LITTLE ROCK, Ark. - In the shadow of Bill Clinton (news - web sites) and his gleaming new presidential library, leaders of the struggling Democratic Party held informal discussions this week of how to come back from their devastating Election Day losses.
Big decisions loom, such as who will replace outgoing Chairman Terry McAuliffe and on a basic ideological direction. According to one senior Democrat, Lottie Shackelford, the party's vice chairman, party leaders decided to "pull back" and reflect.
"Most of the people with votes at our executive committee meeting in Orlando next month haven't even had a chance to talk about it," she said. "That's why there seems to be more of a consensus now that people need to pull back a bit and start to reflect a little on where we need to go, then start to think about who should be leading us."
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"The direction is something the party has to debate," he (Kef: Paul Begala) said. "We need to find out, are we simply a bunch of interest groups or a party with heart that provides opportunity in every community? If we return to that, we'll be all right."
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