Lott Announces Retirement

Sen. Trent Lott, R-Miss., stood before a room of reporters, colleagues and friends at the Edison Walthall Hotel in Jackson to announce his retirement on Monday. Lott, 66, has served in the U.S. Congress for 35 years, six of which as Senate majority leader. He abdicated the leadership position in 2002 after he made a controversial statement stating that Strom Thurmond, then-senator and known segregationist, should have won the presidency in 1948. Lott said that his decision to retire comes at the right time, quoting a popular biblical verse from Ecclesiastes.

“There is a time for everything, a season for every activity under the sun,” Lott said, adding that his retirement will provide an opportunity to get a younger person into the Senate. “I hope (the constituents) understand; I think it’s the right thing for me to do.”

Lott planned to retire from Congress in 2005, but when Hurricane Katrina struck he stayed in office to help mend the state from Capitol Hill. He said he didn’t have any definite future plans, adding that he was not in negotiation talks with lobbying firms. “We’ll see what the future holds, but I want you to know … I will work hard for this state the last day I’m in Senate, and I will work for this state the last day I’m alive,” Lott said.

In the roughly 11-month period between Lott’s retirement and a special election, which will be held Nov. 4, 2008, Gov. Haley Barbour must appoint a senator to represent Mississippi. Lott said he has made recommendations to the governor, but withheld those names saying he didn’t want to add to Barbour’s pressure.

The date of Lott’s official retirement will depend on a few things, he said, especially when the Senate session ends. He speculated that the session would meet past its Dec. 14 deadline, but said that he would retire before the end of the year. He is the sixth Republican senator to announce retirement this year.

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