Tearing out some tattered, dog-eared pages from the old reporter's notebook while 2018 looms large.
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The year ahead is one of those hybrid legislative sessions down in Little Rock -- a fiscal session -- where money and budgets -- not social issues are to be in play.
But some lawmakers will try to fix some non-budget bills such as concealed carry on campus, birth certificate issuance and even some mundane items like prison overcrowding to come into play.
The real work of the fiscal session is to be money based -- as the fiscal session was designed to be all about.
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The state of Arkansas, documents show, during 2017, ranked 2nd just behind Texas in a nationally significant statistical category.
That's real bragging rights, if you ask most any Arkansan, but this time the high ranking was not in industrial recruitment, unemployment, taxes or even football victories -- it was in the state carrying out the death penalty.
If Gov. Asa Hutchinson and state Attorney General Leslie Rutledge had their wishes, sadly, Arkansas would have been No. 1. But several U.S. District Court rulings and some Circuit Court rulings changed that.
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It was a slight change of military alliance, but one worth noting. State Sen. Jim Hendren of Gravette has moved from the Missouri Air National Guard unit to an Air Guard Unit in Arkansas. The state Senator has written much about his exploits with the Missouri Guard over the years -- he's even been deployed with the Show Me State unit several times.
Moving back to his native Arkansas' Air Guard Unit may bring about more "room" to climb the military ladder, some insiders say. After all, his Uncle, current Gov. Asa Hutchinson, does have some say over who heads the state units of the in-state military commands.
Don't look for too quick a promotion, but the governor is heading into a re-election campaign.
And Sen. Hendren's term -- while a long, one -- does, also one day come to a constitutional end.
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The delay of the much-ballyhooed federal trial of at least two former legislators over their alleged criminal activities associated with the General Improvement Funds (or GIF) monies now stretches well into the Spring of 2018.
Many political observers thought the long-running investigation -- now into its fourth year - would begin its trial in late 2017, but a wrinkle now extends the trial into April.
At issue in this delay are recorded telephone calls from former state Rep. Micah Neal of Springdale, found in the possession of federal prosecutors.
Not only are the contents of the telephone conversations causing heads to wag, but also how did Neal manage to record some 76 different conversations?
A busy man that former state Rep. Micah Neal apparently was.
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From Washington D.C. Arkansans were a little breathless that our junior U.S. Senator Tom Cotton might ascend to the head of the Central Intelligence Agency -- that top spy network run by the U.S. Government.
Now that looks like just hopefulness from the Harvard educated conservative.
Even as a pal of the President of the United States -- one has to wonder if Sen. Cotton is not happy in his role as a U.S. Senator.
Many, even those in his own party, were hoping (some silently, others not so quietly) that Cotton would dump politics to head for the top secret activities in covert activities. And that in itself opens up a whole can of political worms of who would be appointed to his post? If a special election would or could be called? And who would run?
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As far as this observer can see, not many Arkansans from our state's "far right" -- ran down to Alabama to assist in the recent, divisive special election for a U.S. Senator.
Perhaps, just like comparing Arkansas vs. Alabama football, it seems that nasty political race was well beyond the normal bare-knuckles political battles we see here in Arkansas.
Thank goodness for that good news as 2017 draws to a close.
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Happy New Year everyone.
MAYLON RICE IS A FORMER JOURNALIST WHO WORKED FOR SEVERAL NORTHWEST ARKANSAS PUBLICATIONS. HE CAN BE REACHED VIA EMAIL AT [email protected]. THE OPINIONS EXPRESSED ARE THOSE OF THE AUTHOR.
Editorial on 12/27/2017