Tuesday night, Rep. Tom Cotton (R-AR) handily defeated Sen. Mark Pryor (D-AR) to win the Arkansas U.S. Senate seat for the Republican Party.
Partial transcript as follows:
Thank you, everyone. How about that win? I think it was the win we all hoped for and may be expected but perhaps bigger than we would have expected. I want to thank all of you for being here and for your support. I want to thank you, the people of Arkansas. I am humbled by your trust and confidence. Every election is about a choice. In this election the people had a choice between two ways of governing and two ways of winning, a choices about equal rights granted us. A choice to live as a free people and to govern ourselves freely under the greatest constitution and history. The people of Arkansas have made their choice. We have chosen constitutional self-government, which allows each of us to flourish. To live with the blessings of liberty, and to control our government, rather than be controlled by it.
Arkansans have told me they want to be a strong country. We reject the rule of presumed elites. Regulating now consumes nearly half the fruits of our savings. It intrudes on private life. Every community, every business, every school, every person gets unwanted instructions from on high, from unaccountable elites. This form of government wants to help but is always hindering. Constantly seeks to aid but constantly and up constraining. We may gain material security by choosing this form of government, but under it there is no true security for anyone.
A government big enough to grant anything is big enough to take away anything. In this campaign, if we choose this form of government, we will spend so much trying to make it the same we will all be impoverished and elevate the elites further still. Our country will be too poor. And too sluggish to care for the needy and provide work for the able, but Arkansans knows the client is a choice, and we have rejected it. Arkansans are a free people, and we have chosen a government that is limited in scope. We have chosen a government that aid our citizens without overwhelming them or taking away their free we have chosen a government that protects all the things we hold our natural rights.
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