FRENCH HILL BIPARTISAN? You decide.

House Democrats Thursday passed legislation to provide money for the Agriculture Department and Food and Drug Administration, with all four Arkansas Republicans opposing the measure. Stay on for a dose of GOP hypocrisy from Rep. French Hill.

The money would resume food safety inspection and provide money for rural development, among other issues of seeming importance to people in Arkansas. Ten Republicans (none from Arkansas) joined Democrats in supporting the legislation, almost identical to a bill that passed the Senate 92-6 in August. It’s unlikely to fare so well in the Senate now, because Senate leadership has caved to Donald Trump’s insistence that government operations be shut down until he gets $5 billion for a border wall. Democrats have supported additional spending for border security, but not $5 billion and not for a wall.

Advertisement

Republican support for Trump among Arkansas congressmen is not surprising, but it was accompanied by this contemporaneous dose of hypocrisy from millionaire former banker French Hill, the Republican from Little Rock. Remember that Hill, talking about the negativism “engulfing” the news and invoking the “spirit of bipartisanship,” spent millions in a re-election campaign painting House Speaker Nancy Pelosi as an evil socialist and opponent Clarke Tucker an enabler of violent drug gangs from Central American.

Advertisement

Arkansas Times: Your voice in the fight

Are you tired of watered-down news and biased reporting? The Arkansas Times has been fighting for truth and justice for 50 years. As an alternative newspaper in Little Rock, we are tough, determined, and unafraid to take on powerful forces. With over 63,000 Facebook followers, 58,000 Twitter followers, 35,000 Arkansas blog followers, and 70,000 daily email blasts, we are making a difference. But we can't do it without you. Join the 3,400 paid subscribers who support our great journalism and help us hire more writers. Sign up for a subscription today or make a donation of as little as $1 and help keep the Arkansas Times feisty for years to come.

Previous article Alcohol probed in wrong-way death on I-40 Next article It’s a long way from Rose City: Jerry Jones buys $250 million super yacht