Lott, Murtha, Hastings- it seems neither party really understands what happened last week- why they lost, why they won. Lott needs to be put out to pasture, and both parties need need blood in the leadership positions.
Beat you to it, basso. You, however, started a thread! YES! http://bbs.clutchfans.net/showthread.php?t=120190&page=2 D&D. Dogs are Man's Best Friend. Pet your Dog Today!
Lott as Minority Whip...pun intended? In any case, Lott is probably as close to the GOP equivalent of John Kerry as there is. Long-tenured Senator with one or a few major public gaffes, but also very emblematic of his party's base. I bet they're both more effective legislators (ie dealmakers and favor-bankers) and fundraisers than we can recognize. I also stand by my theory that so many Americans have made, and had to apologize for, racial comments in the past that were worse than Lott's that this might actually make him more sympathetic, like Bill "Caused Pain in My Marriage" Clinton.
It is almost comically predictable that Byrd is brought up by basso in any thread where the discussion revolves around the Southern Republicans playing to their base. Byrd joined the KKK in his 20's and was out after a few years. Furthermore, he could have easily won his first race for the House in 1952 by either acknowledging it or not talking about it, yet he went on radio and admitted it was a mistake. Here's Byrd talking about the KKK... "I know now I was wrong. Intolerance had no place in America. I apologized a thousand times . . . and I don't mind apologizing over and over again. I can't erase what happened." The difference between Byrd and the current crop of Repubs is that Byrd is ashamed and apologetic about his racist past, while people like Ken Mehlman, Rove, and others who do stuff to try and suppress black votes or appeal to the baser instincts of the racist mind are proud of how clever they are. In the 1960's and early 1970's Racist Dems had a choice... follow Byrd's earlier lead and recognize that the changes were good for the country and themselves and work at the goal of reaching equality in our society, or join the Republican party, which conciously made a home for the throwbacks. Lott was Dem until 1972, working for one of the last hard-core segregationist Dems in the House. When this guy retired he endorsed Lott, who had switched parties for the election because even in MS in 1972, he was too extreme for the Dem Party to support. He won as a Republican. Trent Lott addressed the Council of Conservative Citizens in 1992 when a US Senator, not as a 24 year old nobody. Who are the "CCC?" They believe: "Each of the three major races plays a distinct role in history. . . . The whites were the creators of civilization, the yellows its sustainers and copyists, the blacks its destroyers." Yeah, go ahead and make those Byrd comparisons basso.
stuff like this? Spoiler or this? Spoiler or this? Spoiler or even this? Spoiler by way of rebuttal, please feel free to offer examples of all the minorities who have served in positions of responsibility under the past 4 democratic administrations. actions do speak louder than words.
you'll note, i'm not defending lott- i suggested he should get out of the way and allow a ner generation of leaders to step forward. but the racist card, while easy to play, is one both sides can throw around. i'm not defending lott, but that doesn't mean byrd gets a free pass.
LOL. How many of those spoilers campaigned for Corker in TN? You also imply that your spoilers hold position of responsibilty when everyone else in the world knows that the State Dept. is run by the WH, or when Powell was there, the WH and DOD. Thomas' only responsibilty is to vote the way Scalia tells him to.
so basically they're black... but they don't do anything? their only purpose is to say "yes massa" i don't guess alan keyes counts either? what's it take to please you?
that is hands down one of the most offensive, and racist, assertions i've ever read on this bbs. would you say the same things about warren christopher, madelaine albright, and sandra day o'connor?
You mentioning Alan Keyes proves my point. Do I hear a shout out for J.C. Watts? He's the only one missing.
No, No, and No. And I'm not apologizing for your offended sensibilities... go have a Mint Julep and relax. Look, Thomas is too easy... look at the number of opinions he has authored and the frequency with which he votes with Scalia. Case Closed. On Powell, there's a reason he was the least travelling of all Secretaries of States in the age of jet aircraft... he had to fight Rummy and the Neo-cons at every point while getting the OK from Rove and the political machine at the WH for anything he said on important topics. Just look at the shambles that is the Iraq War and our international standing for a clue as to how that turned out... Plus, he prostituted himself before the UN in the service of the Neocons... Powell himself said this about his UN speech: "...it will always be a part of my record. It was painful. It's painful now." Powell absolutely had the least input in Foreign Relations of any modern SOS. Condi. What can you say about Condi and her service to her husband... er, President. She was picked as NSA because she wouldn't have the guts or wherewithal to stand up to Cheney and Rummy... several from Bush I thought this. Now, she's SOS with Karen Hughes sitting down the hall and in charge of the "message" which is all they really do. Robert Zoellick, Rice's Deputy at State resigned after a year because he felt he had no input on Foreign Policy. The position has not been filled since.
hah if you think he's the only one i missed.... allow me to list so others Ken Blackwell Martin Luther King, Sr. Jesse Owens Michael Powell Jackie Robinson Michael Steele Lynn Swann let me know if you'd like me to continue. you act as if these people were chosen to represent the black republicans. the party didn't choose them, they chose the party.
Great argument... Where's Honest Abe? MLK Sr. switched parties in 1960 after Kennedy got Jr. out of jail and about the same time all the racist Dems were thinking about the Republican Party. He delivered the invocations at the 1976 and 1980 Democratic Conventions. King, SR. was as much a Republican as Trent Lott is a Democrat... difference is, under no circumstances would Dems claim Lott. Owens did indeed endorse Alf Landon in 1936 and said... "When I came back to my native country, after all the stories about Hitler, I couldn't ride in the front of the bus. I had to go to the back door. I couldn't live where I wanted. I wasn't invited to shake hands with Hitler, but I wasn't invited to the White House to shake hands with the President, either." The legacy of the Civil War obviously played a part... the Party of Lincoln introduced several civil rights measures while racist Dems stopped the measures. It wasn't until 1960 that a majority of blacks voted for a Dem in a Presidential election... because the Dem Party got the race question right after Brown and the Republican Party did what it could to take political advantage of the issue by appealing to racist sentiments. Same song with Jackie Robinson... he was so Republican he supported Hubert Humphrey in 1968. Michael Powell? You mean the son of Colin... gee, what incentive would he have to become a Republican? There's no explaining Blackwell or Steele or Swann. I should note though, that all three lost.
