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Jens 'n' Frens
Idle thoughts of a relatively libertarian Republican in Cambridge, MA, and whomever he invites. Mostly political.
"A strong conviction that something must be done is the parent of many bad measures."
-- Daniel Webster
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Wednesday, December 18, 2002 :::
Everyone's talking about counting Lott's votes, but nobody seems to be doing it.
Some of these are going to be over-interpreting ambiguous statements. I've tried to provide links to at least some of my sources on each Senator listed, so you can decide how badly I've over-interpreted. In particular, I've assumed a comment that he will stay or go means he should stay or go, since I expect a pessimistic Senator to keep to him/herself.
What it seems to amount to is that, well, we can't really count at this point. I'll try to include as many Senators as possible in the comments section, especially if I don't have them in the for/against sections, and let you make your own guesses. I've put more time into this than I originally meant to. Send in any pointers; I'll also probably run some more searches later.
Apparently with Lott:
- Stevens (AK)
- Shelby (AL)
- Kyl (AZ)
- Campbell (CO)
- Craig (ID)
- Crapo (ID)
- Gregg (NH)
- Lott (MS)
- McConnell (KY)
- Santorum (PA)
- Hatch (UT)
Apparently agin' Lott:
- Sessions (AL)?
- Fitzgerald (IL)?
- Roberts (KS)
- Talent (MO)
- Nickles (OK)
- Frist (TN)?
- Warner (VA)?
Quotes:
- Sessions, Shelby (AL)
- Senator Richard Shelby says he is supportive of Lott. He accepts his explanation and his apology. Meanwhile, Senator Jeff Sessions says what Lott said was wrong. He says people in public office have a responsibility to break down racial barriers and hostilities.
- Kyl (AZ)
- "I have criticized Trent before for being too much of a dealmaker," Kyl said. "But these same people who didn't like Trent to begin with now want us to immediately throw him overboard."
- McCain (AZ)
- Allard (CO)
- "I'm not making any comments on the leadership race," said the Loveland Republican, reached by phone late Monday. "I'm obviously appalled by the comments that he's made, but I don't comment on leadership races."
- Campbell (CO)
- Lott "made a mistake," Campbell said. But "he's apologized four times already."
- Chambliss (GA)
- "Unfortunately, he wasn't careful enough. Now the damage has been done. It's a question of whether he can repair that damage and be the effective majority leader that we need serving in the United States Senate. I don't know what the answer is yet."
- Grassley (IA)
- "I resent having to deal with this issue of leadership when we ought to be dealing with the president's agenda," Sen. Charles Grassley, R-Iowa, told CNN.
- Fitzgerald (IL)
- "The problem now is that Senator Lott's intent may no longer even be the issue," Fitzgerald said, "and the broader issue is whether he can remain an effective Senate majority leader no matter what his intent was, no matter what his character may be, and no matter how remorseful he remains."
- Brownback (KS)
- Roberts (KS)
- Sen. Pat Roberts of Kansas, echoing many others, called for a final decision to be made before the new year. "This matter has gone beyond the statement of a single individual to one of national importance, and unfortunately divisiveness and turmoil. As such, this situation should be and very well may be resolved prior (to) Jan. 6," he said.
- Bunning (KY)
- Coleman (MN)
- As for the comments by Lott, Coleman said his statements were unconscionable and inappropriate. “Those statements do not reflect my spirit, they do not represent the spirit of America, or the spirit of the party,” said Coleman. “We need to take a good look at this and see where we're at, he has to make the decision.”
Coleman said that if Lott's statements can prevent any future reoccurrence of racism, that would be a good thing. But Coleman agreed that for right now, Lott's statement is a problem that will hurt the party.
- Collins (ME)
- Snowe (ME)
- Bond (MO)
- Talent (MO)
- "There is now a substantial question as to whether Senator Lott has the capacity to move" the GOP agenda in the new Congress, said Sen. Jim Talent, R-Mo.
- Cochran (MS)
- Burns (MT)
- Hagel (NE)
- Republicans "must either reconfirm their confidence in Senator Trent Lott's leadership or select a new leader," Hagel said. "In the interest of the Republican Party, the president's agenda and the nation, this issue must be resolved quickly."
- Dewine (OH)
- Voinovich (OH)
- Dole (NC)
- "Helms would have stuck by Lott - but Dole is very much a question mark," Sabato said.
[skip a few paragraphs]
Dole is "not going to participate in any of the speculation" over Lott's fate during the next few weeks, Mary Brewer Brown, a Dole spokeswoman, told the Winston-Salem Journal.
- Specter (PA)
- In an interview last night, Senator Arlen Specter, Republican of Pennsylvania, said Lott can weather the storm if White House aides, conservative commentators, and GOP lawmakers quit piling on. ''I have a sense there are a lot of senators who could go either way on this matter ultimately,'' said Specter.
- Chafee (RI)
- Frist (TN)
- "He's an urbane, soft-spoken doctor who inspires confidence and makes you want to let him cut you open with very sharp objects," a Republican close to the White House said. [My main reason for including this comment was that it's funny. -ed]
“My Republican colleagues and I are actively engaged in deciding what is in the best interests of the Senate as an institution and the country,” said Frist, who chaired the GOP campaign effort over the past two years.
“I am confident a consensus will emerge, but no decisions have been made yet,” Frist said, “and I have endorsed no specific proposal at this time.”
- Cornyn (TX)
- Hutchinson (TX)
- "Senator Lott has apologized and is doing everything he can to make this situation right. This meeting will provide Republican senators the opportunity for a full and open discussion about Senator Lott and his ability to lead the Republican majority."
- Bennett
- Hatch (UT)
- "His remarks were unfortunate. They shouldn't have been said. They were stupid," he said. "But I don't think any rationale person believes he meant we should resegregate. They were meant to buoy up a 100-year-old senator. They were meant to be funny, but weren't. But he has apologized and we should all move on."
- Allen (VA)
- Warner (VA)
- Senior GOP senators including John Warner, Republican of Virginia, spent several hours on the phone yesterday discussing Lott's fate.
::: posted by Steven at 7:01 AM
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