Former U.S. Sen. David Pryor, who suffered a stroke Oct. 10, has been moved to a rehabilitation facility and is making steady progress, family members say.
"He's not 100 percent yet, but we're optimistic. ... He's working hard," his son, former U.S. Sen. Mark Pryor, said. "The doctors continue to be encouraged, but with one of these things, you just have to go through rehab and give it some time. Hopefully, he'll make a very strong recovery but we just won't know that for sure for probably several weeks."
David Pryor was in Fayetteville when he had the stroke. After being rushed to Washington Regional Medical Center, Pryor had additional complications.
On Oct. 18, he received a defibrillator/pacemaker implant to correct an irregular heartbeat, the family said in a Facebook post.
Pryor, 82, left the hospital on Saturday.
The Camden native was a dominant force in Arkansas politics for decades, winning three state legislative contests, three terms in the U.S. House of Representatives, three U.S. Senate races and back-to-back bids for governor.
Two decades after leaving Capitol Hill, he continues to be active in Democratic circles, campaigning for former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in New Hampshire shortly before its presidential primary. Days before being hospitalized, he had shared the stage at an event with former U.S. Attorney Conner Eldridge, his party's nominee for U.S. Senate.
He had planned to work for Democratic candidates during the closing month of the 2016 election, but those plans have been shelved for now.
"David Pryor's probably prayed for Arkansas every day of his life. Now ... he really needs Arkansas to pray for him," said H.L. Moody, a spokesman for the Democratic Party of Arkansas. "We're glad he's getting better and we look forward to having him back on the campaign trail," he said.
While Pryor focuses on rehabilitation, he's not seeing visitors, his brother-in-law, Scott Lunsford, said.
But people can send cards, if they wish, to the David and Barbara Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, 1 E. Center St., Fayetteville, Ark. 72701.
"He will get them and he will read them," Lunsford added.
Former U.S. Sen. David Boren, D-Okla., who spoke with former first lady Barbara Pryor on Sunday, said his former colleague is bouncing back.
"I know that he's able to walk a few steps with help now . ... He's still working on his speech, to get his speech fully back," Boren said. "I know it's going to take some time and patience, but he's a very patient man and he's a real fighter so I'm very optimistic about his condition."
Boren, now president of the University of Oklahoma, said the affection he feels for Pryor is deep and abiding, two decades after their service on Capitol Hill.
"Undoubtedly he is my best and most lasting friend that came out of my Senate experience," the Oklahoman said.
Mack McLarty, the former White House chief of staff, said it's been a rough time for Pryor "but he's weathered it just remarkable."
"[I] hope and pray he's on the mend and it appears he is," McLarty added.
Skip Rutherford, dean of the Clinton School of Public Service and a former Pryor aide, said crowds turned out to hear the former senator last month when the two men spoke at Pulaski Heights United Methodist Church in Little Rock and at the Political Animals Club in Monticello.
"He's just so much of the fiber and the fabric of Arkansas. ... He's just rich with stories and experiences," Rutherford said.
There'll be plenty of demand to hear Pryor speak once he returns, Rutherford said, adding, "I'm looking forward to getting back out on the trail with him."
Metro on 10/27/2016