Jonesboro, AR – Jonesboro Right Now – The Arkansas Democrat-Gazette is reporting that internal government emails and court records indicate members of Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders’ administration believed Jonesboro manufacturer Risever Machinery was complying with Arkansas law before the governor publicly accused the company of being connected to Communist China in a December 2023 social media video.
In an investigative report published Thursday, Arkansas Democrat-Gazette reporters Neal Earley and Mike Owens wrote that emails obtained by the newspaper show Agriculture Secretary Wes Ward, Attorney General Tim Griffin and other state officials had concluded Risever appeared to be operating legally before Sanders released the video criticizing the company.
According to the Democrat-Gazette’s reporting, Ward informed the Attorney General’s office that Risever was “in compliance” with Arkansas law. The newspaper also reports Griffin wrote to staff that the Jonesboro company appeared to have been “wrongly accused,” while Deputy Attorney General Alexandra Benton notified members of Sanders’ staff that Risever was complying with the law.
Despite those internal communications, the Democrat-Gazette reports Sanders released a video on Dec. 21, 2023, stating that two companies referred to the Attorney General were “linked to the CCP,” referring to the Chinese Communist Party.
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Risever and Jones Digital were the two companies referenced. Ultimately, neither company was found to have violated Arkansas’ foreign ownership law, which had prompted the investigation.
The Attorney General’s office had determined Risever’s property was located inside the Jonesboro city limits, making it ineligible under the specific provisions of Act 636, which applies to agricultural land outside municipal boundaries.
According to the Democrat-Gazette, attorney Asa Hutchinson III, representing Risever, also provided documentation showing the company’s property was located within the city limits. The newspaper reports Attorney General Griffin later emailed staff saying the company looked like it had been “wrongly accused.”
The investigation further reports Benton later texted Griffin and others after Sanders’ social media video was released, writing that she had already informed the governor’s office they did not believe Risever was out of compliance.
The Democrat-Gazette adds that a spokesman for Griffin wrote internally that Sanders’ communications staff wanted the Attorney General’s office to emphasize Risever’s Chinese ownership even though the company was not violating Arkansas law, adding, “They’re wanting to save face.”
The following day, Attorney General Griffin publicly announced that “after a thorough investigation,” Risever Machinery was not in violation of Arkansas law regarding foreign ownership of real property, according to the Democrat-Gazette.
When asked by the newspaper this week about Sanders’ 2023 statements, spokesman Sam Dubke told the Democrat-Gazette that Risever “exploited a loophole in Arkansas law and avoided removal in 2023.”
Risever Machinery, based in Jonesboro, manufactures machine parts for companies including Caterpillar, Volvo and Komatsu. According to the Democrat-Gazette, the company was recruited to Arkansas during the administration of former Gov. Asa Hutchinson and operates on property owned by the City of Jonesboro.
The company received a $1 million grant from the governor’s Quick Action Closing Fund and a $100,000 grant from the Arkansas Economic Development Commission for a job-training program when the company came to Arkansas in 2017. Risever paid back the governor’s grant when performance criteria were not met.
The Arkansas Democrat-Gazette’s full investigation by Neal Earley and Mike Owens includes copies of internal emails, court records and other documents obtained by the newspaper.
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