Ray Thornton: Wore many hats, in long, public life

COURTESY
MUG MAYLON T. RICE, Candidate for State Rep. District 85.
COURTESY MUG MAYLON T. RICE, Candidate for State Rep. District 85.

As Arkansas mourned the death of Ray Thornton this past week, I recall how his humble demeanor won me over as a fan of this man from Grant County.

The year was 1977 and a good crowd with several extra folk in attendance crowded into the tiny, yet functional back dining room of the Ritz Café in far-away McGehee.

Congressman Thornton was making a day-long swing through the Fourth Congressional District, just weeks away from announcing a run for the U.S. Senate seat left open by the death of icon John L. McClellan.

The Rotary Club meeting was packed and the staff at the Ritz was dishing out the plate lunches. The air was thick with political drama of would the soon-to-be arriving three-term Congressman be a candidate for the upcoming U.S. Senate race?

Congressman Thornton and an aide quickly appeared at the back of the dining room just as the President rang the Rotary Bell for the meeting to come to order. The club never missed an opportunity in asking the visitor to be a part of the program and Thornton was asked to lead the Pledge of Allegiance. Thornton snapped to attention and delivered as only a Korean Veteran can do.

The meeting progressed well until it was Thornton's time to speak. The Congressman began the program well enough, calling out all the local names of the political savvy and powerful in attendance, but then he turned to some staff prepared notes and began reading.

Soon it was clear to all in the room that Congressman Thornton was with glowing enthusiasm touting a road/industrial park and airport project at nearby Monticello -- rather than the on-going similar projects in McGehee.

As the crowd became deathly quiet, Thornton sensed something was awry.

He quickly caught himself.

"Well," he said with a deep, deep chuckle to the stunned club members. "They are awful proud of those projects over in Monticello that I have been talking about, but let me tell all of you here in McGehee -- your projects with federal funding from my office, are a lot better for your economic development."

The crowd roared with laughter.

Thornton paused for affect and closing the manila file folder for affect continued. Thornton simply said. "I've made a mistake. Now let's get down to business."

His candor that day won me over.

Thornton went on to lose a three-way Democratic slug fest for the U.S. Senate, lagging behind David Pryor and former 2nd District Congressman Jim Guy Tucker for the Democratic nomination to the U.S. Senate, in 1978.

He was for three terms the U.S. Representative from the 4th District of Arkansas, 1973-1979, and later served as the Congressman from the 2nd Congressional district for another three terms 1991-1997. He is the only politician in modern history to serve as Congressman in two different Congressional districts from Arkansas.

While in Congress he served as a member of the Judiciary Committee considering Articles of Impeachment against President Richard Nixon, and was included in the group of three southern Democrats and four moderate Republicans who drafted the articles adopted by the Committee.

He is also the only man to have run both of the state's major university campuses, at Arkansas State in Jonesboro, 1980-84, and the University of Arkansas (Fayetteville) as the President of the UA Systems from 1984-1990.

A native of tiny Leola, Thornton was a graduate of Sheridan High School; Thornton earned a degree in political science from Yale University and, later, a law degree from the University of Arkansas. He served in the United States Navy during the Korean War, earning the rank of lieutenant.

He was first elected as Arkansas Attorney General in 1970.He also served as a justice of the Arkansas Supreme Court from 1997 to 2005. After retiring from the court, he became the first public service fellow for the William Bowen School of Law at the University of Arkansas in Little Rock. In 2009, he became the first chairman of the Arkansas Lottery Commission, which operates the Arkansas Scholarship Lottery.

He wore many hats of public service in his 87 years. He wore them all with dignity and respect.

Rest In Peace Ray Thornton.

-- Maylon Rice is a former journalist who worked for several northwest Arkansas publications. He can be reached via email at [email protected]. The opinions expressed are those of the author.

Editorial on 04/20/2016