Republican gubernatorial candidate Jim Keet presses today on an issue squarely at issue in the governor’s race: Problems at the state’s residential centers for the developmentally disabled.

Keet’s news release makes his worst point first — the state has turned to an out-of-state consultant for help. Yes, but the consultant has a track record of success. His better  point is the continuing question of whether the Beebe administration is due blame for failure to diagnose problems earlier (a question that could just as readily be asked of the previous 10 years of Republican administration). Keet steps carefully around the Conway Human Development Center, targeted by the feds for the state’s resistance to community mainstreaming of residents, but generally stoutly defended by families with relatives in the Conway center’s care.

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This is a tough issue. It’s a fair one to discuss. Keet hasn’t demonstrated much on the issue beyond opportunism, however.

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