J.C. Watts speaks out on Lott controversy

WorldNetDaily ^ | December14th, 2002 | Jim Bennett

[Sabertooth]

"I think anybody could interpret that his words were racist, but I don't think that Sen. Lott is racist."

< -snip- >

"As I said earlier, it's the nature of the beast that if something like that is said in the political arena, Sen. Lott is going to pay a political price for it. He's got to hope that people will move on. But I doubt it.

While I disagree with Watts' assessment that we should move on from Lott's fiasco with him intact as Majority Leader, he does accurately describe Lott's words:

"I want to say this about my state: When Strom Thurmond ran for president, we voted for him. We're proud of it. And if the rest of the country had followed our lead, we wouldn't have had all these problems over all these years, either."

~Trent Lott - December, 2002

Lott is a liability as Majority Leader, but his seat is necessary to retain a GOP majority in the Senate. A way must be found to split the difference.

[Sabertooth]

((((((growl)))))

[Chi-townChief]

"In 1994, he became the first black Republican elected to Congress from a Southern state since Reconstruction."

Somehow, I don't think that Oklahoma is a southern state.

[jwalsh07]

JC Watts is and has been my choice for VP in the coming election. He needs four years of grooming in that position to become the first black President of the United States.

He understands redemption, he understands that men change and he understands the beast.

[Don Munn]

It's southwest of Chicago.

[Sabertooth]

He understands redemption, he understands that men change and he understands the beast.

Q: Is there anything he can do now to calm this storm?

A: No. As I said earlier, it's the nature of the beast that if something like that is said in the political arena, Sen. Lott is going to pay a political price for it. He's got to hope that people will move on. But I doubt it. In the political arena, an arena in which everything that is said and almost everything that is done is scrutinized by Republicans and Democrats alike, they're going to look for ways to score political points. I suspect that this issue will be used to incite people and to inflame people, which is unfortunate. You'll have people from both sides, Republican and Democrat, who'll jump on him and jump off his bandwagon because they don't want to look as if they're coddling a racist. But as I said, I don't think his sentiments were expressed to be racist; I think he was praising a colleague at his 100th birthday party, his retirement party. Again, he apologized, I took him at his word, and I moved on. And I hope that we can get beyond this, but I'm afraid that we won't. It's a serious blunder in Washington, D.C., and when people can take those things and score political points with them, they don't like giving them up.

Watts also understands a Lott Cause.

[FryingPan101]

"He understands redemption.

It would be a wonderful world if what you say is simply accepted. It's not. People, even proclaimed Christians, say redempion exists but they want to pound people into the earth for mistakes made. I like JC. I believe he's a good person. However, if he ran for VP, he would be crucified.

[jwalsh07]

Lott looks like he's staying. Sometimes you just feed the beast and sometimes the beast feeds on you. I think the Republican Senate, gutless wonders taht they are, were simply waiting for the poll numbers to come back.

It looks like they came back in favor of redemption and penance.

[Travis McGee]

Dag gone it why is JC Watts leaving???

I would give him his pick of cabinet posts.

[jwalsh07]

Well, if he runs for VP I will advocate for him as fiercely as I have ever done anything in my life. He is a pro life, pro freedom conservative and a dman fine football player to boot. :-}

[Victoria Delsoul]

From J.C. Watts interview:

Sen. Lott went to the floor of the Senate and praised Sen. Wellstone [following Wellstone's death in a plane crash]. He didn't agree with much of anything that Sen. Wellstone believed in, but he praised him as a colleague. Nobody ever said, "Well, he condoned Sen. Wellstone's policies because he praised him on the floor of the Senate." I think we have to try and keep what he said about Sen. Thurmond in context. I understand that it was spontaneous, it was said at a 100-year-old colleague's retirement birthday party, and he apologized for it, and I accepted his apology. And I moved on.

I totally agree with him that the media and I might add the Democrats will take every opportunity to manipulate, and divide the GOP. On the other hand conservatives are held to a different standard than Liberals.

And when people can take those things and score political points with them, they don't like giving them up.

[OKSooner]

Yes, and there's a simple solution to split the difference. If the people of Mississippi send Trent Lott to the Senate, fine. Many of us have our problems with him, but don't consider him a racist.

We need someone else for Majority Leader, tho. The Republican party will pay for this if it's not resolved last week.

[okie01]

"Lott is a liability as Majority Leader, but his seat is necessary to retain a GOP majority in the Senate. A way must be found to split the difference."

How about this, posted from another thread:

In retrospect, this affair may have done us a favor -- making Lott's replacement an imperative.

What say we organize the new Senate with Lott as Majority Leader, allowing him to save his "honor". And a few months later, let him decide to "step down" and "resign" from the Senate, say, sometime in June? He needs to "spend more time with family", "make some real money", "do what he's always dreamed of doing" (become Chancellor of Ol' Miss, e.g.).

The Dem governor of Mississippi gets to appoint a replacement, true. But the Senate's rules of organization would be unchanged, as the GOP would still have a working majority by virtue of precedence (if, in a 50:50 Senate, there is no agreement on the rules or organization, the rules revert to those in force immediately prior).

But, in addition, the governor is required, by law, to conduct a special election to fill the vacancy at the next general election. Which, in Mississippi's case, is November, 2003 (the state is on an odd-year cycle).

Under these circumstances, I would suppose the GOP candidate would have a good chance of winning -- since Lott would not be seen as having been "forced out" as a "racist", but having resigned on his own timetable.

The upside is that, in any event, the GOP retains control of the Senate...and somebody besides Trent Lott is Majority Leader.

J.C. Watts is a far, far better man than Trent Lott.

And it has nothing whatever to do with his color. And everything to do with the content of his character.

[Reagan Man]

>>>On the other hand conservatives are held to a different standard than Liberals.

That's right. We conservatives do hold ourselves to a different standard. Conservatives don't turn tail and run when one of our own is targeted by the liberal establishment. Conservatives and Republicans should be defending Lott from these trumped up charges.

Lott's remarks were stupid and some even called them insensitive. But there's no way in the world, Lott was being intentionally or purposely malicious with his remarks. I don't believe Lott made a conscious effort to raise the issues of racism and segregationism, so he could be condemned and run roughshod over, by so many on the right.

[okie01]

In the interest of full disclosure, I guess I should add one thing:

J.C. Watts is a far, far better man than Trent Lott.

And it has nothing whatever to do with his color. And everything to do with the content of his character.

Even if he did go to Zero U...

[jwalsh07]

Sorry coteblanche, we need him down here. :-}

[Victoria Delsoul]

I don't believe Lott made a conscious effort to raise the issues of racism and segregationism, so he could be condemned and run roughshod over, by so many on the right.

Well said. Thanks so much for your post.

[Sabertooth]

conservatives are held to a different standard than Liberals.

And the solution is to hold them to our standards, not lower ourselves to theirs.