Arkansas Embroiled In Investigations

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AllPolitics, Nov. 19) -- Since Bill Clinton's departure from his home state of Arkansas for the White House five years ago, many of the people he left behind have found themselves embroiled in special investigations, lawsuits and scandal.

The era of special investigations that has plagued Clinton's presidency has come to Arkansas, and this time Whitewater and Paula Jones aren't even involved.

For the most part it is Democrats who are facing allegations of wrongdoing. The implications of corruption have hurt the party in a state where it has long been dominant.

Republican Gov. Mike Huckabee resides in the governor's mansion Clinton once lived in, and he is expected to win re-election next year. Last year Arkansas sent its first Republican senator to Washington since Reconstruction. Analysts predict the GOP, now outnumbered 113-21 in the state legislature, will pick up at least 50 seats during the 1998 elections.

State Sen. Nick Wilson, a 26-year veteran of the state legislature and considered to be one of Arkansas' most powerful lawmakers, has been the target of federal and state investigations.

Investigators from the FBI, IRS and state police recently raided Wilson's offices and subpoenaed records from the state's child-support enforcement programs after it was reported that he and four other state senators were paid thousands of dollars for legal work under the programs.

The propriety of a $750,000 state judicial grant to the House leader and two Arkansas lawyers has also come under federal scruntiny, since no other competitve bids were considered. The judicial branch of the government decides on contracts for legal work.

Arkansas Attorney General Winston Bryant has filed suit against three House members, including outgoing House Speaker Bobby Hogue, alleging that the prominent lawmakers illegally held state jobs.

Last September, Democratic Rep. Lloyd George resigned after pleading guilty to a scheme to defraud the prison system.

In once incident that has ramifications for the president, Gov. Jim Guy Tucker resigned last year after being convicted in a Whitewater-related trial.

Gov. Huckabee has taken a tough stance on the atmosphere of scandal, vowing to root out any wrongdoing in the Arkansas government. He hired a former FBI white-collar crime specialist, Bill Hardin, to review all state contracts, grants and leases for any mishandling. Hardin once worked for Whitewater prosecutors Robert Fiske and Kenneth Starr.

The Republican governor himself has not been immune to the investigation-happy climate, as questions have arisen about who contributed to a fund to subsidize his state salary with $60,000 in speaking fees while he was lieutenant governor.

Huckabee has refused to disclose who the donors were and will not release to the attorney general information gathered through a taxpayer supported hotline set up to allow residents to report abuses in government.

In Other News:

Wednesday Nov. 19, 1997

• Starr Investigates Clinton's Lawyers For Obstruction
• White House: No Diplomatic Solution In Sight On Iraq
• Arkansas Embroiled In Investigations
• Gingrich Working On A New Book

E-Mail From Washington:
• White House Says U.S. Wants To Solve Iraq Situation Peacefully
• Albright Flies To Geneva For Iraq Meeting