HUTCHISON TO SPEAK AT EMERSON FUND RAISER

U.S. Rep. Asa Hutchinson, a former federal prosecutor from Arkansas who took a leading role in the impeachment trial of President Clinton, will visit Cape Girardeau on June 25.

Hutchinson will speak at a fund-raiser for fellow Republican and U.S. Rep. Jo Ann Emerson of Cape Girardeau.

The fund-raiser will be held at the home of Dr. and Mrs. C.R. Talbert Jr. A reception is slated to start at 6 p.m. A private dinner will be held after the reception.

Atalie Ebersole, Emerson's campaign manager, said about 150 people are expected to attend the fund-raiser.

Hutchinson represents the Third District of Arkansas, which includes the cities of Fort Smith and Harrison, and the Ozarks in the northwestern part of the state.

Emerson said Hutchinson's conservative philosophy should appeal to like-minded conservatives in Southeast Missouri.

"His commitment to public service has helped restore fiscal responsibility to our government, and he is a leader in Congress in the fight against illegal drugs in our nation," Emerson said.

Hutchinson was one of the House managers who prosecuted President Clinton during the impeachment trial in the Senate.

Hutchinson won public praise from both Republican and Democratic senators.

The USA Today newspaper said Democrats considered Hutchinson "one of the best legal minds on the House impeachment team."

Time magazine said Hutchinson was one of the trial's few winners. "If the other 12 House prosecutors were half this good, they might have convicted," the magazine said.

From 1982 to 1985, the Arkansas Republican served as U.S. attorney for the Western District of Arkansas. He was 31 years old when appointed the post by President Ronald Reagan.

During his tenure as U.S. attorney, the FBI awarded Hutchinson a citation for his successful prosecution of a terrorist group in northern Arkansas known as the Covenant, Sword and Arm of the Lord.

Wearing a flak jacket, Hutchinson helped negotiate a peaceful conclusion to a three-day standoff between the heavily armed paramilitary group and some 200 law enforcement officers.

Hutchinson then successfully prosecuted the group on racketeering charges.

He chaired the Republican Party in Arkansas from 1990 to 1995.

He was elected to Congress in 1996. He has pushed for campaign finance reform.

Hutchinson and his wife, Susan, live in Fort Smith. They have four children.