Brookland, AR — Former Arkansas Governor Jim Tucker is dead after much battle with sickness.
Jim Guy Tucker, 82, died in Little Rock on Thursday according to Talk Business and Politics (TB&P). He served as a Democrat, and as the 43rd Governor of Arkansas.
Tucker served in a variety a political roles, but before that came a life in military.
Before politics, Tucker served in the Marine Corps before being discharged due to health reasons. Which even after his discharge, he still went on to the Vietnam war as a civilian war correspondent.
But after that, politics came, which has been described as Tucker’s calling. Tucker served as Pulaski County Prosecuting Attorney, Arkansas Attorney General, and U.S. Congressman representing the 2nd district of Central Arkansas.
As governor the spotlight grew on Jim Tucker as in 1996 business dealings he had became a topic of a number of conversations. The conversation came after developments, which had Tucker’s name on them, were under investigation by Whitewater special prosecutor Kenneth Starr, who was investigating a failed land deal involving Bill and Hillary Clinton. Tucker was convicted of misapplying funds from a $150,000 bank loan in May 1996 and announced plans to resign from office in July.
Tucker was also known for trying two special elections, one to re-write the state constitution, and the other to pass a highway bond program. He also passed a soft-drink tax which solved a Medicaid funding crisis.