Red-faced he should be. Casting stones at glass houses. Not good. But politicians sometimes do things that are worldly foolish, especially when working from self-serving motives that don’t think through matters thoroughly.

Senator Don Nickles of Oklahoma, first among Senate Republicans to stand in pious pronouncement against Trent Lott, that is, instructing the world that Lott should dismiss himself from Republican Senate leadership in order to set the house in order, shows himself to be a segregationist background shadow of Lott.

"I am concerned that Trent has been weakened to the point that may jeopardize his ability to enact our agenda and speak to all Americans," Nickles broadcasted.

Presently the second-ranked Senate Republican and known rival for Lott’s present position, Nickles told media December 15 that new leadership elections should be called immediately.

How interesting politics is.

Nickles has a civil rights voting standing very much like that of the gentleman he would flip off the throne. Hmmm.

Nickles and Lott cast similar votes on nearly every item considered significant by the black community, according to the NAACP. In practically every instance, the Congressmen were against the interests of that organization.

As far back as 1983, both men voted against a new federal holiday giving recognition to civil rights leader Martin Luther King, Jr.’s birthday. Lott voiced concern that the holiday would cost government too much money, also that other citizens were "more deserving." Nickles tried to posit alternatives to a paid holiday, perchance commemorating Kind’s natal day on a Sunday.

Also, in 1983, Lott and Nickles supported a Helms amendment to keep intact a tax-exempt status for private schools, for example, Bob Jones University, the latter having a policy against interracial dating.

In 1990, both men voted to keep first President Bush’s veto to amend the 1964 Civil Rights Act to ban workplace discrimination, Mr. Bush holding that such could eventuate in racial quotas.

In 1991, Lott and Nickles voted to increase federal civil rights law and extend damages for intentional employment discrimination.

In 1993, Lott and Nickles voted to further the Confederate flag design patent for the Daughters of the Confederacy.

In 1994, Lott and Nickels agreed with Helms amendment to strip federal moneys from the King Jr. Federal Holiday Commission.

In 1998, Lott and Nickles voted to discontinue a disadvantaged business enterprise program to make certain that a certain percentage of fed contracts were awarded to business concerns headed by minorities.

According to the NAACP, both men for the past six Congresses voted identically on matters investigated by the organization. They differed by one or two votes in the other two Congresses.

In the Congress just completed, Lott had a 14 percent rating for voting with NAACP agendas on five of 36 civil rights interest bills. Nickles had a 19 percent rating with seven votes.

Both received 13 percent ratings in the 1999-2000 Congress while in 1997-1998 Lott and NAACP agreed to two out of 10 votes while Nickles consented on only one out of 10.

"We are concerned," said Hilary Shelton, director of the NAACP’s Washington headquarters, "that Nickles has voted just as poorly or even more poorly than Trent Lott."