Will GOP split be an issue this year?

Brandon Larrabee, Morris News Service

April 29, 2008

Ask leaders of the Georgia Republican and Democratic parties what they plan to talk about leading up to this year's elections, and they're likely to tick off a routine list: jobs, health care, education, the fight against terrorism.

Perhaps just as likely to be an issue, though, are the fissures beginning to show in the three-year-old GOP majority as legislative and statewide candidates head to Atlanta this week to qualify for office. One U.S. Senate seat, 13 congressional seats and the 236 state legislative positions are up for grabs during this presidential election year.

Already, the parties are trying to draw the battle lines in a way that positions them best for the battles of November. And Democrats are preparing to use the internal dynamics of the reigning Republican Party against the GOP -- and could lead to internal warfare between Republicans.

"The Republicans, especially in Georgia, are pretty good at getting elected. � But they're not so good at governing," said Martin Matheny, a spokesman for the Democratic Party of Georgia. "We need to send some steady, tested, mature leadership back over to the state capitol."

Gov. Sonny Perdue, Lt. Gov .Casey Cagle and House Speaker Glenn Richardson, R-Hiram, battled throughout the just-finished legislative session over tax reform, transportation funding and legislative overrides of vetoes Perdue issued last year. The session ended with Richardson calling for a new lieutenant governor and Cagle calling the speaker a bully.

The fighting has even prompted speculation at the Capitol that Republicans from different camps might sponsor primary challengers to members of rival factions.

"That would be something different in Georgia," said Charles Bullock, a political science professor at the University of Georgia. "That's not something that's been done."

For his part, Keen downplayed the notion that the GOP could turn against itself in the primaries.

Even so, the fight will factor into the fall campaigns as Democrats try to paint a picture of a do-nothing Legislature where the GOP personal battles stymied critical legislation.

"There's a lot of frustration and a lot of downright anger at the way the Republicans kind of forgot that they're supposed to be public servants," Matheny said.

But Ben Fry, executive director of the state GOP, disputed that. He ticked off GOP accomplishments: Pushing through a state water policy; passing education legislation like a measure encouraging charter schools; making it easier to open new medical facilities in the state; and setting aside almost $59 million for financially struggling trauma care hospitals, which handle the most severely injured patients.

"I think the voters are going to look at the end results, to be honest with you," he said. "I think that there are a lot of good things to point to this session."

And House Majority Leader Jerry Keen said the state had already experienced Democratic leadership -- something he said caused ballooning budgets and left a host of issues unresolved.

"It's one thing to talk about something, another to do it," said Keen, R-St. Simons Island.

Bullock said it's unlikely the public knows the specifics of the fights among Richardson, Cagle and Perdue. But, "They probably were not impressed by the fact that there were problems."

Central to any argument about the effectiveness of the General Assembly will be the failure to pass tax reform. Richardson spent much of 2007 campaigning across the state for various versions of a plan to provide some form of property tax relief -- bringing to the forefront an issue that might have otherwise remained dormant and now could create a problem for the GOP now that there are no results.

"In a sense, Republicans will have been hoisted on their own petard" if the tax issue harms the party, Bullock said.

But Keen said he expected the House GOP to get credit merely for creating a debate over tax reform where none existed.

"For a member of the House Republican caucus, I think they've got the strongest plank ever to run on," he said.

Here's a look at the battlegrounds that the parties will likely fight over this November:

EDUCATION: Democrats plan to pound Republicans over continuing cuts to public education. The GOP will counter that legislative budget-writers have restored almost all of the funds and have promised to continue whittling away at the reductions, a response to sagging tax revenues during the last economic slowdown.

TAX CUTS: Both House and Senate Republicans are likely to tout their competing proposals, with House leaders pushing for property tax reform and the upper chamber campaigning for income tax cuts. Democrats have said the best way to lower property taxes is to boost state education funding, allowing local school systems to ease up on taxes.

HEALTH CARE: Republicans will tout nearly $60 million set aside for trauma care centers and a loosening of restrictions on where and when new medical facilities can be built. Democrats will point out that no permanent source of funding was created for trauma, meaning lawmakers will still have to look for money each year to help those hospitals that treat the most severely injured patient.

GOVERNING: Democrats will try to paint Republicans as self-absorbed and more interested in fighting than getting things done. The GOP will counter that they have plenty to be proud of over the last few years.