Steve Savicki
03-03-2005, 08:54 AM
http://www.thedmonline.com/vnews/display.v/ART/2005/03/03/4226f4f500666
"Democratic National Committee Chair Howard Dean yesterday sent a message to hundreds of Democrats in Jackson on Wednesday, when he said the Democratic Party can retake Southern states that have voted solidly Republican in recent elections.
“The South will rise again, and when it does, it will have a ‘D’ in its name,” Dean told Democratic supporters at a fund-raising event. “We are not going to concede the South.”
The crowd of over 850 people included a plethora of heavyweights in Mississippi politics, including former Lt. Gov. Evelyn Gandy and Ray Maybus, Ronnie Musgrove, Bill Allain and William Winter, all former governors.
Though Dean spoke of winning Mississippi and other southern states back to the Democratic Party, this rally-cry does not necessarily mean a change in future Democratic campaign policy, according to Richard Forgette, chair of the political science department.
“Governor Dean has stated that he wants to be more assertive in wooing Democratic voters and Democratic legislators in the South,” Forgette said. “I am not aware of a coordinated effort by the Democratic party toward that end.”
Democratic presidential candidates rarely campaign in Mississippi, often considered an easy win for the Republican Party. Mississippi has not voted for a Democratic presidential candidate since Jimmy Carter in 1976.
Forgette said national Democrats have become concerned that there is an emerging gap between traditionally Republican “red” states and traditionally Democratic “blue” states.
The former Vermont governor’s message that the Democratic Party will not concede the South is stressing the need to appeal to socially conservative Democrats, Forgette said. Dean is traveling to various cities throughout the United States primarily to introduce himself as a party leader to state and local party leaders, he said.
“Howard Dean, who ran on the more liberal side of the Democratic party during the presidential Democratic primaries in 2004, does not immediately appeal to conservative voters in the South,” he said.
According to the Wednesday edition of the Clarion Ledger, Dean explained that winning back the South would involve the pressing of certain core values: including strong schools, improved health care, and raising of the minimum wage.
Dean said that these core values are not found in the Republican platform.
“It is more blessed to give than receive,” he said. “I didn’t notice that in the Republican platform.”
A former physician, Dean was elected Governor of Vermont five times after serving terms as Lieutenant Governor and state representative. He was a projected favorite in the 2004 presidential elections by several major media outlets, but was soundly defeated by John Kerry in the Democratic primaries.
In February, Dean was elected chairman of the Democratic National Committee."
Should Dean aim for Texas now or at the end of his southern tour?
"Democratic National Committee Chair Howard Dean yesterday sent a message to hundreds of Democrats in Jackson on Wednesday, when he said the Democratic Party can retake Southern states that have voted solidly Republican in recent elections.
“The South will rise again, and when it does, it will have a ‘D’ in its name,” Dean told Democratic supporters at a fund-raising event. “We are not going to concede the South.”
The crowd of over 850 people included a plethora of heavyweights in Mississippi politics, including former Lt. Gov. Evelyn Gandy and Ray Maybus, Ronnie Musgrove, Bill Allain and William Winter, all former governors.
Though Dean spoke of winning Mississippi and other southern states back to the Democratic Party, this rally-cry does not necessarily mean a change in future Democratic campaign policy, according to Richard Forgette, chair of the political science department.
“Governor Dean has stated that he wants to be more assertive in wooing Democratic voters and Democratic legislators in the South,” Forgette said. “I am not aware of a coordinated effort by the Democratic party toward that end.”
Democratic presidential candidates rarely campaign in Mississippi, often considered an easy win for the Republican Party. Mississippi has not voted for a Democratic presidential candidate since Jimmy Carter in 1976.
Forgette said national Democrats have become concerned that there is an emerging gap between traditionally Republican “red” states and traditionally Democratic “blue” states.
The former Vermont governor’s message that the Democratic Party will not concede the South is stressing the need to appeal to socially conservative Democrats, Forgette said. Dean is traveling to various cities throughout the United States primarily to introduce himself as a party leader to state and local party leaders, he said.
“Howard Dean, who ran on the more liberal side of the Democratic party during the presidential Democratic primaries in 2004, does not immediately appeal to conservative voters in the South,” he said.
According to the Wednesday edition of the Clarion Ledger, Dean explained that winning back the South would involve the pressing of certain core values: including strong schools, improved health care, and raising of the minimum wage.
Dean said that these core values are not found in the Republican platform.
“It is more blessed to give than receive,” he said. “I didn’t notice that in the Republican platform.”
A former physician, Dean was elected Governor of Vermont five times after serving terms as Lieutenant Governor and state representative. He was a projected favorite in the 2004 presidential elections by several major media outlets, but was soundly defeated by John Kerry in the Democratic primaries.
In February, Dean was elected chairman of the Democratic National Committee."
Should Dean aim for Texas now or at the end of his southern tour?