Democrats must define issues to win, state chairman says

Democrats cannot let "guns, gays and God" take over as election issues, Missouri Democratic Party chairman John Temporiti told a woman's Democratic club Saturday night. To win, they must succeed in defining bread-and-butter issues like work, education and health care, he said.

The key will be to "never let our enemies define us" and to "be united for change," he said during a keynote speech at the Missouri Federation of Women's Democratic Clubs' state convention.

The convention, held at the Bavarian Halle in Jackson, brought about 100 women from across the state together under the theme "Turning Missouri Blue."

He praised the group for Missouri's rejection of an anti-affirmative action initiative and a voter identification bill and for the party's fundraising efforts. He also spoke bitterly about this year's state legislature, repeatedly mentioning health care.

"The Republicans did not provide health care to a single new person or child this year," he said, adding that "the Republicans had an opportunity to do something about health care, had the money to do it and didn't do it."

The key aspects to winning boil down to "funding, focus and field," he said.

The Missouri party was in the red when he first became chairman, he said, but that is no longer the case. The group should focus first on statewide offices, getting people out into the field making calls and registering voters. Because redistricting will occur in a few years, he said, it is imperative to have Democrats in office.

Temporiti concluded by addressing the "splintering" in the party between Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton supporters. Quoting the speech Clinton gave in suspending her campaign for presidency, he told the group that "we are all heading toward the same destination, united and more ready than ever to win in November and to turn our country around because so much is at stake."

Many of Temporiti's thoughts echoed those of state Rep. Dr. Sam Page, who is running for lieutenant governor and gave an address before Temporiti.

Page, an anesthesiologist from Creve Coeur, Mo., said he was "deeply disturbed" by the direction of the legislature in terms of health care and education.

"Now we have 100,000 more uninsured, and college is harder to get access to," he said, referring to a decision by the Missouri Higher Education Loan Authority to stop offering its current interest rate breaks in certain circumstances.

He also lamented that a bill that would have raised teachers' pay did not pass. He said it should not have been combined with a school voucher bill.

lbavolek@semissourian.com

335-6611, extension 123

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