Asa Hutchinson, the 46th Governor of the State of Arkansas, has had a long career in law and public service.
In 1982, at the age of 31, President Ronald Reagan appointed him as the youngest United States Attorney in the nation. In 1996, he was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives where he served on the Judiciary and Intelligence Committees, among others. As a result of his extensive trial experience, he was appointed by the House of Representatives to try the impeachment case against then-President Clinton in the United States Senate.
After being elected to his third term in Congress, Asa was appointed by President George W. Bush as Administrator of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) in 2001, where he combined tough law enforcement initiatives with advocating increased investment in treatment and education programs.
In January 2003, Asa was confirmed by the U.S. Senate to be the first Under Secretary of the newly created Department of Homeland Security. As one of the nation’s top-ranking homeland security officials, Asa was responsible for more than 110,000 federal employees housed in such agencies as the Transportation Security Administration, Customs and Border Protection, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (now USCIS) and the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center.
In 2014, Hutchinson was elected as the 46th Governor of the State of Arkansas and was overwhelming re-elected in 2018 to a second four-year term with 65% of the popular vote. Governor Hutchinson’s experience established him as a national resource for his expertise on trade, energy, national security, and education. He was also invited to the White House several times to join discussions about health care, Medicaid and education issues. Governor Hutchinson served as the co-chair of the Council of Governors and is the former chairman of the Interstate Oil and Gas Compact Commission, Southern States Energy Board, and the Southern Regional Educational Board.
