A Walmart critic has taken note of the Walton and Walmart money that has flowed into the campaign of Sen. Jason Rapert of Conway, who mostly recently “distinguished” himself with invective against gay marriage and anyone who’d enable it. The Walmart 1 Percent, a website that is a watchdog on the retail giant, noted that Rapert had received $3,000 in campaign contributions from Walmart heir Jim Walton and his wife since 2010 and $2,000 from the Walmart PAC.

The website mentions Rapert’s long list of ultra-right positions and pronouncements. Phooey on climate change. Anti-abortion. Incendiary on matters of race (except for his love of repressive African leaders who favor stoning gay people).

Advertisement

So what? Here’s what. Jason Rapert isn’t ever going to change. But the world IS changing. It is less acceptable to flaunt your phobias in crude terms in public. Companies like Walmart want to sell to everybody, not just racists and homophobes. It has famously extended domestic partner benefits to employees and embraced gay employees in other ways, including with money for their organizations. News reporting has suggested a care by Walmart in using philanthropic dollars so as not to support hate groups.

Someday, even, major corporations like Walmart might prefer not to send money to politicians whose animosity toward gay people is too extreme. Because people notice, as 1 Percent noted:

Advertisement

It’s striking that Walmart’s contribution went to support Rapert in the upcoming May 20, 2014 Republican primary (as it turns out, he’s running unopposed).

It’s not like Walmart’s support can be attributed to the company’s opposition to some ultra-liberal challenger. Rather, Walmart seems to have gone out of its way to put its stamp of approval on Rapert.

Not something you’d want to advertise some places.

There are worse than Raper, though. Take Mike HuckabeeHe said a proposed Houston ordinance to prohibit employment discrimination against gay people by larger employers was “unsafe for women and children.” Really. Oh, and send him money.

Advertisement

But no joke. People like Huckabee and Tom Cotton and Rapert and Jerry Cox and all the other usual hateful suspects REALLY DO want it to be iegal to discriminate against gay people.

Be a part of something bigger

As a reader of the Arkansas Times, you know we’re dedicated to bringing you tough, determined, and feisty journalism that holds the powerful accountable. For 50 years, we've been fighting the good fight in Little Rock and beyond – with your support, we can do even more. By becoming a subscriber or donating as little as $1 to our efforts, you'll not only have access to all of our articles, but you'll also be helping us hire more writers to expand our coverage and continue to bring important stories to light. With over 63,000 Facebook followers, 58,000 Twitter followers, 35,000 Arkansas blog followers, and 70,000 daily email blasts, it's clear that our readers value our great journalism. Join us in the fight for truth.

Previous article Secretary of State Mark Martin adds new burden to voter registration Next article Land commissioner enters agreement to protect endangered species