At a recent fundraiser of the Craighead County Republican Party, U-S Senator Tom Cotton spoke about Republican gains in Arkansas, as well as across the country. He says some states that have been Democratic have switched to red.
“Just two weeks ago, we won another gubernatorial election in Kentucky,” said Cotton. “That means 33 of the 50 governors in the nation are now Republican, including Arkansas Governor Asa Hutchinson. 247 congressman, 54 senators and 68 out of 99 state chambers in this country are governed by Republicans.”
Cotton took an opportunity over the weekend to politicize the terrorist attacks that took place in Paris Friday night. Cotton claims President Obama is weak in this role of securing America.
“We just saw in Paris that we still need a president that will keep us safe. We have been on a war on terrorism since the September 11, 2001 attacks in America and was waged against us far beyond that. We are dealing with an enemy that must be defeated.”
He says the President should stand up to groups, like ISIS. According to Cotton, Obama doesn’t understand how to defeat ISIS.
“We need to understand that this is an enemy that has to be defeated. I am convinced that Barack Obama believes he is doing the right thing in handling ISIS. However, he consistently does the wrong thing and it weakens America.”
He says terrorism is just one of several issues that will be key for the upcoming election next year.
“Too many people are still out of work, wages are still low, too many families can’t pay their health care bills, and there are many other issues. The first thing, though, is the protection of America and American lives. As I have stated, there is only one office in the land that can do that. We must vote in next year’s election.”
Of course, Cotton provides a Republican view of the upcoming election. Besides the Presidential election, there will be elections for all of the United States Representatives in Arkansas. 32 races in the state House and 5 races in the state Senate are up for grabs. Political analysists say the key for Democrats will involve winning battleground races around the state.
In 2016, Arkansas will be part of the so-called SEC primary, which will involve several southern stated all holding their primaries March first. Early voting takes place from February 15th through the 29th.
