The Trent Lott comments brouhaha is now officially a “scandal.” This is like the Clinton presidential pardons story. It started small, but is gathering steam because of a slow news cycle, since congress isn’t in town. It’s also being fanned by the numerous Democratic presidential hopefuls, all of whom are eager to ingratiate themselves with the African-American primary electorate. There are only a few ways this can go away:
1. Lott steps down as majority leader
2. The showdown with Iraq escalates
3. Congress comes back in January and bickers about other stuff
4. Lott gets criticized by white supremacist groups for apologizing
Once again, I’m struck by how quickly many conservatives have forsaken Lott. Liberals certainly didn’t do that when the Wellstone “memorial service” went south. There are advantages and disdvantages to doing the honorable thing. By criticizing Lott, conservatives are making it harder for liberals to tar the entire conservative movement. On the other hand, it weakens Lott’s hand as majority leader.
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