Commentary: Lott Throws In The Towel (Conservative base will be gone)

crosswalk ^ | 12/20/2002 | Gary Bauer

[TLBSHOW]

Commentary: Lott Throws In The Towel Gary Bauer President, American Values

After days of endless apologizing, Trent Lott has thrown in the towel and resigned as Senate Majority Leader. Late last night he began making phone calls to GOP colleagues to let them know his decision.

Also over night the White House began a more concerted push to replace Lott with Senator Bill Frist, who will now emerge as the "frontrunner."

Frist is a savvy media personality, but he angered many conservatives by interfering in Republican primaries around the country, virtually always in favor of the moderate candidate over the conservative. And he was a staunch supporter of former Surgeon General Satcher, who was pro-abortion. I hope a more reliable conservative-- either Nickles or Santorum-- will throw their hat in the ring.

Now comes the hard part. This mess doesn't end with Lott's resignation. The GOP needs to find its backbone. One example: There are reports that the Administration is now afraid to go into court against the University of Michigan's offensive racial quota system that selects students from certain minority groups regardless of grades while rejecting white students with much higher grades.

For 30 years the Republicans have opposed these quasi-quota schemes. Are we now going to throw in the towel because of the smear campaign against Republicans of the last two weeks?

Some insiders are suggesting there will be reluctance at the White House to nominate conservative judges. Such reports better be inaccurate or the conservative base of the party will be gone.

Let me bring up again one easy way for the White House to signal that it knows how to play hardball and help Americans of all races. Many Washington D.C. schools are abysmal and the children, mostly black, trapped in them are ill served. The White House should send a school voucher program to Capitol Hill on the first day of the new Congress just for the District of Columbia. Ted Kennedy will scream. Hillary Clinton will pull her hair out. Daschle will reach for the Maalox. And they will line up and vote "no" against those black families and in favor of the teacher unions.

Last year Bush dropped his voucher plan because Kennedy refused to let it out of Committee, but there should be no cave in this time.

[Howlin]

I'm willing to bet rintense won't sign on to that.

[Howlin]

If Ann Coulter wrote that, she is dead wrong.

[hole_n_one]

Besides, I got an early Christmas present of DSL and can now make a fool of myself 20 times faster.

LOL!

[aristeides]

The US Government is not a party to the cases. Who cares what they do?

SCOTUS does. SCOTUS always pays a lot of attention to government amicus briefs.

[TLBSHOW]

If Lott is such a loser then why is he still with us and why did he not just say f you and walk and let a rat in?

Trent was screwed by Bush for his agenda. Fact is fact.

So now we won the whole thing with the 2002 landslide. So the right should be moving right.

If Bush moves left as the story says he will lose his conservative base as fast as lightening.

So as Texasforever said we will see soon enough won't we?

[Howlin]

ROFLMAO. Don't even THINK about giving the answer that question is SCREAMING for. :-)

[rintense]

It's true. The biggest Bushbot of all has not been happy with the Prez in the past week. But keep in mind, that's MY opinion, and mine alone. I still support the President with every fiber in my being. Everything about this whole thing was handled wrong. Everything.

To agree with the President on everything was something I never expected, nor will I expect in the future. It will take a lot more than this for me to kick Dubya to the curb. Sorry, TLB.

[hole_n_one]

I think I just bit my tongue clean off.

[TLBSHOW]

We could always just post what rintense said couldn't we?

Ann did write it, follow the link.

She said the only way that Lott should be removed is for saying nice things about Teddy, who as I recall Ann was not too happy with Bush when he did the same thing.

[StopThePress]

This opinion is hogwash. After today, the rats have clearly unvelied their strategy, demonize, demonize, race bait, race bait and call the ENTIRE GOP base racist. IMHO - we should be MORE emboldened to support every conservative item on the board.

[cardinal4]

I have to agree with rintense that the whole thing was handled wrong. Once the left came out of the woodwork screaming, "Racist!", the Republicans, including the White House, should have backed him. The democrats have succeeded in embarrassing the Right with what is a NONISSUE. But Lott is gone and Hillary is seeing the KKK under every rock. (But Sen. Byrd)

Chuckie Schumer in New York saying the band leader changed but the Orchestra didnt, Hillary calling the Repubs racist, Jesse on the talk shows, this has been a well executed attack. And the republicans walked right up to it, looked at it, identified it, and stepped in it anyway.

[eddie willers]

If Lott is such a loser then why is he still with us and why did he not just say f you and walk and let a rat in?

Shocked me that he didn't act like a 7 year old kindergartner, pout, pick up his ball and run home.

I'll give him his due because now the best that could have happened has happened.
He's gone....
A better man took his place...
And we didn't lose a seat.

He has my thanks for that (the idiot!)

[TLBSHOW]

I'm not kicking him to the curb either but as you can see for yourselve his actions will mean everything now, for conservatives to just play along would be crazy.

Texasforever is right we will see what happens but we can't just go along as blind people when he does liberal things when he doesn't have to. That would be dumb.

[TLBSHOW]

lol

[justshe]

Well stated, rintense. And reflective of MANY of us who are accused of being bush-bots. Many have had at least ONE issue on which we disagree. Texasforever said it best, I think....

"It does put to rest, I hope, that Bush supporters are mindless drones that are incapable of taking issue with each other or the president. I hope one issue does not have the power to break old alliances and efforts."

...and SO damned fast now, too!

[Howlin]

Better yet, since you are claiming support from rintense, let's link to YOUR post about Bush and ask HER if she agrees with it, rather than having you speak for her.

rintense, here is what he said:

Here

He's dragging you into this without your knowledge.

[Howlin]

Stop it. :-)

[TLBSHOW]

Prove to me Bush isn't a liberal Republican advancing the commie rats agenda?

LIke texasforever said we will see won't we?

He already has a track record that has started many a war here at FR.

Over CFR and education and THE FARM BILL THE BORDERS AND A few other things that put us all at each others throats. So it isn't wrong to say he could Be advancing the liberal agenda would it?

[Howlin]

I'm not kicking him to the curb either...

Prove to me Bush isn't a liberal Republican advancing the commie rats agenda?

162 posted on 12/20/2002 11:23 PM EST by TLBSHOW

[Howlin]

LIke texasforever said we will see won't we?

Texas, here is Todd's statement:

Prove to me Bush isn't a liberal Republican advancing the commie rats agenda?

He's insinuating you're agreeing with him on that. Are you?