Delta Grassroots Caucus Events

Credit Michael Hibblen/ KUAR News, Arkansas Public Radio; Former President Bill Clinton speaking to the Delta Grassroots Caucus on May 2, 2013, at the University of Arkansas Clinton School of Public Service, Little Rock

U. S. Senator John Boozman, Arkansas, at a Delta Grassroots Caucus meeting at the US Capitol

Brad Cole, Executive Director of the Municipal League of Illinois; previously a senior aide to former Republican US Sen. Mark Kirk of Illinois, earlier Mayor of Carbondale, Illinois, veteran Delta regional advocate, speaking at the Delta regional conference in West Memphis, Arkansas on April 26, 2019.

President Bill Clinton makes a comment to Delta Caucus Director Lee Powell at a meeting in Blytheville, Arkansas (in the northeast Arkansas Delta) on Nov. 2, 2014

The Delta Caucus would like to pay tribute to the late, great U.S. Sen. Thad Cochran of Mississippi, a powerful force in the US Senate for decades and a champion for the Delta. Sen. Cochran passed away on May 30, 2019. He spoke to the Delta Caucus on many occasions over the years (he is pictured above speaking to a Caucus event on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC) and his thoughtful, courteous and bipartisan leadership will be sorely missed.

Marcie Lawson, Executive Director, Sikeston, Missouri Regional Chamber and Area Economic Development Corporation, speaking at the Delta regional conference in West Memphis, Arkansas on April 26, 2019.

Alan Gumbel, Greater Memphis Alliance for a Competitive Workforce, Memphis, Tennessee, speaking at the Delta regional conference in West Memphis, Arkansas on April 26, 2019.

Mayor Shirley Washington of Pine Bluff, AR, speaking to the Delta Caucus at the Arkansas Capitol Rotunda in 2017.

Delta Caucus Praises President Trump's Choice of Peter Kinder of Missouri for DRA Alternate Federal Co-Chairman

Posted on August 11, 2017 at 03:16 PM

The Delta Grassroots Caucus praises President Trump’s choice of Peter Dickson Kinder as Alternate Federal Co-Chairman of the Delta Regional Authority as a well-qualified, dedicated leader for the Delta region. Mr. Kinder is a former Lt. Governor of Missouri, distinguished attorney from Cape Giradeau and an eighth generation southeast Missouri native.

Delta Caucus partners in southeast Missouri have known Peter Kinder for many years and speak very highly of him.

Mike Marshall, economic development director for the City of Sikeston, Missouri and the former Alternate Federal Co-Chairman of the DRA, praised his successor in the post: “I have known Peter Kinder for many years. He is a statesman who loves southeast Missouri and is going to love the entire Delta region as well. I am confident he will do a great job for the Delta Regional Authority.”

Caucus Director Lee Powell said “We are glad to see that President Trump has filled this vacancy with a well-qualified, dedicated native of the southeast Missouri Delta who has experience as Lt. Governor of Missouri, state senator, a real estate attorney for Drury Industries, in newpspaper publishing with the Southeast Missourian/Rust Communications, and a member of the Southeast Missouri Regional Port Authority.”

“As a distinguished Republican leader, Mr. Kinder will be able to work effectively with Republicans in the Trump administration and the Republican majority in Congress. He also has a reputation of having worked well with diverse populations and did constructive work after the Ferguson, Missouri racial strife in working with people of both races,” Powell said.

“The DRA has a relatively small budget at $28 million spread over extensive areas in eight states with a population of approximately 10 million, but nonetheless can be a helpful supplement to the other larger-scale federal, state, local and private sector economic development activities in the region,” said Harvey Joe Sanner of Des Arc, president of the American Agriculture Movement of Arkansas and senior member of the Delta Caucus.

Powell said “We congratulate President Trump on a very fine choice of one of the two Presidentially appointed posts at the DRA, and look forward to working with Mr. Kinder. We hope the other federal post of Federal Co-Chairman will also be filled soon.”

The Alternate Federal Co-Chairman post can be filled more rapidly than the Federal Co-Chairman post, because the Federal Co-Chairman post requires Senate confirmation, while the Alternate Federal Co-Chair post does not. So this was well and expeditiously done. But the Delta Caucus hopes the Federal Co-Chairman post will also be filled soon.