Majority needs to reach out to minority, Pryor warns
Last updated Monday, October 27, 2008 6:53 PM CDT in News
By Doug Thompson
THE MORNING NEWS
BENTONVILLE -- Democrats in Congress need to reach out to Republicans, especially if the elections deliver a large Democratic majority in Congress, state Democratic Party chairman and former Sen. David Pryor said Monday.
Democrats "used to be in the minority. Other times we've been in the majority. I've seen them arrogant and I've seen us arrogant. The American people are tired of arrogance. They want us to work together," Pryor said in an interview Monday after speaking to the Democratic Women of Benton County.
Polls show Democrats leading in enough races to gain 20 seats or more in the House of Representatives and six or more seats in the Senate. Polls also show Democratic presidential nominee and Sen. Barack Obama of Illinois ahead of Republican nominee Sen. John McCain of Arizona.
Obama was elected to the Senate after Pryor's retirement in 1997.
"I don't know him at all, but I know John McCain very well," Pryor said in his speech.
"I served with him side by side. I almost cringe when I hear him talk about being an agent of change. He's not a bad man, but he is not an agent of change. He votes with President Bush 90 percent of the time, with the Republican Party line 93 percent of the time and voted three times to privatize Social Security."
Pryor also announced that actress and Arkansas native Mary Steenburgen and her husband, actor Ted Danson, will arrive at Drake Field in Fayetteville at 5 p.m. today for a Democratic rally.
In his speech, Pryor predicted "the largest election turnout in history."
"In Arkansas, 140,000 people have voted already" through early voting, Pryor said. Election Day is Nov. 4.
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