HOPE -- Former President Bill Clinton, surrounded by old friends and the current batch of Democratic candidates, campaigned in his hometown Saturday, urging people to stick with the party that once dominated Arkansas politics.
"I realize I'm preaching to the saved here," Clinton told hundreds of Democratic loyalists as he summoned them to vote on Nov. 4.
"You've got a lot riding on this. You have never had a better slate of candidates. Never. Including when I was running," he said, tapping the podium for emphasis. "You've never had higher stakes, so I am pleading with you to spend these next few days" campaigning for Democrats.
Clinton made Hope famous during his 1992 presidential campaign, giving it a starring role on the night he accepted the party's presidential nomination.
On Saturday, he stood in front of Hope's spruced-up railway station, at a lectern sporting an "Arkansas First" sign, and embraced candidates he's known for decades:
• Mike Ross, Clinton's campaign driver in the early 1980s, a former U.S. representative and the party's gubernatorial nominee.
• Two-term U.S. Sen. Mark Pryor, the only Democrat currently in the Arkansas congressional delegation.
• James Lee Witt, Clinton's Federal Emergency Management Agency director and the party's nominee in the 4th Congressional District, which includes the southwestern corner of the state.
The 42nd president vouched for all three and urged Arkansans not to get distracted by the millions of dollars in attack ads that are crowding the state's airwaves.
"This election is really about economics, education and families. The rest of it is all smoke and mirrors," Clinton said, adding, "Don't let anyone fool you."
Democrats will expand pre-kindergarten programs, create jobs and raise the standard of living for all Americans, not just the wealthy, Clinton said.
He urged Arkansans to send Democrats to Capitol Hill, a place Clinton says needs fixing.
"Congress needs a mindset change, an attitude change. Everybody just wants to fight all the time, and nobody wants to get anything done," he said.
He also expressed confidence in the government's ability to respond to Ebola challenges. "We're going to do all right on this," he said.
Clinton was joined on stage by another Hope native, former White House Chief of Staff Thomas "Mack" McLarty, and by Bob Nash, the former director of presidential personnel.
As he waited to speak, Clinton draped one arm around Ross' shoulders and the other around McLarty's.
During his visit, the famous Arkansan said he would try to avoid excessive nostalgia. But he thanked Pryor and Ross for helping secure the President William Jefferson Clinton Birthplace Home. A National Historic Site, it is run by the National Park Service.
"I hope it gets you a few extra visitors and helps the economy," Clinton told the Hope crowd. "It helped me to go by and see it today."
During his speech, Ross stressed his roots in the community. "I've got southwest Arkansas written all over me," he said.
Pryor used much of his speaking time to praise Hillary Rodham Clinton, the former secretary of state and potential 2016 presidential candidate. "She's the best," Pryor said. "She's off-the-charts good."
As he addressed the crowd, a Union Pacific locomotive rumbled past, its train whistle blaring.
Clinton hasn't been on an Arkansas ballot since 1996, when he won a second term as president. But with Election Day two weeks away and key Democrats battling, he's barnstorming the state like a candidate for local office.
Earlier this month, he campaigned for Democrats in Conway, Jonesboro, Fayetteville and Rogers. On Friday, he went to Hot Springs to rally Democrats and see old classmates. His 50th high school reunion is this weekend.
Today, he is scheduled to campaign in North Little Rock, Pine Bluff and Forrest City.
At Saturday's rally, Clinton spoke for 25 minutes, while supporters snapped pictures and waved red-white-and-blue "Mark Pryor" hand fans.
Afterward, a rock song blared over the loudspeakers -- Bon Jovi's "Who Says You Can't Go Home." Hope's favorite son stayed for another hour, shaking hands, greeting Hope High School band members and hugging old-timers.
Asked to comment on the 42nd president's visit, Republican National Committee spokesman Fred Brown said his focus is on the 44th commander in chief, Barack Obama.
"Sen. Pryor has loyally rubberstamped President Obama's agenda 93 percent of the time, not President Clinton's," Brown said in a written statement. "Arkansans didn't abandon the Democrat Party, the Democrat Party abandoned Arkansans long ago, and President Obama's liberal policies have only made it worse."
On Saturday, as the crowd began to dwindle, Celia Valdez, 80, gave Clinton's speech high marks. "I'm a Democrat so I loved it," she said. "I voted for Clinton. I voted for Hillary [in 2008], and I'll do it again," she said.
Hazel Simpson, who has owned a Hope beauty salon and barbershop for 54 years, said Clinton will help boost Democrats' enthusiasm as campaign season winds down. "He's a motivator. He's a statesman for us, a statesman and spokesman for the state of Arkansas."
Darian Hall, 16, an alto saxophone player in the Hope High School band, took home digital proof that he'd met Clinton. "I shook his hand. I got a selfie. ... It was exciting," he said.
Skylar Howard, another band member, showed off the photo she'd taken with Clinton.
"I'm going to develop it, and I'm going to put it in my scrapbook. I'm going to make sure everyone sees it," Howard, 16, said. "It's going to go on my mantle. It's going to go everywhere."
Metro on 10/19/2014