Jared Henderson in State of Arkansas Archives

On Abortion: Supports available legal abortion but won't run on the issue

He's been careful in discussing bedrock Republican hot buttons--abortion, gay rights, guns. He won't be campaigning on these issues. But I was happy to learn of the direction he leans. The adopted child of an unwed mother, Henderson says he understands the complexity of the abortion debate. He's said at a minimum the state shouldn't interfere in cases of rape, incest and health of the mother. But I asked him if he believed abortion should remain available legally in Arkansas and he said yes. Source: Arkansas Times on 2018 Arkansas Gubernatorial race Dec 22, 2017

On Budget & Economy: Bring new ideas and out-of-the-box thinking to economy

He believes his economic platform also has a shot at transcending party lines. Henderson wants to assist would-be-entrepreneurs and business owners to develop tech and administrative support in town squares across the state. "Over last 20 years the world has changed underneath our feet. The economy has never been in a period of more rapid and dynamic change than it is right now. So, we need ideas that transcend outdated political debates. That's what I want to bring to this campaign." Source: KUAR Public Radio on 2018 Arkansas Gubernatorial race Dec 12, 2017

On Civil Rights: Supports LGBT citizens but not for across the board revamps

Gay rights? "I unambiguously support civil rights for LGBT citizens." But does that mean pushing to override existing discrimination in state law or to add protections to the state civil rights statute? "Where we need to go further to see real equity we need to do it." But he indicated that first there needs to be evidence of a problem in need of correction. Then, he said, "should we need to stand up and be counted, I'm not afraid to do it." Source: Arkansas Times on 2018 Arkansas Gubernatorial race Dec 22, 2017

On Corporations: Give right tools to right people, & jobs will flourish

Henderson wants to stimulate wage growth and entrepreneurship. "I'm glad to see our unemployment rate so low, but wages are also low, and growth is minimal. And that is one thing that we need to focus on strongly." "There are people that have the work ethic, the initiative, and the passion to figure out what to do with a vacant store front on Main Street. What they don't have are the technical know-how, often times the relationships and the capital. We can do something about that." Source: TB&P TalkBusiness.net on 2018 Arkansas Gubernatorial race Dec 31, 2017

On Education: Education is the catalyst to strong economy and prosperity

"Education is central to our future," he said. "It's broader than just the strength of education, how much our students are learning. It is also critical input to our poverty rates, to our economic development, a whole host of issues." "In 10 years, Arkansas needs to be one of the best places in the U.S. to be a teacher," he said. "That needs to be our guiding goal, our North Star. We do that, we'll build an education system that can prepare our kids for jobs that we don't even know exist yet." Source: ArkansasMatters.com on 2018 Arkansas Gubernatorial race Dec 12, 2017

On Gun Control: No guns on campus; won't commit yet on open carry

He's said in other interviews he's a 2nd Amendment supporter and was more troubled by the overriding of local control in the campus carry legislation than the guns themselves. He didn't believe there should be firearms on campus and "neither do leaders of those communities." He said he hasn't yet studied the debate of whether Arkansas should allow open carry of firearms. He calls himself a moderate on guns. "Almost everyone in my family owns a gun," he said. Not Henderson himself, however. Source: Arkansas Times on 2018 Arkansas Gubernatorial race Dec 22, 2017

On Health Care: Support Arkansas Works; concentrate on reducing premiums

On healthcare--"I think that the direction we're taking on Arkansas Works [the state ObamaCare program], I largely agree with and I am happy to give credit where credit's due on that front. I think that the most important thing in healthcare right now that's not being talked about is the cost of insurance premiums." Source: TB&P TalkBusiness.net on 2018 Arkansas Gubernatorial race Dec 31, 2017

On Immigration: We can learn and grow by listening to the immigrants stories

Henderson said Saturday's event taught just as much -- if not more -- than any day on the campaign trail. "It just really opened our eyes to the reality that our immigrant population makes us stronger as a country," he said. "We are at our strongest when we celebrate diversity and we really promote inclusiveness, and that starts with understanding the real stories of our fellow citizens. It just deepens my convictions to fight for those things." Source: Democrat-Gazette on 2018 Arkansas Gubernatorial race Apr 15, 2018

On Tax Reform: Fight against raising grocery tax, to protect families

I'm glad to hear Gov. Hutchinson finally broke his silence on this as the Republican-controlled General Assembly has tossed around the idea of increasing the grocery tax for the past month. Raising the grocery tax should never even be up for discussion and you can bet I'd fight any attempt, from day one, to raise this tax that hits our working families the hardest. Henderson had issued a press release slamming Hutchinson for failing to speak out against the possibility of raising the grocery tax. Source: Arkansas Times on 2018 Arkansas Gubernatorial race May 4, 2018

On Tax Reform: Supports the Republican low and middle class income tax cuts

Henderson said he supports the state's hybrid Medicaid expansion, which uses federal funds to purchase private insurance for low-income residents. But he stopped short of saying whether he supports the restrictions Gov. Hutchinson has asked the federal government to impose that would move 60K off the program and impose a work requirement on some. He also said he supports the low- and middle-income tax cuts Hutchinson advocated for and signed into law, but said he'd be cautious about any further cuts. Source: Times-Record on 2018 Arkansas Governor race Dec 12, 2017

The above quotations are from State of Arkansas Politicians: Archives. Click here for other excerpts from State of Arkansas Politicians: Archives. Click here for other excerpts by Jared Henderson. Click here for a profile of Jared Henderson.
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Page last updated: Feb 18, 2023