Trump asks Arkansas to call Sen. Tom Cotton to demand that he allow permanent daylight saving time

President Donald Trump made a new push for permanent daylight saving time after the federal Sunshine Protection Act stalled in the Senate despite passing in the House of Representatives months ago.

On Saturday, the president pointed to Senator Tom Cotton (R-Ark.), a longtime opponent of the bill, calling on the people of his home state of Arkansas to ask him to stop blocking the measure.

“Everybody in Arkansas, Tom Cotton, a friend of mine, is holding up a very important Bill. It’s called, ‘The Sunshine Protection Act’ or, ‘We Don’t Want to Change Our Clocks Twice a Year Act,’” Trump explained in a Truth Social post.

“It should pass overwhelmingly, in a Bipartisan fashion. So, everyone in Arkansas, a State I love, and won 3 times, the last by by 34 points, tell Tom to, GET IT DONE!” Trump continued. “It will be appreciated by all. Nobody wants to spend their precious time running all over the place, turning Clocks back twice a year and, having sunshine in the afternoon is better than early in the morning!”

 

Trump said that permanently observing the time the country normally sees in the spring and summer months would give golfers, tennis players, hunters and farmers “more Daylight to play or work.”

Trump, an avid golfer and owner of 11 golf courses in the U.S., noted the Professional Golfers’ Association (PGA) Tour in particular as a good reason to pass the bill, even including a letter from PGA Tour CEO Brian Rolapp proclaiming the tour’s strong support for the legislation.

“Permanent daylight saving time (DST) would expand access to golf at a time when the game is more popular than ever. Most golfers do not play full-time and fit the game into the margins of a busy life: reps on the range after work, taking their kids to the course after school, or trying to fit in nine holes before dark. That window is already tight, but when the clocks fall back, it closes entirely,” Rolapp lamented in his letter.

 

He continued, noting that his position is supported by hard data, “The National Golf Course Owners Association (NGCOA) estimates that permanent DST would generate 23 million additional rounds per year and $1 billion annually in new direct revenue for the golf industry – an average of $250,000 per facility. The NGCOA has also found that afternoon and evening tee times generate roughly 40 percent more revenue than morning play. For the more than one million Americans employed across the golf economy, permanent DST is a direct economic lift.”

“At the PGA Tour, usable afternoon daylight in the fall and winter would give our broadcast partners flexibility to extend live coverage of finishing holes, avoid awkward lighting situations in late rounds, and deliver a better overall product for the millions of fans who tune in each week,” he added, emphasizing the benefits to both recreational and professional golfers.

Trump contended that 100% of Americans don’t want to change their clocks routinely and “almost everybody wants permanent DST.

 

“They want to, as they say, ‘LOCK THE CLOCK!’” Trump stated.

The president then included a phone number for Cotton’s constituents to reach him to “let him know” that he should “HAVE THE SENATE VOTE, NOW!”

Everybody in Arkansas, Tom Cotton, a friend of mine, is holding up a very important Bill. It’s called, “The Sunshine Protection Act” or, “We Don’t Want to Change Our Clocks Twice a Year Act.” For some reason, Tom is stopping the Bill and, in the Senate, it’s very easy to do, it… pic.twitter.com/0TosljhmBB

 — Commentary Donald J. Trump Truth Social Posts On X (@TrumpTruthOnX) October 3, 2026

“If Tom Cotton were putting Arkansas first, he would give them an extra hour of daylight and, more importantly, they wouldn’t have to run all over their houses, farms, work places, and everywhere else, twice a year, having to change their Clocks, and often forgetting to do so,” Trump added in another post on Saturday.

If Tom Cotton were putting Arkansas first, he would give them an extra hour of daylight and, more importantly, they wouldn’t have to run all over their houses, farms, work places, and everywhere else, twice a year, having to change their Clocks, and often forgetting to do so.… pic.twitter.com/ZvsfEidhn9

— Commentary Donald J. Trump Truth Social Posts On X (@TrumpTruthOnX) October 3, 2026

In a third post, Trump doubled down, remarking, “I don’t know about anyone else, but a table full of very distinguished people just told me that they HATE, immediately after a mandatory time change, going home at night – and it’s DARK. It’s depressing!”

He quoted one person saying, “I just hate going home in darkness.”

“It’s also, in Crime Ridden Blue States, a lot more dangerous to be walking home in the dark!” he concluded.

I don’t know about anyone else, but a table full of very distinguished people just told me that they HATE, immediately after a mandatory time change, going home at night – and it’s DARK. It’s depressing! One of the gentleman stated that, “I just hate going home in darkness.” It’s… pic.twitter.com/4jN148uqzN

— Commentary Donald J. Trump Truth Social Posts On X (@TrumpTruthOnX) October 3, 2026

The bill in question, which passed in the House with a 308–117 bipartisan vote, would still allow states to opt out of permanent DST. For example, Arizona, which currently observes year-round standard time, has signaled it would likely opt out of DST if the bill becomes law.

Last year, Cotton objected to a similar permanent DST bill. One of the most vocal critics of the idea, he said in a 2025 Senate floor speech, that he would “always oppose” efforts to adopt year-round DST. While he cannot single-handedly kill the measure, he could block the Senate from expediting its passage through a unanimous-consent procedure.

Credit:  https://www.oann.com