by John M. Curtis
(310) 204-8700

Copyright December 11, 2002
All Rights Reserved.

peaking at Sen. Strom Thurmond's (R-S.C.) 100th birthday party, incoming Sen. Majority Leader Trent Lott (R-Miss.) cannibalized his foot, telling the bash that Thurmond would have made a great president. Thurmond carried Mississippi in 1948 running as a segregationist on the Dixicrat ticket, promising to resist federal pressure to integrate "Negroes" into white society. Thurmond, a former governor of South Carolina, was best remembered for his 24-hour marathon filibuster of a civil rights bill in 1957, branding him a racist by many in the black community. Talking nostalgically about Mississippi's support for Thurmond, Lott went over the deep end. "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 year, either," implying that the civil rights movement caused America's social ills.

      Before Lott left the podium, audible groans were heard in the Republican Party. Lott, a former majority leader, is a savvy politician, familiar with Washington's game of political correctness. Jimmy "the Greek" Snyder, a journeyman NFL analyst, destroyed his career making racially ignorant remarks. Even the genial general manager of the Los Angeles Dodgers Al Campanis upended his career giving "Nightline's" Ted Koppel a mouthful of his racist views about black's limitations in baseball management. More recently, ace reliever John Rocker shocked the media with off-color remarks about blacks and minorities. Rocker's public comments, though impulsive and immature, cost him his job with the New York Mets. Unlike California's Hispanic Attorney General Cruz Bustamante who "inadvertently" uttered the "N-word," Lott's lengthy remarks leave little room for cleverly worded excuses.

      Trying to control the hemorrhage, Lott took to the airwaves hoping to put his remarks in context. "A poor choice of words conveyed to some the impression that I embraced the discarded policies of the past," Lott told the press. "Nothing could be further from the truth, and I apologize for my statement to anyone who was offended by it," said Lott, stopping short of a full mea culpa, admitting his comments were off-the-wall. But no sooner than Lott halfway apologized, reports circulated about similar incident in Jackson, Mississippi campaigning for Ronald Reagan with Strom Thurmond on Nov. 2, 1980. "You know, if had elected this man 30 years ago, we wouldn't be in the mess we are in today," reminding the press that Lott's recent gaffe was a repeat performance. Outgoing Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle (D-S.D.) gave Lott a pass until hearing about his past indiscretion.

      With the controversy embarrassing the GOP, Lott had no choice but to go for all out contrition. "The words were terrible and I regret it," said Lott asking for forgiveness on WABC-New York's Sean Hannity radio show, trying to finally stem the controversy. Rushing to Lott's defense doesn't automatically undo the damage. Few Republicans stepped forward to condemn Lott's comments. "From the president's point of view, Sen. Lott has addressed the issue," said White House Press Secretary Ari Fleischer, stopping short of criticizing the Mississippi senator. Incoming House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-San Francisco) called Lott's remarks "completely inappropriate," adding "I don't know if any apology is adequate." White House and Capitol Hill Republicans haven't yet caught up. Pelosi recognized that Lott sacrificed his moral authority as the GOP's leader in the senate.

      GOP leaders will now have to assess whether Lott's public remarks warrant grounds for demotion. Whether Lott's remarks are taken out of context or misinterpreted doesn't excuse violating every known rule of political correctness. Savvy politicians—or celebrities for that matter—can't make incendiary racial comments without paying a serious price. In Lott's case, he's embarrassed the White House, House and Senate Republicans, and the Republican National Committee during a time of soul searching, making the party more inclusive to minorities. Showing such poor judgment—and bad taste—doesn't look good for nation's second most powerful Republican. Time will no doubt ease the crisis, but the GOP can't sit idly by without lasting repercussions. Were it a single episode, it might have been explained as temporary insanity. Making the statement twice makes it doubly hard to ignore.

      Without indicting Lott's character, the GOP must face the fact that its senior leader on Capitol Hill offended a good many people—including many in his own party. Stating that he made a "mistake of the head not of the heart," Lott admitted that his judgment was unsound. National parties can't afford to have elected leaders act like loose cannons. Lott's indiscretion goes beyond the party's capacity to show forgiveness. No matter how much Lott apologizes to the press, political parties can't ignore damage to his credibility. If the party takes no action, it also suffers a loss of credibility. All actions—adverse of not—have consequences. Pretending otherwise invites a strong backlash, especially giving Lott a free pass. "It is extremely upsetting," said Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-Md.), attesting to deep wounds inside the House's black caucus. Inside GOP, what's really disturbing is that Lott showed no class and rocked the boat.

About the Author

John M. Curtis writes politically neutral commentary analyzing spin in national and global news. He's a consultant and expert in strategic communication. He's author of Dodging The Bullet and Operation Charisma.

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