As we go about regrouping, let's remember we are all Democrats. Rural, urban, suburban and exurban, without regard to race, color or creed.

"A house divided against itself cannot stand," said Abraham Lincoln, paraphrasing the Master's words found in Matthew 12:25. "And Jesus knew their thoughts, and said unto them, 'Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation; and every city or house divided against itself shall not stand.'"

Words of wisdom for all ages, and especially appropriate for us to remember in the challenging days as we recognize and accept that we no longer are a majority party; that our base is now only 42% or less; and that we must expand on the base while being sure to keep our base.

Rural Democrats hope to nudge party back to center

Dick Pettys
Associated Press
December 12, 2004

Rural Democrats, reeling from their party's loss of the state House in state elections last month, are forming their own legislative caucus to press for issues of concern outside metro Atlanta and the suburbs and perhaps steer their party back to the center.

Some said here Monday they view the effort as a final try at saving a party which in the past two years has lost the governorship and both houses of the Legislature.

The Democratic defeat was a particular blow to rural Georgia because many rural Democrats had risen to positions of power. The new Republican leaders will largely come from urban and suburban areas.

Not only must rural Georgia have a voice, but Democrats in Georgia must prove they aren't like national Democrats, said Rep. Gerald Greene, D-Cuthbert, who has joined the newly formed group.

"I made the suggestion the other day that we all get Zell Miller's book and read it," he said.

Miller, the state's retiring senator, alienated many fellow Democrats with a best-selling book arguing the party had moved too far to the left and could no longer compete unless it returned to the mainstream.

But Greene suggested the state party should turn to Miller to head it. "We need to bring him in," he said.

Rep. Richard Royal, D-Camilla, also is joining the rural caucus. He is among the Democrats losing top positions when Republicans take control of the House next month. He currently is chairman of the tax-writing House Ways and Means Committee.

"I think the Democratic Party is going to have to reassess what it wants to be and the issues it wants to support," he said.

Royal and Greene were among the Democrats who resisted the call to change parties when Republicans gained a majority, but Royal said he's waiting now to see if his party has learned anything from the election.

"As a rural legislator, I am going to take whatever steps are necessary to represent my constituents," Royal said.

Greene said voters sent a clear signal they are in no mood for a liberal agenda from Democrats. "There's a strong message there for us. Maybe we need to listen to it."

The Democratic Party for years has been a haven for urban liberals and rural conservatives, but keeping the factions at peace has become problematic over the years as Republicans chipped away at their numbers in the state House.

Rep. Bob Holmes, D-Atlanta, often viewed as one of the more liberal Democrats, said he welcomed the formation of the rural caucus as a sign of the party's diversity.

But it cannot fundamentally change its philosophy, he insisted. "You can't be 'Republican Lite.'"

Rep. DuBose Porter, D-Dublin, who will lead the Democratic House minority next year, said Holmes doesn't speak for the party.

"Since Nov. 2, a lot of metro members have been to me to say, 'We realize that our party has got to get back to the center.' Outside of maybe one loud renegade, everybody realizes that we need to redefine the Georgia Democratic Party. We've allowed Republicans to define who we are; not us defining who we are."

Many Georgia legislators are in Athens through Tuesday for the biennial legislative institute, which provides training for new lawmakers and seminars for veterans.