Senator Blanche Lincoln is, of course, from Arkansas, a state that relies upon its agriculture sector to sustain its economy. It would be difficult to overstate how important this is to Arkansans. Consider (pdf):
- 1/6 of Arkansas jobs are related to ag
- in a state with fewer than 3 million people, you'll find 49,300 farms
- Arkansan ag production accounts for about 16 cents of every dollar of total economic output
Again, you simply cannot overstate how important agriculture is to an enormous number of Arkansans. And when your job is at stake, you tend to pay attention to certain things..
One example: Until a couple of weeks ago, Senator Lincoln's chair of the Senate Agriculture Committee probably worked to her favor. The folks in Arkansas saw that their Senator had finally climbed the political ladder and reached a summit from which she could dump loads of federal dollars into the state.
But that was then.
In just the last couple of weeks, things have taken a turn toward the ominous if you are an Arkansan ag-worker counting on Blanche Lincoln.
flip
The stories of newer Democratic Senator's frustration with the body's rules have flown mostly below the radar, but you can be sure at least one proposed change will become part of Arkansan dinnertime conversation as the primary race heats up.
Here's the relevant part of Ryan Grim's report on what transpired at the progressive media summit earlier this month:
Senate Democrats intend to elect the chairs of committees when the next Congress convenes, which could upend a tradition that prioritizes seniority over party loyalty, legislative effectiveness or any other merit-based criteria.
During a question-and-answer session with progressive media, video blogger Mike Stark asked lawmakers why the Democratic caucus hasn't yanked Sen. Blanche Lincoln's chairmanship of the Agriculture Committee, considering her opposition to Democratic legislative efforts. In Arkansas, her gavel is a top selling point as she battles a progressive primary challenge.
"We're going to elect committee chairs next year," said Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio). "The current chairs that are sitting there now understand that we'll be electing chairs next year," he added, saying the idea had been cleared with Senate leadership.
...
"I'm not predicting who or [that] anyone will be defeated, but they're certainly going to get a message. And one or two might [be defeated]. There's going to simply be a yes or no. Should Tom Harkin stay as chairman of health? Yes or no? And it will be yes for him, of course. But for some others, it may not be," said Brown.
Aside from Lincoln and Lieberman (and, perhaps, Johnson in Banking), it's hard to make out who Senator Brown could be talking about.
Already, Senator Lincoln is up with ads touting her Chairmanship of the Ag Committee. If Arkansans have reason to believe that she's going to lose her chair, and that she knows she's about to lose it, she'll be perceived as not only incompetent, but perhaps dishonest as well.