Arkansas has an unfortunate distinction: It is one of only a handful of states without hate-crime legislation, yet it is also home to extremists who spout hate.
Just ask Asa Hutchinson, the former federal prosecutor who cut his prosecutorial teeth pursuing an Ozarks-based group called the Covenant, the Sword and the Arm of the Lord back in the 1980s.
Now governor, Hutchinson says he wants enhanced penalties in Arkansas for hate crimes, suggesting an urgency for such a law because of an increase in domestic terrorism.
Hutchinson made the remarks to the Arkansas Sheriffs' Association recently, just days after back-to-back mass shootings in El Paso, Texas, and Dayton, Ohio.
The El Paso shooter, who gunned down 22 people at a Walmart, is believed to have posted an online screed about targeting Hispanics. Federal authorities described him and the Dayton killer, who left nine dead in just 32 seconds' time, as domestic terrorists.
Hutchinson tweeted on Sunday after the attacks that he had seen "the evil of white supremacy" as a prosecutor and was seeing a resurgence of that evil now.
He has since called for hate-crime legislation in Arkansas, where at least a dozen extremist groups exist these days, and acknowledged evolution in his own thinking about the need for the law.
"I know enough from the '80s that when you have that (white supremacy) conversation and increased dialogue, some people are going to take it to the extreme and act on it," Hutchinson said.
A hate-crime law is important both to address violent acts and to comfort those who are subject to attack, he said.
Arkansas -- along with Georgia, South Carolina and Wyoming -- have no specific protection for victims of hate crimes or penalties for those who commit crimes on the basis of race, ethnicity, religion, gender, sex or disability.
There have been efforts to pass such legislation in Arkansas, but they have failed so far.
The governor's decision to weigh in should provide a needed boost to the effort, although it might be limited in Arkansas to crimes against people because of their race, ethnicity or religion. Hutchinson did not mention gender identification or sexual orientation.
The governor said he would like to get a hate-crime bill before the Legislature as soon as possible.
Since the 2020 session is a fiscal session, the best opportunity might be a special session the governor could call for this and other issues.
At least one other issue, vaping, has been suggested for a special session. Attorney General Leslie Rutledge hinted about the possibility on a Sunday talk show where she expressed concern about a vaping epidemic among Arkansas schoolchildren.
Watch for other issues to crop up for possible inclusion in a special session. But pay attention first to whether this idea of hate-crime legislation gathers any steam.
"I think there is an urgent moment now, but let's see what the level of support is," Hutchinson said in a weekend interview with The Associated Press. Governors don't call special sessions unless they're fairly certain lawmakers will reach consensus on a legislative solution.
Here's hoping the political climate has changed in Arkansas, as it appears to have changed nationwide for other responses to rising threats of domestic terrorism.
At least the issue seems more urgent in the current environment.
Federal lawmakers, who are on recess now, are expected to return to increased demands for legislation for enhanced background checks, "red-flag" legislation and even bans on assault-style weapons and large-capacity magazines. Red-flag laws allow certain people to petition a judge to temporarily remove guns from an individual's possession based on a finding that he is a danger to himself or others.
With the 2020 elections ahead of them, the members of Congress should be particularly sensitive to what their constituents have been telling them back home.
They must have gotten an earful during the recess with El Paso and Dayton still fresh on everyone's minds.
Also, school kids just returned to classes -- and to active-shooter drills -- amid a growing insistence that Congress act.
Do you remember that haunting call on the streets of Dayton for officials to "do something?"
This time, maybe someone will.
Commentary on 08/28/2019