>Black Lawmakers Say Lott Apology Not Enough; NAACP Calls for Resignation

AP Breaking | 12-10-02 | Jim Abrams

[Lance Romance]

Black Lawmakers Say Lott Apology Not Enough; NAACP Calls for Resignation
By Jim Abrams Associated Press Writer
Published: Dec 10, 2002

WASHINGTON (AP) - Black lawmakers said Tuesday that Senate Republican leader Trent Lott did not go far enough in apologizing for remarks he made praising the 1948 presidential run of then-segregationist Strom Thurmond.

Democrats should not be too quick to drop the matter either, one black House Democrat said.

Separately, the NAACP said Lott, who will be Senate majority leader in the next Congress, should resign from his leadership position. "Hateful bigotry" has no place in Congress, the organization's president said.

"It sends a chilling message to all people," said Rep. Elijah Cummings, D-Md., of the remarks Lott made last week at a birthday party for 100-year-old Thurmond, R-S.C., who is retiring after 48 years in the Senate.

"These are the kinds of words that tear this nation apart," said Cummings, who on Tuesday was elected chairman of the 39-member Congressional Black Caucus. "We are going to do something about it."

Lott said at the party that his state of Mississippi was proud to have voted for Thurmond in 1948, when Thurmond headed the states rights, anti-integration Dixiecrat ticket that captured 39 Southern electoral votes. "And if the rest of the country had followed our lead, we wouldn't have had all these problems over all these years, either," Lott said.

He apologized late Monday, saying, "A poor choice of words conveyed to some the impression that I embraced the discarded policies of the past. Nothing could be further from the truth, and I apologize to anyone who was offended by my statement."

Asked about the situation on Tuesday, White House spokesman Ari Fleischer said of Lott, "He has apologized for his statement and the president understands that that is the final word from Senator Lott."

Fleischer said President Bush thinks Americans should take pride in the "tremendous strides and changes and improvements" that have been made in race relations since 1948. "We were a nation that needed to change," the spokesman said.

Lott was also sharply criticized Tuesday by Ken Connor, president of the conservative Family Research Council. "Senator Lott's ill-considered remarks will serve only to reinforce the false stereotype that white conservatives are racists at heart," he said. "Republicans ought to ask themselves if they really want their party to continue to be represented by Trent Lott."

Rep. Eddie Bernice Johnson, D-Texas, the outgoing head of the Black Caucus, said she called Lott Monday and he apologized to her, saying he was caught up in the moment and did not realize his remarks would be interpreted as they were. Asked if that was sufficient, Johnson said, "We're not finished in this caucus."

Rep. Maxine Waters, D-Calif., also said that Senate Democratic leader Tom Daschle spoke too quickly on Monday when he said he accepted Lott's explanation that he hadn't meant his words to be so interpreted.

"This is a Democratic Party issue," Waters said. "It is not enough to simply defend or to explain these kinds of statements and then at election time talk about why black Americans should turn out in large numbers."

Rep. Nancy Pelosi of California, who will take over as House Democratic leader next month, said of Lott, "He can apologize all he wants. It doesn't remove the sentiment that escaped his mouth that day."

The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, in a statement from its president Kweisi Mfume, said Lott should resign from his leadership post "to make way for another member of the Republican Party whose moral compass is pointed toward improving race relations and not dredging up this nation's poor, polarizing performance of the past."

Lott's comments, Mfume said, "are dangerously divisive and certainly unbefitting a man who is to hold such a highly esteemed leadership role."

Civil rights leader Jesse Jackson last weekend also called for Lott's resignation as majority leader.

Lott's spokesman Ron Bonjean, asked about the latest criticisms, said Lott "made a sincere apology and it speaks for itself."

Cummings, a four-term congressman from Baltimore, defeated Rep. Bobby Rush of Illinois, founder of the Illinois Black Panthers in 1968 and a member of Congress for 10 years, in the vote to head the all-Democratic black caucus. Other caucus officers for the next session of Congress are Sheila Jackson Lee of Texas, Corrine Brown of Florida, Danny Davis of Illinois and Barbara Lee of California.

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[Lance Romance]

"These are the kinds of words that tear this nation apart," said Cummings, who on Tuesday was elected chairman of the 39-member Congressional Black Caucus. "We are going to do something about it."

He's right, just like Jesse's "Hymietown", or Byrd's "White Nigger" comments.

[AppyPappy]

It doesn't take much to get some people fired up. He never mentioned race or segregation.

[Drango]

I demand that Jesse and the rest of the race pimps SHUT UP.

[mhking]

Black conservative ping

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Extra warning: this is a high-volume ping list.

[MrB]

And Algore's reference to "right wingers" having Down's Syndrome.

[Redleg Duke]

As usual, the RATS can't win in the polling place, so they try other means to assasinate and regain power.

This is all a racially motivated RAT scheme to over turn the 2002 elections.

They can go pound sand.

[areafiftyone]

Maybe they should look at their racist qualities before passing judgement. Racism goes both ways. The Black Caucus is the biggest joke in Congress. They are the most hateful and unforgiving people in this government. They only forgive who they want to forgive when it suits their interests. Lott should tell them to shove it. He made a mistake - he apologized - now leave it at that.

[End The Hypocrisy]

>>>I demand that Jesse and the rest of the race pimps SHUT UP.<<<

Why not also demand that Jesse's son Yusef Jackson resign from his U.Va. Law graduate status, dating back to 1994? Check out the following scandal that Linda Chavez has impressively made available to us:

http://www.ceousa.org/html/update/update.html

"A detailed, 50-page study released by the Center for Equal Opportunity
concludes that racial discrimination is widespread in Virginia law school
admissions. The report focuses on the three Virginia public law schools --
the University of Virginia, William & Mary, and George Mason University --
and reveals odds favoring black applicants as high as 731 to 1. To put it in
other terms: A student with an LSAT score of 160 and an undergraduate GPA of
3.25 had a 95 percent chance of admission into U.Va. if he or she was black,
but only a 3 percent chance of admission if white, Hispanic or Asian."

[ArcLight]

I absolutely agree that Lott should step down. He's opened his moronic mouth once too often. The mere fact that Democrats are saying the same thing doesn't make it wrong.

[BuddhaBoy]

I dont think it matters what the Liberals say, this is a wonderful opportunity for the Republicans to get rid of Trent Lott, who single handedly ruined Clinton's impeachment, and has done nothing but harm to the Conservative cause over the years. He is horrible as a leader, and regardless of the double standard, Republicans are better off without him.

[rep-always]

What hypocrites. They have several members of the Democratic Party that not only have used ugly words but have also lived those ugly words. Then here comes Lott, who according to some, says something inappropriate (I will not judge his heart) and they are all up in arms. What an incredible double standard. All these people make me sick.

[Larry Lucido]

Gee, wouldn't that be "overturning the results of two elections" (the phrase we heard ad nauseum during impeachment)?

[zygoat]

So the "black caucus" demands that Lott resign. Does not the term "BLACK CAUCUS" itself define an segregrationist and exclusionary group of so called "lawmakers"? To hell with these hypocrites!

[goldstategop]

The real reason they want to read Trent Lott the "Jimmy The Greek" riot act is to have Mississippi's Democratic Governor Ronnie Musgrove appoint a Democrat to the vacated U.S Senate seat. Their partisan motives are blatant and obvious. The race hustlers interest isn't in getting Lott and the GOP to grovel; its to destroy them like villages in Vietname were destroyed. Any means fair or foul to help the Democrats back into power is completely justified, The Congressional Black Caucus are true masters of the Leninist "divide and rule" strategery.

[swheats]

The real issue is the anger that Lott will be the Leader and not Daschle. These people are truly sickening.

[End The Hypocrisy]

>>>So the "black caucus" demands that Lott resign. Does not the term "BLACK CAUCUS" itself define an segregrationist and exclusionary group of so called "lawmakers"? <<<


Their claim would conceivably be that they is so oppressed that they NEEDs a black caucus. But white folks don't.

[billbears]

Well as I see it, Lott did the exact opposite of what he should have done. He shouldn't have apologized. He should have stayed the course, kept his mouth shut, and the issue would have gone away. But by apologizing, especially where no apology was necessary, he gave credence to the NAALCP's argument and opened the issue for discussion on a much larger scale.

Said to say, but Lott will eventually be forced to step down. I've seen this tactic before from this racist group and in almost every case it works. They push for a bite and instead of being quiet the 'offending' group offers a compromise. Sooner or later the NAALCP gets its way

[rmvh]

Re your # 1

These self rightious blacks should focus their feigned anger elsewhere...perhaps to the Sudan where Blacks are still enslaving other Balcks for money....Or to Nigeria where Balcks are starving to death because of incompetent black rulers....

. Where on earth is there a nation, run by Black people, that one can say is enlightened and providing freedom, education, a quality lifestyle, and upward mobility for the masses.....How about no where!!

These black groups, such as the NAACP, seem to seek out any perceived slight by whites or Asians to furthur an agenda of racial hatred and divisivness since they don't seem to be able to make it on their own.

[capydick]

"These are the kinds of words that tear this nation apart,"

These are the kinds of words that the NAACP love to hear so that they can tear this country apart.If anybody's gonna be tearing this country apart, it's gonna be the racist DNC and their NAACP wing.

This is really getting ridiculous. I'm no Trent Lott fan but, this is going beyond the rational. There are plenty of examples of RAT's making stupid, racially tinged remarks but they NEVER rise to this level. I hope this backfires on all of them.

[goldstategop]

More than that these people want to destroy the country for partisan gain. The Dems just live to sow disharmony and conflict wherever they can make it happen. They are the Orcs of the 21st century.