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Collins looks back on career with satisfaction

By MONROE ROARK
mroark@TheCitizenNews.com

Twelve years is long enough.

That’s what Mac Collins said recently when reflecting on his service in the U.S. House of Representatives. His district included most or all of Fayette County during his tenure (1993-2004).

Over the course of those years, Collins’ district evolved into the most conservative Republican stronghold in Georgia, with nearly 70 percent voting to re-elect George W. Bush in the 2004 presidential race. With a seat on the powerful Ways and Means Committee, Collins looked as though he could stay in Congress as long as he wanted.

But he raised more than a few eyebrows when he gave that up for what many considered an ill-advised run for Zell Miller’s U.S. Senate seat. Johnny Isakson, also in the U.S. House, won that seat easily by defeating Collins and Herman Cain in the GOP primary and Denise Majette in the general election.

But Collins offered no regrets when asked last month about these developments. He felt that regardless of the outcome of the Senate race, it was time to move on from the House.

“Twelve years is a long time,” he said, noting that the nature of the House’s two-year terms can make it seem like a continuous campaign. “If you’re doing your job, you’re always campaigning.”

One campaign he will not be undertaking is a bid for the Governor’s Mansion. He considered it in past years, before current Gov. Sonny Perdue ran, and he has even been asked by some people about doing so in 2006, amid speculation that not everyone Republican in the state is pleased with the incumbent. But Collins struck down any notion of his own involvement in unseating Perdue.

“I talked to Sonny personally and told him I want him to be successful in 2006,” said Collins. “I think he’ll benefit from having a Republican majority in the [state] House and Senate the next two years.”

With the Bush administration in control for the next four years, Collins has not ruled out a return to Washington in another capacity. He said he would be interested in the right opportunity, such as a high-level position in the Department of Transportation or Homeland Security. He expressed this to top Bush aide Karl Rove in a meeting soon after the November election.

But for now, he is returning to his home in Jackson, where he has lived virtually all his life except for his time in Washington and where his political career began as a Democrat in the 1970s. Collins served as chairman of the Butts County Board of Commissioners beginning in 1977 until his defeat in a 1980 reelection bid.

After that race, he as approached by representatives of the Butts County Republican Party, who knew that Collins was a supporter of Ronald Reagan and thought he might like a change. He would eventually become the leader of the county GOP and win a seat in the state Senate in 1988.

Collins’ top priorities right now are phasing out what is left of his trucking business, which he began in Butts County soon after he left high school, and evaluating his future in the wake of his 60th birthday last year.

His two sons now own a trucking business in Butts, while his two daughters live in Brunswick and Washington, D.C. Collins and his wife Julie have 11 grandchildren. Julie Collins was also active in Washington, through the Congressional Spouses Club and the First Ladies Luncheon.

Collins and new U.S. Rep. Lynn Westmoreland worked closely on the recent transition, and Westmoreland even offered jobs to several of Collins’ staff members.

As for being in Congress, Collins said he will miss the travel associated with the job, such as visiting military installations across the country and around the world. He visited troops in Europe and Iraq (leaving Baghdad just as President Bush made his surprise Thanksgiving arrival) and made several trips to Vietnam while working on the POW-MIA issue.

Collins’ reputation among the military was such that servicemen and women in other states would contact his office for constituent assistance over the years.

Collins counts among his close friends fellow representative Tom Delay and House Speaker Dennis Hastert. He also has a good relationship with the current senators from Georgia, Isakson and Saxby Chambliss.

There were many opportunities to travel with the president in the past few years, and Collins was a regular visitor in the Oval Office. He said President Bush appreciated his opinion, and Collins was not hesitant to say exactly what he thought.

In short, while leaving the door open to a possible return to the House in the future, depending upon the district configurations, Collins is pleased with what he has accomplished in six terms in Congress.

“We helped a lot of citizens,” he said. “We have a good legacy.”