Mike Beebe

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Mike Beebe
45th Governor of Arkansas
Incumbent
Assumed office
January 9, 2007
Lieutenant Bill Halter (2007-11)
Mark Darr (since 2011)
Preceded by Mike Huckabee
54th Attorney General of Arkansas
In office
January 3, 2003 – January 9, 2007
Governor Mike Huckabee
Preceded by Mark Pryor
Succeeded by Dustin McDaniel
Member of the Arkansas Senate
from the 21st district
In office
1993–2003
Succeeded by Barbara Horn
Personal details
Born Mike Dale Beebe
December 28, 1946 (1946-12-28) (age 65)
Amagon, Arkansas, United States
Political party Democratic Party
Spouse(s) Ginger Beebe
Residence Governor's Mansion
Alma mater Arkansas State University
University of Arkansas
Profession Lawyer
Religion Episcopalian
Military service
Service/branch United States Army
Unit Reserves

Mike Dale Beebe (born December 28, 1946)[1] is the 45th and current Governor of Arkansas, since January 9, 2007. He was elected to a second term in 2010. Beebe is a member of the Democratic Party.

Contents

[edit] Early life and education

Beebe was born in Amagon, a small town in Jackson County, Arkansas. He was raised by his mother, a waitress, and never met his father. As a child, he moved often with his family. They lived in Detroit, St. Louis, Chicago, Houston and Alamogordo, New Mexico. They returned to Arkansas, and he graduated from Newport High School in 1964.[2]

Beebe received a bachelor of arts degree in political science from Arkansas State University in 1968, where he was a member of Sigma Pi fraternity. He earned a law degree from the University of Arkansas in 1972. Beebe served in the U.S. Army Reserve. He practiced law in Searcy in White County for ten years after his graduation from law school.

[edit] Early political career

In 1982, he was elected to the Arkansas State Senate, where he would serve for 20 years. In 2002, he was elected Arkansas Attorney General, a position he held until getting elected Governor of Arkansas.

[edit] Governor of Arkansas

[edit] 2006 election

Main article: Arkansas gubernatorial election, 2006

On June 14, 2005, Beebe announced his candidacy for the Democratic Party's nomination to run for Governor of Arkansas. Beebe defeated former Republican Congressman and Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) chief Asa Hutchinson as well as the Green Party candidate and independent candidate Rod Bryan in the general election on November 7, 2006, capturing 55 percent of the vote.

Beebe was sworn in as governor on January 9, 2007.[3] He was elected to the Democratic Governors Association Executive Committee for 2008–2009.

[edit] First term

In his official website, Beebe outlines some of the policies he has pursued during his first term. He has outlined a plan for a balanced budget and attempted to cut middle class taxes by slashing in half the percentage of the state's grocery tax and increasing the Homestead Property Tax Credit, which can provide for the lowering of property taxes.[4]

Beebe has focused heavily on education reform. He has called for an additional $19 million per year to be spent on assisting special needs students and has designed a program that attempts to increase the quality of teachers within Arkansas by providing alternative pay and mentoring to motivate bright students to enter education or young teachers to work in struggling rural schools. Beebe has rejected calls to allow for Social Security private accounts to be established. He has also made plans to phase out the tax on utilities for manufacturers.[5]

He has also outlined a 12-point plan to make health care more accessible and affordable. Some of his proposals include using federal tax credits to make private insurance cheaper, promote the expansion of Medicaid, advocating preventive care to stop health concerns before they grow worse, expanding school health clinics, and using home or community based cares as an alternative to nursing homes.[5]

In September 2008, Beebe's Commission on Global Warming voted 11-10 to adopt a moratorium on new coal plants in Arkansas.[6] It was unclear whether he would support his commission's vote or whether the state legislature would even include it in future legislation.

[edit] 2010 election

Main article: Arkansas gubernatorial election, 2010

Beebe was challenged by Republican nominee Jim Keet, a former state legislator from Little Rock. Beebe defeated Keet 64% to 34%[7] He was sworn in on January 11, 2011, at the Arkansas State Capitol rotunda.

[edit] Second term

In January 2011, he said that he supported a tax increase for highway funding saying "If they pass a tax increase for highways and it was reasonable, I'd sign it. I don't think it's going to happen."[8]

In January 2012, he proposed a $163 million funding increase in a $4.7 billion state budget. He called for $117 million increase in the Human Services Department and a $56 million increase in public schools.[9] He also called for an audit of the state's Forestry Commission's finances after a $4 million shortfall and a layoff of 36 workers.[10]

[edit] Personal life

Beebe and his wife, Ginger, have three children and seven grandchildren.

[edit] Electoral history

Inauguration, Little Rock, AR. January 9, 2007.
Arkansas Gubernatorial Election 2010
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Democratic Mike Beebe (incumbent) 503,336 64.42
Republican Jim Keet 262,764 33.63
Green Jim Lendall 14,513 1.86
Arkansas Gubernatorial Election 2006
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Democratic Mike Beebe 422,198 55.3
Republican Asa Hutchinson 312,644 41.0


[edit] References

  1. ^ "ELECTION NEWS & RESULTS Latest Michigan, U.S. Senate & 2008 Presidential Elections Updates". elections.nj.com/. January 2008. http://elections.nj.com/dynamic/external/pre-election/bios/5647.html?SITE=MIGRAELN&SECTION=POLITICS&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT. Retrieved 2008-01-20. 
  2. ^ "ClarkCast 016 - The Importance of 2006". Securingamerica.com. 2006-07-24. http://securingamerica.com/printready/clarkcast_072406.htm. Retrieved 2010-08-29. 
  3. ^ "Beebe Takes Oath", The Morning News, January 9, 2007.
  4. ^ "Biography | Arkansas Governor Mike Beebe". Governor.arkansas.gov. 2007-01-09. http://www.governor.arkansas.gov/gov_biography.html. Retrieved 2010-08-29. 
  5. ^ a b "Mike Beebe on the Issues". Ontheissues.org. http://ontheissues.org/Mike_Beebe.htm. Retrieved 2010-08-29. 
  6. ^ [1][dead link]
  7. ^ "2010 General Election & Non Partisan Judicial Runoff Election Statewide Results". Arkansas Secretary of State. November 15, 2010. http://www.votenaturally.org/electionresults/index.php?ac:show:contest_statewide=1&elecid=231&contestid=4. Retrieved November 15, 2010. 
  8. ^ http://www.businessweek.com/ap/financialnews/D9KIRSFG0.htm
  9. ^ http://www.boston.com/news/education/higher/articles/2012/01/17/beebe_proposes_163m_increase_in_arkansas_budget/
  10. ^ http://www.stuttgartdailyleader.com/newsnow/x255282227/Beebe-calls-for-audit-of-Forestry-Commission

[edit] External links

Legal offices
Preceded by
Mark Pryor		 Attorney General of Arkansas
2003–2007		 Succeeded by
Dustin McDaniel
Political offices
Preceded by
Mike Huckabee		 Governor of Arkansas
2007–present		 Incumbent
Party political offices
Preceded by
Jimmie Lou Fisher		 Democratic nominee for Governor of Arkansas
2006, 2010		 Most recent
United States order of precedence
Preceded by
Joe Biden
as Vice President		 Order of Precedence of the United States
Within Arkansas		 Succeeded by
Mayor of city
in which event is held
Succeeded by
Otherwise John Boehner
as Speaker of the House of Representatives
Preceded by
Jay Nixon
as Governor of Missouri		 Order of Precedence of the United States
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Rick Snyder
as Governor of Michigan
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