Just think what you're gonna be missing, you won't have Trent Lott to kick around anymore...

Against the Grain on the CBS News Website ^ | Dec. 20, 2002 | Dick Meyer

[McGavin999]

He always was Todd. You're just too stubborn to admit that the only way he could be brought out of this is to step down. He is NOT leadership material. He is the perfect example of the Peter Principle. Just because he was not good as a SML does not mean that he's not a good man.

If he had any political skill in front of the cameras he could and would have taken care of this mess within days of the event. He couldn't even recognize that he had a problem.

That doesn't mean he's not a good man, it merely means he is inept as a ML.

Now that he's out of the spotlight he can work on rebuilding what HE destroyed.

Open your eyes Todd, he's playing in the big league and couldn't measure up. He may be a fine legislator (obviously or he wouldn't have made it this long) but only behind the scenes. He can't make it out front as a target, he's not quick enough on his feet. Not everyone can be the star quarterback but that doesn't mean they can't be a valuable member of the team.

[Freee-dame]

And – get this – he makes an annual medical mission to Africa and works there as doctor, not a pol.

Notice how carefully they omit the fact that he performs heart surgery without pay. Their statement could mean that he goes on a fact finding junket to hospitals. Wouldn't want to contrast that with Hillary's annual two week vacations with Chelsea and 100 (?) of their closest friends.

[Mo1]

Frist looks good to me .. Thanks for the ping Dog

BTW .. did I mention I got a Christmas Card from the Senator ...along with thousands of others .. but I got one

[Mo1]

Yes, that is probably all very true, but one thing i don't hear being addressed is can he actually ...lead? None of us have any evidence so far that he is a leader, or is capable of being one.being telegenic and personable and consservative is terrific, yet can he get votes and push legislation through and does he know the rules well enough to run the Senate?

He did a pretty good job working on the senate election this year .. we got the majority back ..

[habs4ever]

That isn't the same as what is needed in the cloakrooms to move the Bush agenda forward.He also has to have the savvy to not get rolled on procedural matters and find the votes.I am going to be skeptical about anyone getting on the job experience when put in a leadership role :-)

[YaYa123]

The good people of Mississippi elected Trent Lott to be their senator. I applaud him for keeping his contract with them, but they had nothing to do with him becoming Republican Leader. He got that position when Bob Dole quit to run for President in 1996.

Since then, I've been babbling on and on about what a poor leader he was, for both the minority and majority. He was easily outmaneuvered by slicker than snot Daschle, inarticulate, and worse yet, Trent Lott was surprised when Jim Jeffords left the party. I remember how candidate Bush ran his campaign out of Texas, unwilling to trust his fate to the RNC. And also remember, Trent Lott moved up his re-election as Leader to last month, because he was being challenged by Don Nickles. He knew if the election was held on schedule, come January, that he was in danger of losing. His position was tenuous even before the Strom Thurmond debacle.

I've seen people accuse those of us who don't admire Lott, of piling on, of eating our own. They accuse President Bush of being disloyal to Lott. I submit nothing could be further from the truth. In fact, I've spent the last two years wishing President Bush would get rid of Lott, but because loyalty is so important to him, he did nothing. And many of the compromises Bush was forced to make, compromises we didn't like, were necessary because Lott couldn't manage the senate better.

No reasonable person could argue that Lott hasn't been treated unfairly, an obvious whipping boy, but he brought it on himself, by his words, and then by the way he handled it. There was no way the left wouldn't jump on him. By the same token, there was no way President Bush could sit idly by and watch the left take advantage of an issue that could ruin his next two years in office. If you watched how democrats demonized Newt Gingrich, you know what the next two years would have been like.

Hally loo yaya! Trent Lott graciously stepped aside. In no time at all, he'll be regarded as a party icon, for doing the right thing. and double Hally loos that the republican senate has such a deep bench. Bill Frist is the best of the best to go up against the attack strategy democrats have already implemented: Republicans are all racists. Southern conservatives are racists. Hillary, Paul Begala, Mort Kondracke, Vic Kamber, the Roll Call editor, Craig Crawford, Bill Clinton, and probably more democrats than I've heard, are making this outrageous claim openly.

Republicans need to refute this hateful race baiting strategy immediately. Bill Kristol said tonight, when Hillary calls all republican senators racist, she should be challenged to name names.

Marc Racicot, where are you?

[Mo1]

And you think Lott could do that for our party?

Anyone is a step up from Lott and I am willing to give Frist a chance

[Ole Okie]

yet can he get votes and push legislation through and does he know the rules well enough to run the Senate?

You can take that one to the bank.

This guy retrieved the Senate for the Republicans (in spite of overwhelming odds against it), and you wonder if he can lead?

Get real.

[habs4ever]

How did Frist get back the Senate? i thought it was a WH operation, and his job was to funnel the money.

It still doesn't prove leadership, ok?

[sinkspur]

Republicans need to refute this hateful race baiting strategy immediately. Bill Kristol said tonight, when Hillary calls all republican senators racist, she should be challenged to name names.

Bill Kristol helped label Trent Lott "racist."

The opportunity to put the race genie back in the bottle was lost two weeks ago when Republicans ran for the tall grass and DID NOT STAND UP TO THE RACE PIMPS!

Now, the best we can hope for is that this will die down after a few bones are tossed to the baiters.

[Wait4Truth]

Time will tell. If he's as good as he was at leading us to a Republican senate victory in the mid-terms, he will be fantastic.

[Wait4Truth]

Great commentary, YaYa. It won't fly with some here but it's perfectly correct.

[YaYa123]

Are you watching Nightline?
Should be interesting to see if ABC covers this fairly.

[maica]

""This guy retrieved the Senate for the Republicans (in spite of overwhelming odds against it), and you wonder if he can lead? ""

He got himself virtually elected 'by acclamation' without the public, the pundits or the DNC hearing any dissension from the other 50 Repub Senators - without leaving his home!

I'd say he has leadership talent to burn! We are lucky!

[Wait4Truth]

Nightline doesn't come on here for another 1/2 hour or so. I don't usually watch it...perhaps I will...but I can't imagine them playing fair. Especially after I saw tonight how the media is already covering for Patty Murray's pro-bin Laden comments to the students. I am calling it a night. I have my fill of flame wars for today. Nightline can't be any worse. :-)

[VOA]

How did Frist get back the Senate? i thought it was a WH operation, and his job was to funnel the money.

Check this story:
http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,388904,00.html

I'm no expert, but it sounds like Frist (and an advisor) pulled off some
fairly slick "strategery" and identified a number of the "best horses" to run
in the election; even some who hadn't considered running.

I agree that that's not proof of leadership. But maybe it means Frist knows how
to evaluate political situations and come up with a winning game plan.

As for Lott, what I've heard even some Republican poobahs say is that he
was good at parliamentary procedure, not that he was a strong leader.

It will be interesting to see how Frist rises to his first test...which will probably
be a rectal exam by Hillary!, Boxer, and a bunch of race-baiters like
Jesse Jackson and the like.

[AGreatPer]

"Republicans need to refute this hateful race baiting strategy immediately."

This subject matter (race), is gonna backfire on the Dems come January once we get a leader in there. I hope. We'll see if the new leader, whover, has any cahoonas.