Sen. Trent Lott (R-Mississippi) unexpectedly announced on Monday he will leave the Senate in December. Lott was re-elected last year. But he said he wanted to move onto other things after completing work on a bill to help rebuild the Gulf Coast after Hurricane Katrina. Lott served as Senate majority leader but was ousted in 2002 after making comments that appeared to support segregation. He later spoke out against efforts to rein in the influence of lobbyists in the wake of the Jack Abramoff scandal. Lott, who has supported the Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians, Abramoff's biggest client, accepted $60,000 from the convicted lobbyist. By leaving by December, he will be able to join a lobbying firm and lobby the Senate without waiting for a new two-year "cooling off" period. The new rule doesn't kick in for ex-members of Congress until January 2008. Get the Story:
Lott Will Quit Senate Next Month (The Washington Post 11/27)
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Mississippi’s Lott to Leave Senate Seat (The New York Times 11/27)
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Sen. Trent Lott - http://lott.senate.gov Related Stories:
Lott confident of leadership position (12/19)
Campbell says Lott is not racist (12/18)
Bush hands troubled Lott a death sentence (12/17)
Lott faces ouster as Senate leader (12/16)
Bush calls Lott comments 'offensive' (12/13)
Lott forced to apologize again (12/12)
Lott continues to face criticism (12/11)
Lott apologizes for 'racist' remarks (12/10)
