate his willingness to always help me out and he has done so many times. I will be with him on Saturday morning as we attend a fund-raiser for the Yerger museum, and again on Monday, for a special announcement at UACCH. He is an extraordinarily busy man, but really keeps a finger on the pulse of the communities he serves.



It was a treat to have lunch at the Catholic church here in Hope today, as they hosted their 50th annual spaghetti luncheon and supper. My good friend, Mary Massanelli, is the matriarch of this fund-raiser and she was on hand today, serving up smiles and her homemade spaghetti recipe. Good food and great fellowship always makes this a go to event.



I did make my way to the polls this morning and as always, enjoyed my visit with the poll workers at the Rocky Mound Baptist church. The process had you take a blue card for a Democratic ballot, red for Republican and green for the Green party ticket. I chose the blue card but I noticed the people in front chose red in order to vote in the Republican primary. That's no big deal to me, but I know these same folks will vote in the Democratic primary come May. Here's the question and I don't think it can be answered for sure. Do those people that cross over simply want to vote for McCain, Romney or Huckabee, or do they just not want to vote for Clinton or Obama? I suspect there may be a fair number wanting to vote for Huckabee. Arkansans are notorious for separating their local and national politicians, but I'm curious to see how Southwest Arkansas Democrats ultimately go in the Presidential race.

Vote On Tuesday

I'll be at the Rocky Mound Baptist Church at 8:00 on Tuesday morning to cast my vote in the Presidential primary. The little rural church outside of Hope provides a perfect setting to make my decision, and reminds me of days gone by; when Momma and Daddy would load all of us up so they could go and vote at the courthouse in Old Washington. I was 6 years old when my parents cast their ballots for John F. Kennedy to be their next President. It seems like a long time ago, but I remember it really seemed important to them back then, and it means a lot to me now.

Great Game!

What a Super Bowl. More often than not, the game is overshadowed by wardrobe malfunctions, crazy commercials, and just downright over-hype. This years halftime was tame enough, the commercials were boring and the hype was justified. The Manning escape and subsequent David Tyree helmet catch, will go down as Super Bowl history. And how many really thought the Giants had a prayer of scoring a TD when they went down 14-10 with 2:45 left? Not many I'll bet. But the 12 point underdogs wouldn't be denied and the result was one of the two or three greatest Super Bowls of all time. That's in my personal rankings of course, since I've seen them all. What's next, an exciting NBA finals? Nah. It hasn't been any fun since Bird and Magic left.

Super Bowl XLII

Here's a question for you. Do they still teach kids roman numerals? If they do, then most of the young whippersnappers will know this is the 42nd Super Bowl. If they don't, then those same whippersnappers will have to come to me, or a reasonable facsimile, to know what the archaic lettering means. They may be able to program a VCR, (which is obsolete anyway) and listen to music on any of those new fangled i-pods and mp3's, but thanks to my grade school teachers, I know the secrets of roman numerals, and I ain't telling any of them.

I know they don't care which Super Bowl this is, so I doubt my information is very valuable. Oh well. Now to the predicting. Expect a close game. Here's why. New England has created this perfect season not so much with superior talent, as with superior execution and a minimum of mistakes. As a result, it has led to record setting performances by Brady and Moss and brought them to the brink of history that only the 72 Dolphins can relate. The Patriots will perform well because they have to win this game to become a part of NFL lore. Having said all that, I believe the game will be close for many reasons. Number 1 is simply as you look back over the previous 3 Patriot Super Bowl wins, they did so by the skin of their teeth. Remember the Rams, Eagles and Panthers. Each game came down to the final minutes and both the Panthers and Eagles were big underdogs. Secondly, the Giants have used much the same recipe as the Patriots by limiting turn-overs and playing good defense. Eli has not turned the ball over in the play-offs and if that happens today then we'll see a good game. So what's the score?

The Patriots complete their historic 19-0 season and squeak by the Giants 30-24. Kevin Faulk, the superb 3rd down back, will walk away with the MVP, and Tom Brady walks away with a fourth ring and a supermodel girlfriend. Now I gotta go, because the most important part of Super Bowl Sunday is here---the Super pre-game meal.

Turk Appealed

The intervenors expected appeal of the PSC's decision in the SWEPCO power plant case was filed with the Arkansas Court of Appeals on Tuesday. The appeal itself should not halt progress on construction of the plant, but the pending decision by ADEQ on the air quality permit has in effect kept the construction process at a crawl. Only minor site preparation work can be done until a permit is issued or denied. The hope is that ADEQ can make their decision in the spring, and if it grants a permit, construction should be able to proceed at a faster clip. The intervening party's appeal was not a surprise to anyone following this case. Even though a major hurdle was cleared with the PSC's earlier decision, there are still some battles left before the Turk plant becomes a reality in Hempstead County.

And The Winner is....

Just a week away from Super Tuesday and your guess is as good as mine. This has been the most topsy turvy campaign season in my memory, and just when you've got it figured, well you don't. Great fun for political junkies though. Can Hillary rebound from South Carolina? Is our former Governor's momentum slowing to a crawl? Can the bonafide hero hold off the well monied governor? I can't say anything for sure except you better not count anybody out. Not even the Giants on Sunday. It's been that crazy of a year.

Special Session?

Who knows? There has been a fair amount of talk over the past week about the Governor calling a special session to deal with the severance tax issue. He speculated a few days ago that if he could get a consensus from lawmakers in favor of raising the current rate, he very well might call us into session. I doubted it then and after seeing reports over the week-end, I am fairly certain it won't be happening soon. My stance on the severance tax is simply that I believe the tax on extracting the gas has always been too low, but I'm having mixed emotions about jumping in and raising the tax now that the Fayetteville shale play is booming. I'd like to see a definitive plan on how much of an increase we're talking about and exactly where the money would go before I make a decision. I would also like some input from my constituents because ultimately, they could have the chance to vote on this very issue come November. I think that is the best solution since any action in the ledge will take a 3/4 majority, and in my opinion, that would be virtually impossible to do.

Tom Brokaw Had Him Pegged

A giant of a man will celebrate his 85th birthday on Saturday. I should say that the giant I'm talking about barely scrapes 5' 10'' and weighs in at maybe 175 lbs. Certainly not a giant by any standard. But you have to use a different measuring stick when you talk about those of "The Greatest Generation". It's important that you measure the life-long committments to their God, their Country and their Family. Plenty of skeptics will say those values are out-dated and even corny. Well no matter what they say, they can't deny that without the giants and great Americans like my father, Leland Powers, who fought to save our world during the 1940's, none of us would be where we are today. The old saying goes that many of us got to our stations in life by standing on the shoulders of giants. I know that's got to be true because I've been perched atop my Daddy's for way too long. I want to thank him for that and wish him the happiest birthday ever. I pray he knows that if he ever gets tired of holding me up, I would be honored to change places, so he can see forever one more time.

Treacherous Traveling

As I lit out for Little Rock this morning I really had no idea how dangerous the roadways were. The trip from Hope to LR normally takes about an hour and thirty minutes, and thats driving the speed limit. Today's jaunt to the Capitol was a three and one half hour exercise in driving hell. The low temps and falling rain made for a deadly combination. Sadly there was one reported fatality just past Arkadelphia this morning; and coming home this evening, I saw another wreck close to Malvern that may have been just as bad. Cars were littered all over the sides of I-30 today, and why it never sinks in for every driver to slow down and pay full attention to what they're doing is beyond me. I'm sure most folks don't want to be on the highways in these conditions, but if you have to be there, extreme caution in this type of weather has to be the rule.

Here And There

I attended a noon time celebration today honoring Dr. Martin Luther King, at the Providence Missionary Baptist church here in Hope. A good crowd was there and heard Congressman Mike Ross and Deputy Prosecuting Attorney, Angie Taylor, provide the keynote addresses. It was a good cross section of our community and I appreciate the opportunity to be involved.

Steve Harrrelson has an interesting spot on his blog about a Representative from Arizona who is introducing legislation aimed at penalizing those legislators who miss votes. The penalty being discussed is to dock the missing legislator a day's pay. His theory that being a legislator means voting your conscience and providing a voice for your constituents on each and every bill sounds reasonable to me. Having said that, no matter how reasonable it sounds, there are times when meetings can't be avoided and ultimately a decision on missing a vote or making a meeting has to be made. Those are not always easy decisions. I personally try to make all the votes and schedule meetings when we aren't in session. Though I don't think this type of legislation will be filed, if it were, exceptions on sickness and emergencies would have to be included.

The New England Patriots have been installed as 13 1/2 point favorites over the New York Giants in the upcoming Super Bowl. Here's my take on that---I believe the Giants have a better than outside shot to upset the perfect Patriots. The two weeks will give the Giants secondary a chance to heal up, and the Giants are one of the few teams that can put pressure on the QB without blitzing. Eli will have to play well and the Giants can't lose the turn-over battle. If all that happens, the game should be close, with the Giants having their shot.

Speaker-Elect Wills

The House convened yesterday to elect the Speaker of the House for the upcoming 2009 Session. Since Rep David Dunn withdrew his candidacy just before Christmas, it was really just a formality to make Rep. Robbie Wills (D)-Conway, our Speaker-elect. Robbie was allowed to make a 15 minute speech, and he did an excellent job of conveying his hopes and expectations to the 86 legislators gathered in the House chamber. I believe there will be some tough issues coming down the road as we near 2009; but after hearing the Speaker-elect describe his passion and respect for our institution of government, I am more confident than ever that Robbie Wills is the man for the job.

Harrelson's Got Video

My good friend in Texarkana, Rep. Steve Harrelson, has taken his blog to a new level with a weekly video report. I'm sure most everyone who takes the time to visit here probably knows about Steve's blog, Under the Dome. He is really the best at this blogging business and keeps everybody updated with what's going on. As I said back during the session when a TV reporter interviewed me about Steve's website--If you really want to know what's going on around the Capitol, just go to Harrelson's blog. Keep up the good work Steve.

And Down The Stretch They Come!

With the opening of Oaklawn Park just nine days away, it comes to mind that the best horse racing of the year may take place in the Democratic and Republican primaries. But who's the frontrunner as they slide down the backstretch and enter the final turn for home? I sure couldn't tell you. But I was so certain last August when Hillary and Mitt were putting up those big poll numbers. The truth is, that each one started with an inside trip on a speed favoring racetrack. Both shot quickly from the gate and had a big lead on the field as they headed into the first turn. Nothing or nobody was going to catch these fine tuned and well financed front runners. But wait--what's this--? It's 2008, and the Iowa winter takes its' toll on the track and turns the rail dirt heavy and soft. The inside is not the fast firm footing it was during late summer, and both juggernauts are starting to get leg weary. As the early leaders shorten their stride, a high strung 3 year old colt from Illinois lopes up to Hillary with long confident strides. Obama's pre-race stategy of being the agent of change has the young infield whipper-snappers slapping programs on their legs and screaming for their pick to take the lead. He does just that and sticks his head in front for the first time. The frenzied young-uns on the infield head for the windows to collect their bets. The swagger and overconfidence of youth won't serve them well on this day, because New Hampshire has given Hillary her second wind and now she charges back into the lead. Hillary's jockey, the wily veteran Bill, has his steed back in the race with a retooled message and a kinder, gentler persona. Separating himself from the rest of the pack is the fiery veteran campaigner, Lawyer John. But there's too much ground to make up and he'll have to settle for the show. Hillary and Obama race neck and neck for Super Duper Tuesday and it's gonna take a photo to pick the headbobbing winner. .
Back to the Republicans, it seems as if Iowa and New Hampshire have Mitt mired in the mud, with Thompson being left in the gate, and Rudy a late scratch. But on the outside you've got yourself a real horse race. The old iron horse, McCain, is using all the savvy he can muster to stave off the upset bid of the longest shot on the board, Huckabee. As McCain and Huckabee glide past the tiring early favorite, both are jockeying for position. Pundits and media type scurry around the grandstands, shaking their heads in amazement as they watch this race unfold. Huckabee uses Iowans and his everyman approach to forge to the lead. But McCain, a true American hero, has seen a lot tougher spots than this, and New Hampshire puts him on even terms with the upstart Arkansas bred. As they turn into the stretch, it's too close to call for both parties, so lets just sit back, have a corned beef, and enjoy our time at the races.

Happy New Year!

Best wishes for a Happy New Year and a big Thank You to everyone who has helped make this an unbelievable year for me. It is truly an honor to serve in the Arkansas House of Representatives with so many bright and thoughtful people, who I believe have the best interests of all Arkansans in their heart. May we all look forward and continue working toward what is best for our great State and Country.