At least I got the Senate to pass it late

The legislature also passed the National Rifle Associations bill to prohibit cities and counties from adopting local gun-control ordinances, the same measure I had vetoed in 1989. No southern legislature could say no to the NRA. Even in the more liberal Senate, this bill passed 267. At least I got the Senate to pass it late, so I could veto it after they went home and they couldnt override it. After the bill was sent to me, I had an extraordinary encounter with the young NRA lobbyist who came down from Washington to push the bill. He was very tall and well dressed and spoke with a clipped New England accent. One day he stopped me as I was crossing the rotunda from the House to the Senate side of the Capitol. Governuh, Governuh, why dont you just let this bill become law without your signature? I explained for the umpteenth time why I didnt support the bill. Then he burst out, Look, Governuh, youre going to run for President next year, and when you do, were going to beat your brains out in Texas if you veto this bill. I knew I was getting older and more seasoned when I didnt slug him. Instead, I smiled and said, You dont get it. I dont like this bill. You know gun control will never be a problem in Arkansas. Youve just got a chart on the wall in your fancy office in Washington with this bill at the top and all the states listed below. You dont give a damn about the merits of this bill. You just want to put a check by Arkansas on that chart. So you get your gun and Ill get mine. Well saddle up and meet in Texas. As soon as the legislature went home, I vetoed the bill. Soon afterward, the NRA began running television ads attacking me. It wasnt until I began writing this account that I realized that in my confrontation with the NRA lobbyist, I had acknowledged that I was considering running for President. At the time, I didnt think there was a chance Id do it. I just didnt like to be threatened. After the session, Henry Oliver told me he wanted to leave. I hated to lose him, but after decades of proud service in the marines, the FBI, and local and state government, he had earned the right to go home. For the time being, Gloria Cabe and Carol Rasco took over his responsibilities. I spent the next few months making sure our massive legislative program was well implemented and traveling the country for the Democratic Leadership Council. Because I was out there making the case for how we could regain mainstream, middle-class voters who have left the party in droves for twenty years, the press continued to speculate that I might run in 1992. In an interview in April, I joked about it, saying, As long as nobody runs, everybody can be on the list, and its kind of nice. It makes my mother happy to read my name in the paper.