Dean's visit a mixed bag for Democrats

e-mail this story print this story Dan Hoover • Dean's visit a mixed bag for Democrats (06/26/05) • Re-election tougher for governors these days (05/22/05) • Democrats nearing rare primary test (05/07/05) • Sanford remains resilient as proposals hit roadblocks (04/16/05) • Waiting for Wilkins near a boil (04/10/05)

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Howard Dean is coming to South Carolina. Local Democrats are holding their collective breath lest he continue his rhetorical war on conservative, white Christians.

You may remember them:

They're the folks who have deserted his party in droves for decades, giving the Republicans control nationally and a stranglehold on South Carolina and most of the South.

They're the people that his South Carolina counterpart, Joe Erwin, is trying to win back to make their party at least somewhat competitive.

One might think that the mercurial Dean — whose presidential bid went down in flames amid his screaming after a primary loss while front-runner — was invited by Republicans as a diversion from their own increasingly testy battles between Gov. Mark Sanford and his legislative majority.

"No comment" on the later, said Katon Dawson, the state GOP chairman. But he's positively bubbling over at Dean's visit.

GOP jubilant

So much so that the GOP is planning a "Howard Dean Scream Contest" for 3:30 p.m. Wednesday at the Statehouse, three hours before Dean's appearance at a Democratic fund-raiser at Jillian's, a downtown Columbia watering hole.

"Contestants will be judged on lack of poise and appearance, loudness, and quality of insane angry ranting," quipped Scott Malyerck, the state GOP's executive director.

"It's a gimme for the GOP," said Blease Graham, a University of South Carolina political scientist. "Dean's visit will almost certainly give South Carolina Republicans verbal fodder to feed the 'them against us' argument, namely, 'they' (the national Democrats) have no relevant ideas about 'us' and, therefore, little appeal here."

Dean's remarks left some Democrats wincing.

Republicans are "a pretty monolithic party," Dean said earlier this month in California. "They all behave the same. They all look the same. It's pretty much a white Christian party." Later, he amplified on that theme, noting that many Republicans "never made an honest living."

Stephen Benjamin, the Democratic Party's 2004 attorney general candidate, said that as a member of his party's conservative wing, "I have reservations about Chairman Dean."

Dean's comments about Republicans and Christians, he said, were "totally inappropriate" and counterproductive to the party's needs and current situation, especially in the South.

Party criticism

A pair of 2008 Democratic presidential contenders — Sen. Joe Biden of Delaware and former North Carolina Sen. John Edwards — condemned Dean's rhetoric, and Erwin sent him a letter of concern.

Erwin said that many in the party were offended and noted that he, too, is a white Christian.

"Even a suggestion that there's something not good about white Christians, if that's the interpretation that's left with some people, can hurt because I'm trying to recruit white Christians, African-American Christians, Jews, people of all faiths. We don't need to ostracize anybody. I told him that," Erwin said.

Don't look for the party's two candidates for governor to be anywhere near Dean.

Sen. Tommy Moore of Clearwater said he's sorry, but cited a "long-standing commitment."

Florence Mayor Frank Willis, ahem, has a series of Pee Dee regional meetings to attend: "Business comes first."

But Willis said Dean's comments were inflammatory and "certainly counterproductive to what we're trying to do."

Education Superintendent Inez Tenenbaum, the party's 2004 Senate candidate, said Dean "will be warmly received, but, I however, have a previously scheduled trip out of the state."

The GOP's Dawson expressed excitement "because it's fun to watch Democrats run and hide when their national leader and spokesman comes to town."

Skipping town
The situation brings to mind North Carolina in 1984 when Geraldine Ferraro, Walter Mondale's Democratic running mate, visited the state. Faced with the certainty of President Ronald Reagan's easy re-election, Democrats headed for the hills and coast when Ferraro showed up in the Piedmont.

With a sitting governor — Jim Hunt — locked into a Senate race he would lose to incumbent Republican Jesse Helms, the highest-ranking Democrat who'd show up was the agriculture commissioner.

The origin of Dean's visit is murky.

He was hardly the choice of many South Carolina Democrats. They preferred Columbia native Donnie Fowler, but he dropped out of the race for chairman when it became clear that Dean had the votes.

Larry Sabato, director of the University of Virginia's Center for Politics, said that "there is no chance South Carolina will ever be Dean country, and if Palmetto Democrats are going to win again, they need to be seen as a separate country within the Dean nation."

Dean set up the trip in February on the eve of his election as chairman, Erwin said.

"He's going to come, a lot of people in the party are excited, we'll raise money and the other side will beat on us," Erwin said. "That's politics."

Equally murky was whether Erwin would prefer Dean not come.

"I won't say that."
Dan Hoover's column appears on Sunday. He can be reached at (864) 298-4883 or toll-free at (800) 274-7879, extension 4883, and by fax at (864) 298-4395.