Peggy Noonan: Counsel for Trent

Opinion Journal ^ | 12/13/2002 | Peggy Noonan

[Pokey78]

What Lott told us last week, and what he should do now.

People approach the Trent Lott story in political terms. Does it hurt the Republican Party? Do the Democrats get more out of the scandal if they successfully campaign for Mr. Lott's departure, or do they gain more if he continues as GOP leader, functioning as a handy daily symbol of the racism that resides in the secret heart of all conservatives? What did President Bush's comments mean? And by the way, why isn't the New York Times flooding the zone?

[Hildy]

Yea, that'll happen.

[RJCogburn]

I'm with you. It's about power and percs.

[mrustow]

Powrful writing, but she makes one big mistake:

It is hard to believe that Trent Lott meant to suggest that segregation was OK. It's hard to believe any modern American would think that.

Millions of Americans think segregation would be preferrable to the current situation. And the group that most aggressively supports segregation ...

[mrustow]

is black folks.

[jwalsh07]

But for the sake of America and putting to rest the Dems' hopes of playing one group of Americans against the other for narrow political gain.

You mean the party that ran ads implying that President Bush was driving the pickup truck that dragged James Byrd to his horrible death? That will all be over if Trent lott takes one for the team?

[goldstategop]

The Dems will never stop playing the race card. But we don't want our agenda to be diverted, delayed and frustrated cause Lott's sucking all the oxygen out of it. If Lott were a committed conservative, we'd all fight for him but he just seemed unable to fight for what what our party believes in and chose time and again to play footsie with The Daschle. I'm for getting rid of him after a decent interval cause what we need is to accomplish the things we need to after the elections. In short we have to hit the ground running and as long as Lott's the leader, we're permanently on the defensive. That's why its time for him to go.

[drjimmy]

I don't think Lott could say such a thing, especially "The Democrat Party stood in the way of every piece of civil rights legislation in this country for 100 years after the Civil War," because the very same 100 year old whom Lott was praising quit the Democratic Party because it wanted to end segregation. Lott cannot have it both ways, by saying the nation would have been better off if Strom had been elected in 1948 and that it was Democrats who were against civil rights.

[EternalVigilance]

I was looking for a little more clarity from Peggy. Were it not for the last sentence, I would have thought this whole essay was an "ellipsis."

LOL..I hear you. But because of that last sentence she states her position quite clearly...Lott needs to step down as Majority Leader.

[Cousin Eddie]

What the heck are you talking about? Millions of Americans prefer segregation? I know there are some, but millions? Who are these millions, and what is so wrong with the current situation that they would prefer segregation?

[F16Fighter]

"Peggy Noonan's wonderful prose is always insightful, touching and sublime."

Usually..

I found this essay to be a contrived and long-winded piece of crud. Especially distaseful was the manner of which she capped off her last few paragraphs with a crescendo of flag-waving, Frank Capra-esque, 'Keep-America-Great' visualizations....

....just before plunging the dagger into the flailing political corpse of Trent Lott.

Betcha Noonan is great at eulogies...

[Salvation]

I don't think your scenario will take place.

[mrustow]

Twenty million or so are blacks, and the rest are whites who, like the writer Fred Reed, see "integration" as nothing more than a pretext for racist blacks to take over institutions.

[HardStarboard]

Zack - your a good speech writer. Unfortunately, Lott does not have the necessary cajones to make your speech. Few, if any politicians do.

[beckett]

Never work. It wasn't a "poorly worded sentence." He specifically intended to use words he's used before (in 1980) in what he foolishly thought would be nothing more than a good ol' boy joke between two former Yellow Dog Democrats. In other words, Lott made the monumental error of joking in public the way old time southern politicians joke in private. He showed he is a Dixiecrat at heart, and nothing is less Republican than the odious Dixiecrat platform of 1948.

Although I believe your intentions are admirable, Lott would be laughed out of town if he made the statement you have written for him.

Lott must step down as Majority Leader. The odor now attached to him will only become more pungent with time. Bush either uses the power and influence of his office to get Lott to step down, or he invites a major political disaster for the Republican Party.

If Lott resigns his Senate seat, as some are threatening in this thread, he will have ended his political life doing maximum damage to his party, a legacy I don't believe even an oily politician like Lott could live with. He won't resign his Senate seat before 2004.

[Dianna]

Peggy Noonan is yet another coward advocating pulling out the chopper without Lott aboard.

I've read Peggy Noonan for a long time. And most of the time I agree with her. This time I do not. And before I read this column I would have felt pretty secure saying that Peggy's column would be full of, "we all know Lott isn't a racist" type of stuff.

But she did not say that. She came damn close to saying she thinks he IS a racist. Makes me wonder what Peggy knows because she is typically honest and straightforward.

[Zack Nguyen]

Zack - your a good speech writer. Unfortunately, Lott does not have the necessary cajones to make your speech. Few, if any politicians do.

Thank you. Yes, I know that no one would give that speech.

[Zack Nguyen]

You make good points, but I don't think a speech like that would get him "laughed out of town." Perhaps "run out of town on a rail." Or maybe it would galvanize his support...

[Ol'Grey Head]

Wrong. The people of Mississippi elected Lott and they, and only they, have a right to decide if he should go. It's a representative democracy. Unless you live in Mississippi you have no say in the matter. That includes you W.
If the people of Mississippi are upset with Lott then they can not reelect him. If they are really upset with him then they can recall him.
Whether or not Lott's statement conflicts with the spirit of this nation is not important unless those who elected him decide so. Bush's statement implying that we all have to conform with national policy also conflicts with the spirit of this nation. We have the right to disagree and promote contrary opinions to that of accepted national policy.
However, I suggest that the R's dump him as their leader, since he wasn't very good to begin with, and now he's a liability. The members of Congress don't have to have the approval of the people of Mississippi to do that.

[Arthur McGowan]

The most destructive agency during Jim Crow--the one that did the most to keep Black people psychologically and economically down--was the Government School. Without Government Schools, segregation would hardly have affected children at all--at least not with anything like the destructive effects it did. Without Government Schools, Brown v. Board of Education would have been unnecessary.

Funny how Government Officials, when congratulating themselves about how Government freed this country from Segregated Schools and Segregated Lunch Counters, hardly ever hint that it was Government that created and enforced Segregation in the first place.

[F16Fighter]

"I've read Peggy Noonan for a long time. And most of the time I agree with her. This time I do not....She came damn close to saying she thinks he IS a racist. Makes me wonder what Peggy knows because she is typically honest and straightforward."

She disappointed me as well.

It's one thing to feel Lott is a political liability, but I feel she questioned his integrity, while being a bit too quick to shovel dirt over his career for the good of the Party.

Yep -- it's "Party over Principle" once again.