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House Dems select Ott as leader

Democrats in the South Carolina House of Representatives unanimously elected Rep. Harry Ott on Tuesday as their leader for the coming two years.

Also Tuesday, the Republican majority announced its five top priorities for the coming legislative season, and the Calhoun County lawmaker was quick to criticize them.

For instance, the Republicans want to gradually reduce the top income tax rate from 7 percent to 4.75 percent.

Ott said the Democrats, on the other hand, are focused on reducing property taxes.

The House Republicans said they are continuing to support government restructuring, including a shift of certain constitutional offices to governor's appointments instead of elected positions.

That goes along with Gov. Mark Sanford's views.

However, House Republicans called for creating additional charter schools, which are public schools. Ott said that is a divergence from the governor's promotion of a voucher system and independent schools.

Creating small business incentives, revising the legal system, reforming medical malpractice laws and streamlining the provision of health care rounded out the list of priorities the Republicans announced Tuesday.

Ott noted that education and health care are priorities of the Democrats, too, although they often propose different solutions.

He said he will not be rigidly partisan but will "reach out and work with the Republican majority where possible."

Democrats' concerns also include raising compensation for state employees and changing environmental policies, particularly some wetlands issues that were "left off the table last year."

Ott, a St. Matthews farmer, defeated a Republican challenger in the Nov. 2 general election to win his fourth term in the House.

He said he had considered running for the post when Rep. Gilda Cobb-Hunter of Orangeburg relinquished it in 2000, and again when Rep. Doug Jennings stepped down in 2002.

This year, "I think the time is right," Ott had said this past week. "With James Smith stepping down, it's an opportunity. I'm going to give it a try."

"At 10 (Tuesday) morning, we had a Democratic caucus meeting, and I was elected unanimously," Ott said Tuesday. "I had no opposition. I was not looking forward to having a fight over it. Everything fell into place."

Ott said that he told his fellow House Democrats after his election that "I can't do everything by myself. I'm going to be calling on the group to be a real team and work together."

The minority leader not only expresses the views of his party in the House but travels around the state recruiting candidates and raising money for the party.

Other caucus officers elected Tuesday are Rep. John Scott of Richland County, assistant minority leader; Vida Miller of Charleston and Georgetown counties, deputy leader; James Battle of Marion County, treasurer; Laurie Slade Funderburk of Kershaw County, secretary; Walt McLeod of Lexington and Newberry counties, parliamentarian; and Carl Anderson, chaplain.

Ott has said Democrats need to emphasize that they are the party of average working South Carolinians and forcefully refute Republicans' derision that Democrats are hostile to moral values and religion.