Commentary: Lott Throws In The Towel (Conservative base will be gone)

crosswalk ^ | 12/20/2002 | Gary Bauer

[TLBSHOW]

Commentary: Lott Throws In The Towel Gary Bauer President, American Values

After days of endless apologizing, Trent Lott has thrown in the towel and resigned as Senate Majority Leader. Late last night he began making phone calls to GOP colleagues to let them know his decision.

Also over night the White House began a more concerted push to replace Lott with Senator Bill Frist, who will now emerge as the "frontrunner."

Frist is a savvy media personality, but he angered many conservatives by interfering in Republican primaries around the country, virtually always in favor of the moderate candidate over the conservative. And he was a staunch supporter of former Surgeon General Satcher, who was pro-abortion. I hope a more reliable conservative-- either Nickles or Santorum-- will throw their hat in the ring.

Now comes the hard part. This mess doesn't end with Lott's resignation. The GOP needs to find its backbone. One example: There are reports that the Administration is now afraid to go into court against the University of Michigan's offensive racial quota system that selects students from certain minority groups regardless of grades while rejecting white students with much higher grades.

For 30 years the Republicans have opposed these quasi-quota schemes. Are we now going to throw in the towel because of the smear campaign against Republicans of the last two weeks?

Some insiders are suggesting there will be reluctance at the White House to nominate conservative judges. Such reports better be inaccurate or the conservative base of the party will be gone.

Let me bring up again one easy way for the White House to signal that it knows how to play hardball and help Americans of all races. Many Washington D.C. schools are abysmal and the children, mostly black, trapped in them are ill served. The White House should send a school voucher program to Capitol Hill on the first day of the new Congress just for the District of Columbia. Ted Kennedy will scream. Hillary Clinton will pull her hair out. Daschle will reach for the Maalox. And they will line up and vote "no" against those black families and in favor of the teacher unions.

Last year Bush dropped his voucher plan because Kennedy refused to let it out of Committee, but there should be no cave in this time.

[Poohbah]

Do the people you hang out with, aside from those on Free Republic, have the University of Michigan case as their main focus of thought right now?

[Ohioan]

Gary Bauer understates the problem. The Lott resignation will be the greatest encouragement possible, for the Left to Bork every Conservative Judicial nominee. Now that they have flexed their muscles and succeeded in making the Republicans act like a bunch of panic stricken delinquents, over a completely manufactured hue and cry, you can be absolutely certain that they will continue with the same tactics.

It is because this creates a real crisis, with almost immediate consequences, that almost no one on our side in Washington seems to understand, that I rushed to post my essay, The Trent Lott Affair--Anatomy Of A Smear>, this afternoon, even though it needs major revisions.

William Flax

[OldFashionedAmerican]

I didn't care why Daschle said what he did, I was just amazed that he said it while the supposed "conservatives" were all readying Lott's noose.

See my earlier posts. When the going gets tough, the Right runs for cover and can not stick by their elected man, but when a Lefty breaks the law, they have no problem backing him. How pitiful for us. I agree that Lott did a terrible job, but by pushing him out for THIS so called reason sends a bad message: 'Accuse a Conservative, and he'll find himself without any friends, and we (Liberals) can throw him out whenever we want to!"

[TLBSHOW]

So your saying we should keep it? Bush should support it. I liked the wnd story where they pinned Ari in a corner over it.

[Jorge]

Bauer's right about one thing, the "GOP needs to find its backbone".

Well they just took one giant step in that direction by getting rid of the spineless Trent Lott. The GOP couldn't have afforded to foot the bill for much more of his pathetic apology tour.

Just today, just since Lott has stepped down, the liberal establishment has gone into overdrive labeling the GOP a bunch of racists. Republicans better wake up and face the enemy head on.

The liberal establishment is frantic now that their favorite punching bag has stepped down from a GOP leadership role....and all they can do is make wild and hysterical accusations all over the map against the GOP.

If they could find Lott-like statements from other GOP Senators to exploit, they would do it. But they won't. They are spinning their wheels.
We have nothing to worry about.

[fightinJAG]

Yes, he was elected unanimously, but on another thread there was information that Lott manipulated the rules so as to preclude anyone from challenging him for SML.

[Torie]

Lott DID do the right thing, and it SHOULD stop in this neighborhood, and it should stop now. The issue is now closed, except for those that want to fight old wars that have been decided, rather than new ones, that haven't.

[Jhoffa_]

What's really troubling is that Lott didn't take the hint and clean up his mess.

I can even deal with the terse first apology and then the second, more specific apology. I don't even have a problem with the time frame involved.

What did it for me was the BET interview. He crossed the Rubicon right then, imho.

We can't have a SML who's going to trade our (long fought and well deserved) agenda for promises of personal "forgivness."

No Way.

I think he alienated everyone at that point. No one could defend that.

[Poohbah]

So your saying we should keep it?

TLBSHOW, I merely asked you for the basis of your opinion. I did not say we should keep it. If you cannot read well enough to understand something THAT trivial, then maybe you should invest in "Hooked on Phonics" before posting again on Free Republic.

[Jhoffa_]

I agree.

[Wait4Truth]

There's one difference. The RATS have the entire media to push the issues that the RATS want pushed. The Republicans don't. Byrd doesn't become a big story, Lott does. Patty Murray's words yesterday should be a big story. They're not. They're being covered up by a willing press. There is a double-standard that we have to deal with. I still say the RATS are going to far and so is the media. This could end up working in our favor. As someone else here said, they just don't get it. They don't believe that people will tire of their spin. But they will.

[michaelt]

Well, sinkspur, there is one silver lining for you in all this - no one here will ever call you a Bushbot again.

I'm probably not the first to say this, but I haven't seen it yet. ;-)

[TLBSHOW]

The issue isn't closed it has just started and if your so blind to think it hasn't then you better pour yourselve a stiff one.

[jwalsh07]

Did you casually throw away the phrase "politically active" because it didn't fit into the strawman you were building from the ground up?

---

HUTCHINSON: Clinton Can't Talk About Republican Hypocrisy
AlterNet - 8 hours ago
... In 1995, conservative Republicans claimed that white males were losing ground to
minorities, and launched a massive attack on affirmative action programs. ...


MPTC adds four new health care programs to offerings
Fond du Lac Reporter, WI - 9 hours ago
... The action plan evolved after 200 leaders convened in April to discuss actions to
alleviate the health ... You need to speak to youth in a positive and affirmative ...


As racism pervades the body politic, A new civil rights movement ...
Bay Area Independent Media Center, CA - 9 hours ago
Trent Lott’s racist remarks earlier this month may have served to strengthen
a growing civil rights movement to defend affirmative action. ...


Racism puts Bush, GOP on defensive
Bay Area Independent Media Center, CA - 9 hours ago
... Majority Leader. He endorsed affirmative action to remedy job discrimination,
an about-face that ignited fury among ultra-rightists. ...


MICHAEL GRAHAM :
National Review Online - 9 hours ago
sa conservative, southern Republican who believes it's possible to oppose both affirmative
action and the KKK, my Christmas wish was for Trent Lott to write ...


QUIN HILLYER :
National Review Online - 9 hours ago
... racially insensitive and, in his desperate attempts to hang onto power through clueless
apologies, unprincipled in doing an about-face on affirmative action. ...


How Lott and Gore Have Opened Doors
BusinessWeek - 9 hours ago
... are profound. The Administration will be hard-pressed to challenge
affirmative-action rules in court. And Republicans acknowledge ...


Re : Trent Lott is for Affirmative Action
Fredericksburg.com, VA - 9 hours ago
Vern Said-->("So, your point is that the NAACP wants to wipe out black
history as well....huh?"). No, they want to wipe out the TRUE ...


Re : Trent Lott is for Affirmative Action
Fredericksburg.com, VA - 10 hours ago
Did you not pay any attention to my post where I stated that Southern
history and Black history are one and the same?? Or, do you ...


Activists call on Bush for race policy changes
CNN - 10 hours ago
... The letter urged President Bush to take action on four key issues: affirmative
action, judicial appointments, hate crimes, and election reform. ...

---

There's thousands more. Read a few, see what you think. Google, a new invention.

[fightinJAG]

One of the big reasons we couldn't even get rid of someone who broke federal laws (B.C.) was TRENT LOTT. Lott was the main man who turned the Senate impeachment trial into a kangeroo court and who, through back-slapping backroom deals, agreed that Bubba would not be removed from office.

[OldFashionedAmerican]

One of the reasons we could not get rid of the criminal creep, Bubba? TRENT LOTT (leader of the sham impeachment trial).

Agreed, but getting rid of Lott this way is still sending the wrong message.

[fightinJAG]

Check the archives for my extensive comments on CFR. No need to rehash here.

[TLBSHOW]

Pooh bear listen this is just the start of what Rove and Bush caused. They are not conservatives and do not deserve the vote of conservatives until they show a little track record.

[F.J. Mitchell]

"Right wing, all or nothing rants," you say" ? You are at least partially correct. The reality is, that if the right wing doesn't get "all" we ask for, (as humble as our demands are) the Republican party has "nothing" to distinguish it from the DemonRATS.

[Poohbah]

I can even deal with the terse first apology and then the second, more specific apology. I don't even have a problem with the time frame involved.

He took way too long, in my opinion--when you screw up like that, a quick and complete apology on Day One or Day Two, as your first response, will save you all manner of grief on Day Thirteen. The several efforts to apologize didn't help, either--it looked like he was unable to be straightforward with the American public, and that always looks bad.