Wrestling With Republican Bears

Very few politicians would have shown up for the grilling I watched Rep. Davy Carter, R-Cabot, stay through Thursday afternoon.

The Republican faithful were furious - their word - at Carter. He won the speaker’s race against fellow Republican Rep. Terry Rice, R-Waldron, largely with Democratic support.

Then he kept a senior House staffer who was a former Democratic speaker of the House. Then he hired a former Democratic Party executive director as his chief of staff . Then he wouldn’t vow to fi ght “Obamacare” to the last ditch.

Then he came to Springdale.

We live in an age where just about every public appearance by a politician is staged, safe and rehearsed.

Carter came to a wideopen meeting. About 30 Republicans showed up, rank and fi le members, with a few elected oft cials.

“We do not want Obamacare. Are you going to implement Obamacare?

Yes or no?” asked Valerie Biendara of Fayetteville.

“It’s not a yes or no question,” Carter began to reply.

“Yes, it is,” replied Biendara in unison with several other members of the audience.

Carter replied, as I reported earlier this week, health care is the law of the land. Either we implement it or the federal governmentwill.

When Carter said he is going to help run the state in a fi scally responsible way, Paul Phaneuf of Elkins “congratulated” him for “running the most eft cient restaurant on the Titanic while we’re all going down.” He should fi ght federal mandates such as health care, he said.

“If you’re just another John Boehner, you’re not any good at all,” Phaneuf said, referring to the speaker of the U.S. House, a man not known for his fl exibility.

I could go on, but you get the drift. Thursday’s “discussion” played out in front of Carter’s wife, Cara, who accompanied the speaker-elect on his trip.

It’s 200 miles from Cabot to Springdale. Thursday was 12 days to Christmas. Carter wouldn’t even have had to make an excuse to have stayed away. He not only came, he went to Rogers before that and spent the whole day up here.

If Carter was a turncoat who sold out the Republican Party and conservative ideals to the Democrats, why did he make this trip - and later promise to come back?

A few other things:

First, Republicans will be back in 2014 and absolutely determined to expand their majority. They feel frustrated. They got complacent in this election, too confident they were going to sweep instead of get the bare 51-seat house majority they have. They will not make that mistake again.

Second, if you want to run as a Republican in 2014, be prepared to be nailed down to some very specifi c commitments. You are going to get grilled if Republicanselsewhere in this state are anything like those in Springdale.

Third, I wouldn’t try browbeating Carter if I were up against him. Intimidation does not seem to work. It’s always been my experience that people who can’t be browbeaten at home can rarely get browbeaten at work, so to speak. Put another way, I doubt many people can apply the kind of force I saw this fellow withstand Thursday afternoon from members of his own party. Want to change his mind? Trysomething else.

Fourth, Carter is right about Stovall. Bill Stovall knows how the House works, having been both a House member and a staff member and doing an exceptional job at both.

Don’t forget Tim Massanelli stepped down as full-time House parliamentarian in 2011 after 39 years of service. Massanelli was a vital part of the House before term limits and something close to indispensable after it.

Losing both Massanelli and Stovall before the next session would be a selfimposed disaster.

Carter kept Stovall on staff but replaced him as chief of staff with Gabe Holmstrom, the aforementioned former executive director of the Democratic Party. Carter and Holmstrom are Cabot boys and longtime friends.

I admit to being intrigued at how all this will play out. I’m not going to Little Rock to cover the legislative session. For the first time, I regret that a little.

DOUG THOMPSON IS A POLITICAL REPORTER AND COLUMNIST FOR NWA MEDIA.