11 months ago
ShareAn Arkansas legislative panel has voted down a nonbinding resolution asserting state sovereignty after Democrats questioned why the measure was necessary.
Only Republicans voted for the resolution by Republican Rep. Debra Hobbs of Rogers. Backers say the measure -- one of several filed this year in legislatures nationwide -- was a response to the No Child Left Behind law and the $787 billion stimulus package passed by Congress, among other federal programs.
One Democrat said the language in the resolution was reminiscent of reluctance in the 1950s to desegregate schools in Arkansas, while another lawmaker argued that interpretation of the U.S. Constitution should be left up to courts, not the Legislature.
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
