Link. Bush's Comments on Lott: Now, to read the tea leaves. Bush didn't say a word in defense of Lott. No, "I know Lott and he's no racist", no "His record over many years proves his commitment to the rights of Americans of all races," nothing. Is this Bush's signal to the Senate Republicans to dump him? It certainly could be.
posted by Email Mr. Bragg 3:44 PM

Link. Atlanta Journal-Constitution op-ed places the Center in the same league as National Review and Andrew Sullivan. In your face, Space Coyote!!
posted by Email Mr. Bragg 10:04 PM

Link. The Center for the Advancement of Capitalism has a form to email your Senator calling for Lott's removal as leader and censure by the Senate
posted by Email Mr. Bragg 10:01 PM

Link. Nick Provenzo, Chairman of the Center for the Advancement of Capitalism, on Lott's appeasement of the Democrats on Hannity.
posted by Email Mr. Bragg 10:00 PM

How can you tell a politician is lying? He's apologizing.
Senator Lott’s latest apology quotes Jesse Jackson, who in 1984 referred to New York as “Hymietown,” and then apologized and said that he wasn’t anti-Semitic. Senator Lott and the very Reverend Mr. Jackson were quoted as saying, “This was a mistake of the head, not of the heart.” Now the issue is clear— Senator Lott is no more nostalgic for segregation than Jackson is an antisemite, and vice versa.

Please ignore Senator Lott’s hobnobbing with the Council of Conservative Citizens, an openly racist group whose leaders include Senator Lott’s uncle, just as we should ignore the Reverend Jackson’s association with Louis Farrakhan of the Nation of Islam, famous for declaring Judaism to be a “gutter religion.”

Senator Lott is just as fit to lead the Senate Republicans as the Reverend Jackson is.

posted by Email Mr. Bragg 9:55 PM

Link. My op-ed rejecting Lott's limp apologies is at the Center for the Advancement of Capitalism website.
posted by Email Mr. Bragg 5:01 PM

A little Lott-e-fisking. Lott's Monday apology, annotated.

“A poor choice of words [if only I'd said "progress" instead of "problems"!!] conveyed [revealed] to some [to anyone who read or saw the comments] the [correct] impression that I embrace the [sadly] discarded policies of the past. Nothing could be further from the truth, and I apologize to anyone who was offended by my statement.”

posted by Email Mr. Bragg 4:47 PM

EVOLUTION OF A SENATE WEASEL
Lott's Friday (12/6) Apology

"Senator Lott's remarks were intended to pay tribute to a remarkable man who led a remarkable life. To read anything more into these comments is wrong."

Lott's Monday (12/9) Apology.

"A poor choice of words conveyed to some the impression that I embrace the discarded policies of the past. Nothing could be further from the truth, and I apologize to anyone who was offended by my statement."

posted by Email Mr. Bragg 3:31 PM

Link. The Center for the Advancement of Capitalism prints my piece. Link. NRO: National Review's Robert George, opens with "Can George W. Bush and the Republican party really afford to have Trent Lott (R., Miss.) be its face in the United States Senate?"
Link. NRO:National Review's Byron York. The Congressional Black Caucus held a news conference. Besides several members calling for Lott to step down as Majority Leader, Maxine Waters took a whack at Daschle for letting Lott off the hook.
Link. NRO:National Review's Mark Levin makes the point that, among other heroes of the Left, Senator Fulbright was a first-class segregationist, and that the Left is engaged in selective indignation.
Link. NRO: Jonah Goldberg Sunday in the Corner.
Link. NRO: David Frum's Diary from Monday
Link. WashingtonPost's Howard Kurtz, behind the curve, on how the mainstream media have been behind the curve.
Link. Washington Post Editorial. Weak.
Link. Associated Press on Lott's apology, CBC comments, Jesse Jackson, Gore, and Kevin Martin of the African American Republican Leadership Council
Link. Paul Krugman, NYTimes. Requires registration (login aaaa314, password aaaaa) Krugman ends:

In Louisiana, black turnout — the result of a determined get-out-the-vote operation, perhaps helped by Mr. Lott's remarks — was the key to Ms. Landrieu's unexpected victory. Might I suggest that this tells us something?

Link. Andrew Sullivan's best piece on the subject.
Link. Sullivan updates. Link. And he updates again today (Tuesday)
Link. Josh Marshall whacks at Kevin Martin from the African-American Republican Leadership Council, who defended Lott.
Link. TAPPED praises Gore for being the only high-profile Democrat to take a shot at Lott. See also Link. and Link.
Link. Best of the Web takes some manful thwacks.
Link. The Weekly Standard's Steven Hayes comments on the effects on the Republican Party as Supreme Court Affirmative Action cases loom.
Link. Virginia Postrel
Link. Instapundit has many items. Scroll down, you lazy blog-readers.
Link. Blogosphere veteran Ken Layne chips in.
Link. David Horowitz' Frontpagemag.com
Link. Atrios, one of the first bloggers on the story

posted by Email Mr. Bragg 3:24 PM

Link. David Frum, in NRO, on the Lott comments.
posted by Email Mr. Bragg 10:52 AM

Link. The Washington Post noticed Lott's comments, and ran an article. Where is the New York Times?
posted by Email Mr. Bragg 10:37 AM

Link. Washington Post article on Isreali settlement expansion, on the new hilltop settlements of questionable legality and dubious wisdom.
posted by Email Mr. Bragg 12:53 AM

Comment. Are the Lott comments to blame for the Republicans losing the Senate and House elections today in Louisiana? On the one hand, in a race that close every factor is a deciding factor. On the other hand, black turnout was high--did word of the Republican Senate leader's comments filter into the black community? BraggLog--Today's Irresponsible Speculation is Tomorrow's Conventional Wisdom, Except When It's Not
posted by Email Mr. Bragg 12:47 AM

Link. Center for the Advancement of Capitalism calls for Lott's resignation or removal.
posted by Email Mr. Bragg 12:10 AM