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The New York Times
Politics
Lott the Latest in
Unusual Retirement Trend
By CARL HULSE,
nytimes.com from the Web, November 30, 2007
There used to be a saying about the
Senate that the only way someone left was by the ballot box or feet first.
Except for the occasional run for the White House or governor, hardly anyone
voluntarily relinquished such a rarefied position, with its attendant aura of
power and dignified public service.
Well, those days obviously are over considering the rash of retirements this
year. And Senator Trent Lott, the Mississippi Republican, may have set a
new standard with his announcement this week that he was quitting one year into
his six-year term to “do something else,” with a lucrative lobbying career
looming as a distinct possibility.
What Mr. Lott is doing, as far as the traditions of the Senate are concerned,
truly is “something else.” According to the Senate Historical Office, 35
other senators have resigned during their term since 1940 and only two of those
have quit for reasons other than seeking another office, a judicial or
diplomatic appointment, ill health, scandal or joining the military.
One, David Boren of Oklahoma, left in 1994 to become a university president.
The other, Albert B. “Happy” Chandler of Kentucky, quit in 1945 to become major
league baseball commissioner.
“It is unusual,” said Donald A. Ritchie, the associate historian, when asked
about someone quitting the Senate before his time is up for the business world.
What is even more striking is that Mr. Lott had barely begun his fourth term.
Just a year ago, he persuaded the voters of Mississippi to send him back to
Washington for another six years. Politicians are usually loath to break
that unwritten agreement with the voters unless they have a pretty good reason.
Some people expect politicians to fulfill their obligations.
Mr. Lott himself cited his bond with the voters in 2002 when he decided to
remain in the Senate after being forced to step aside as Republican leader
following the furor over a racially charged remark he made at Strom Thurmond’s
100th birthday party.
“I have a six-year contract with the people of Mississippi,” he said at the
time. “I have a job to do.”
True, Mr. Lott exhibited some reluctance about running this time around and in
2006 flirted with retiring to go into the private sector. But he signed on
again, citing the need to help the state recover from the hurricane that claimed
his own home. Once he was back, he seemed to jump in with both feet,
persuading his colleagues to give him a spot in the leadership — an amazing
political rebound.
But the Senate evidently doesn’t hold the allure it once did. Among those
departing in January 2009 — at the designated end of their terms — are
Republicans Chuck Hagel of Nebraska, Wayne Allard of Colorado, John W. Warner of
Virginia, Pete V. Domenici of New Mexico and Larry Craig of Idaho. The
reasons include general frustration, changes in the political climate of their
states and advancing years, not to mention an undercover sex sting and the
prospect of remaining in the minority.
No doubt Mr. Lott, a lawmaker who took real joy in cutting deals both during his
days in the House and as a skilled Senate broker, is frustrated by the current
Senate stalemate. But the timing of his departure seems aimed more at
beating tougher restrictions on lobbying by former members. And it
seems more than coincidental that his friend and fellow deal maker, former
Democratic Senator John Breaux of Louisiana, is breaking away from his firm to
open a new lobbying and consulting shop.
The draw of the dollar on K Street is strong. Mr. Lott can make millions
providing advice to big-money interests willing to pay handsomely for his
tutelage on navigating Congress. Compared to some other former lawmakers
working the street, Mr. Lott might be worth it. He really knows how to
play the game after serving as whip in the House and both majority and minority
leader in the Senate. He could be invaluable to insurance companies,
airlines, banks, defense contractors, health care entities and anyone with tax
issues, not to mention the oil and gas interests he and Mr. Breaux backed as
lawmakers.
Mr. Lott might be the first senator to forfeit part of his term to become a
lobbyist, but not the first who was checking his bank balance when he quit.
Mr. Chandler, the Kentuckian who left to oversee baseball, made no bones about
his motives. He later wrote that the $50,000 starting salary was a major
factor.
“I was making $10,000 as a United States senator from Kentucky and losing the
battle then common to senators who tried to maintain separate residences in
Washington and their home states,” he said.
Translation: Show me the money.
(Emphasis Added)
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