Five candidates vying for Arkansas’s U.S. Senate seat are offering sharply different views on immigration enforcement as the March 3rd primary approaches.
Republican incumbent Tom Cotton has been among the loudest supporters of the Trump administration’s deportation efforts. His campaign website describes the current state of immigration as an invasion and calls for reducing green cards by more than half, capping refugee admissions at 50,000, and ending chain migration in favor of a skills-based system.
Cotton’s two Republican challengers, Micah Ashby and Jeb Little, both say Arkansas voters support the administration’s immigration efforts, though their positions differ in tone. Ashby, a pastor, expressed some concern about federal agents’ use of violence against civilians but criticized Minnesota Democrats who condemned Border Patrol and ICE following the shooting deaths of two U.S. citizens in January. Little, an Arkansas State Police trooper, took a harder line, saying agents could increase enforcement efforts despite acknowledging situations may get ugly.
On the Democratic side, Hallie Shoffner and Ethan Dunbar both called the Minnesota killings inappropriate and ineffective. Shoffner said federal agents’ actions are further dividing the nation and called for bipartisan immigration reform. Dunbar described the violence as cruel and ugly but stopped short of calling for defunding ICE, saying the agency serves a vital purpose if held to proper standards.
Both Democratic candidates said federal funding should be redirected toward law enforcement initiatives with stronger accountability measures.
The primary is set for March 3rd.
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