Fire pours down on Sen. Smith for defense of Lott’s (Strom Thurmond) comments

[sabra]

Source: The Hill

Sen. Gordon Smith (R-Ore.), a top target of Democrats next year, came under fire Tuesday after he took to the Senate floor and defended Sen. Trent Lott’s (R-Miss.) 2002 comments that were interpreted by some as a defense of segregation.

Oregon and national Democrats and liberal bloggers pounced on Smith Tuesday after he said that Lott’s comments were “misconstrued.” They pointed out that immediately after the incident in 2002, Smith called Lott’s remarks “offensive.”

Lott is retiring from the Senate at the end of the year.

“I was celebrating my reelection and on vacation. I watched over international news as his words were misconstrued, words which we had heard him utter many times in his big warm-heartedness trying to make one of our colleagues, Strom Thurmond, feel good at 100 years old,” Smith said on the floor Tuesday.

“We knew what he meant,” Smith added. “But the wolf pack of the press circled around him, sensed blood in the water, and the exigencies of politics caused a great injustice to be done to him and to (his wife) Tricia. It was a wrong, but a wrong that was righted.”

Read more: http://thehill.com/leading-the-news/fire-pours-down-on-sen.-smith-for-defense-of-lotts-comments-2007-12-19.html

[Vanje]

1. Sen. Gordon Smith (R-OR) has terrific hair.

He speaks out of his ass, reserving his head for the singular purpose of presenting his un-mussed coif.

[Arugula Latte]

4. Gordo and Romney have a lot in common.

...The hair, the Mormon thang, the speaking out of the ass ...

[stubtoe]

2. Open mouth, insert foot

Just the sort of gaffe we need to get him out!

[nealmhughes]

3. Oregon, to me, is a fascinating state, culturally and politically.

One has the new urbanism of Portland, the greens and college town crowd of Eugene, the ruaral hipsters of the coast, and the rest of the state. I suppose they are a mix of Mormons, loggers, potato farmers, wheat growers and goat roapers, i.e., the standard Idaho East mixture.

Exactly where Smith fits in is extremely clear, in the goat roper crowd.

[Arugula Latte]

5. "goat roper crowd ..."

:rofl:

We really shouldn't have to put up with a Repuke Senator in this state. It's just that Gordon dons his Moderate costume enough that moderate, apolitical Democrats who aren't really paying attention think "Eh, he's not so bad, and he's got boyish good looks, so I'll vote for him."

[stubtoe]

6. It's Balkanized.

Portland, Eugene and Corvallis are liberal enclaves in a sea of mostly red. The only reason we're in the "blue" column at all is because Portland has the population.

Otherwise, yep, we'd look a lot like Idaho. So, Portlanders, don't get complacent up there! Oregon's redder than you suspect - that's how we got Gordo. That and the hair, of course :)

[Javaman]

7. It's amazing how repukes can only aim the gun at their foot or

fellow hunting buddies.

[Doctor_J]

8. I think Pelosi & Reid's capitulation will enable Gord to keep his seat

purple states like OR will go red, since having a Dem house and Senate have accomplished almost nothing.