Specter: “The Cannibals Devoured Trent Lott Without Cause”
Listed in: Other Domestic Policy, NJDC News, Press Releases
Washington, DC: In today's edition of The New York Times, Senator Arlen Specter (R-PA) is quoted as saying, "Washington is a town filled with cannibals. The cannibals devoured Trent Lott without cause." Senator Specter's comments were made while discussing the recent controversy over remarks by Senator Rick Santorum (R-PA) comparing homosexuality to bigamy, polygamy, incest and adultery.
"I can only hope that Senator Specter misspoke when he implied that Senator Trent Lott was wrongly pilloried for his stunning statements supporting the segregationist presidential candidacy of Strom Thurmond," said National Jewish Democratic Council Executive Director Ira N. Forman. "Senator Lott's statements were beyond insensitive -- they were an embrace of social policies that decades ago were widely understood to be morally bankrupt. And Trent Lott ultimately paid a price for his own actions and his own words.
"It is very disappointing that even a more centrist Republican like Senator Specter seems to be minimizing both the homophobic comments of Senator Santorum and the indefensible comments of former Senate Republican Leader Trent Lott. The bottom line -- as we have seen repeatedly in the last year -- is that the 'tin ear wing' of the Republican Party has an ever-growing membership, and its members continue to demonstrate that the Republican Party just doesn't get it when it comes to embracing all Americans."
