Blog: Trent Lott

For his whole career, Senator Trent Lott has served the big money groups that fund him. Among them were the insurance companies, who have long pushed "tort reform," an innocuous phrase for efforts to take away Americans' right to take their insurers to court when their claims are wrongfully denied.

But last year, Lott found his shoe on the other foot, when Hurricane Katrina destroyed his home and State Farm denied his claims. According to an article by the Center for Justice and Democracy, "Senator Lott has not only filed his own suit but also talks about 'insensitivity and outright meanness' of insurers, saying, 'They have abused my people, my friends, the people I love.'" Lott has also introduced legislation to have the insurance industry investigated for fraud, and to repeal its unusual antitrust exemption. And observers hope his historic

It's gratifying that Lott has seen the light. But it's depressing that he only decided to stick up for ordinary people when he realized he could be one of those people. As long as he received special treatment, he was happy to carry water for his corporate donor base, and never ask the deeper questions to understand the effects their policies have on the people. Might Lott's newfound appreciation for the hardships of others extend to other areas of policy beyond insurance and tort reform?