[ACTIVISM] The Next Agenda Item For Free Republic

Self | November 7, 2002 | Self

[Congressman Billybob]

Good morning, my friend,

In a perfect world, I thoroughly agree that Lott should be replaced. But I've followed the stories concerning those who might replace him. His challengers have backed off. So if we are to affect the behavior of the Senate, will will have to deal with Lott.

The rule from medieval history is, "If you strike at a king, you must kill him." If no Republican in the Senate is willing to go for Lott's once and future position as Majority Leader, then we are chosing exactly the wrong tactics if we attack Lott, rather than try to "persuade" him to do certain things. If Lott IS going to keep the position, we are couter-productive and take ourselves out of the loop, if our approach is to attack him.

However, I agree with the point that we should FReep Lott at home as well as in Washington. That can come first. Do we have enough troops in the right places in Mississippi to do that?

Billybob

[Congressman Billybob]

P.S. Glad to see a response from someone who's interested in the subject, which is CRITICALLY important. Squabbling about whether this is a vanity thread is pointless. Lott IS going to be the Majority Leader. What are WE going to do to push him into the correct positions and actions?

BB

[diotima]

We have troops in MO. I think a better course of action would be to pressure the GOP Senators to ditch Lott, if that is the goal.

Depending on how you want to play this we could do one of two things: we can either quietly (stay out of the media) write e-mail fax call GOP senators to toss Lott. OR we could go out and make noise to the GOP Senators, public local freeps, press releases etc. The down side of making a public fuss would be that the media would have a field day with the "GOP Eating our own" spin, using the opportunity to go after GOP senators etc. This is why there shouldn't really be anything on this issue in DC since the media will turn it on us and someone in DC is always protesting something for some reason. (Much like Harvard and Berkeley, LOL) The Senate doesn't care if people are protesting in DC, they care if the people electing them are protesting.

So, those are the options. It is possible to launch a concerted and focused effort to target the Senators.

Nav- got any thoughts on this?

[Dallas]

I think Frist would be very affective as majority leader....

[Dallas]

Are ya disagreeing with me...TK ?

If you are,...I just haven't seen anything to the contrary. I wanna be optimistic, but when a hack like Ron Kirk can garner a million+ votes....geeze.

[dirtboy]

P.S. Glad to see a response from someone who's interested in the subject, which is CRITICALLY important. Squabbling about whether this is a vanity thread is pointless.

Just giving Illbay a little bit of what he's been dishing out lately.

Lott IS going to be the Majority Leader. What are WE going to do to push him into the correct positions and actions?

I think there's a really long string now that's attached from 1600 Pennsylania Ave to Lott. He is Majority Leader again solely because of Bush. There was a good analysis on the radio yesterday. Dems (and some Pubbies) were not afraid of Bush before this election, because he barely became president. They are scared of him now, because he has shown he can help you or hurt you. Bush is in the driver's seat now, and I think both the Dems and the GOP Senate members are willing to let him drive the process and take either the credit or the blame for the next two years.

So what should we do about Lott? I think we don't do much of anything for now, other than to send e-mails to his office encouraging him NOT to cave to the Dems - if this was reversed, Daschle would be cutting Lott off at the knees. I think a Freep would be counterproductive, and against Reagan's 11th Commandment.

As an aside, what does it tell you about the current makeup of the Senate that no one in the GOP is willing to challege Lott? Lott may be spineless, but he's probably partially that way because so many of his GOP cohorts are more weak-kneed than he is.

[dirtboy]

I think a better course of action would be to pressure the GOP Senators to ditch Lott, if that is the goal.

Who in the Senate is both strong enough and has enough seniority to replace Lott? Part of the problem is the dearth of strong GOP figures in the Senate - with the exception of a few, such as Santorum, it's just a blob of gray. And Santorum is only on his second term, a bit youngish for a leadership position.

Depending on how you want to play this we could do one of two things: we can either quietly (stay out of the media) write e-mail fax call GOP senators to toss Lott. OR we could go out and make noise to the GOP Senators, public local freeps, press releases etc. The down side of making a public fuss would be that the media would have a field day with the "GOP Eating our own" spin, using the opportunity to go after GOP senators etc.

I agree entirely that the media would have a field day with that one (for once, a FR protest would get a ton of coverage instead of being buried) - and it would pi** the GOP leadership off. If your goal is to try and make the new GOP majority more effective, I don't think a public protest is the way to go. If you want to try and prod the GOP to adapt more conservative viewpoints, a public protest may get your point across, but it would in turn close some doors to FR.

[stainlessbanner]

Hey Illbay, isn't there a Southern thread you should be crashing right now?

[diotima]

Who in the Senate is both strong enough and has enough seniority to replace Lott?

This is a good point too. As much as I dislike our Toupeed Majority leader, the replacement could be worse.

Lets see if anyone has any suggestions about who would be a good replacement?

[navigator]

Get Freepers on Limbaugh to drill this point home. Lott monitors Limbaugh

If he does, he must be a glutton for punishment. Frankly, the Trent Lott I know doesn't listen to anybody except Tom Daschle.

[MHGinTN]

The 'sinator' from Mississippi is imminently blackmailable, as his actions on impeachemnt and the Landrieu fraud have proven. Time for Trent to go!

[TexKat]

Are ya disagreeing with me...TK ?

________________________________________________________ Naugh Dallas, just trying to be positive.

Kirk = Token + All American Football Team and associates, etc.

[Route66]

"I think there's a really long string now that's attached from 1600 Pennsylania Ave to Lott. He is Majority Leader again solely because of Bush. There was a good analysis on the radio yesterday. Dems (and some Pubbies) were not afraid of Bush before this election, because he barely became president. They are scared of him now, because he has shown he can help you or hurt you. Bush is in the driver's seat now, and I think both the Dems and the GOP Senate members are willing to let him drive the process and take either the credit or the blame for the next two years."

Yep... Lott is by nature spineless, and has made a career of leading the even more spineless. But people like him tend to fall into line once they find out that you hold the power to either protect them or destroy them. Bush will not push for his replacement unless he his 'not helpful'.

In the first two years Lott was not willing to risk anything for Bush since he plans still be in Washington long after Bush is gone. By now I think it is abundantly clear to Lott that his political future is now hitched to Bush's star and he had better get onboard.

Now that Bush has shown he has real power, he will have a lot more leverage with all of his own party. The best way to keep Lott and the others in line and moving is to make sure they know just how much support there is for the President.

[navigator]

Sure, I know exactly what to do because I know these guys.

First of all, you have to understand that we are never going to convince Republican Senators to replace Lott. TL is simply too formidable a Senate organizer to try to remove him with a coup.

You also have to remember that active conservatives have been disenchanted with Lott for so long that it's hardly gonna be "news" to him that we are.

So, that means that the only person(s) who can remove Trent Lott from Majority Leader of the Senate are the voters in 2004 or Trent Lott himself before.

Voters in 2004, or Trent Lott himself before.

And the only way I know to do that (besides the old standby---SCANDAL) is to get Trent Lott to actually commit himself to an agenda, the success or failure by which he can be measured.

And that is the type of thing I have some experience with and it's the type of thing grassroots conservatives can actually do to project their influence.

If anyone here is the least bit interested in the direction I'm going with this, I'll continue...

[Dallas]

OK...I'm pumped.....if you are...LOL

[diotima]

I am, please continue.

But let me ask you this, how can we get Lott to commit himself to an agenda since he has been smart enough to avoid doing this thus far?

[diotima]

Ping.

[Illbay]

I repeat: I didn't post it in "Breaking." Perhaps there is a software glitch, I don't know. I know the difference between "Breaking" and "Free Republic." This post isn't "Breaking," so I would not have intentionally put it there.

You might consider reading Isaiah 29:21, btw. It might help you in dealing with others more smoothly.

[Illbay]

EXCELLENT, EXCELLENT, EXCELLENT ideas! This is what I was hoping we'd get here.

I don't know if he is still, but Doctor Raoul used to be a heavy hand in the D.C. chapter. I'd like to see what he has to say in this regard.

I want to address each of your points later, btw, when I have time.

Thanks!!!

[nygoose]

I must have missed that.