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Frist vows Lott dispute will be 'catalyst for unity'

Bill Frist, senator from Tennessee, was elected unanimously during a conference call of most Republican senators.
Bill Frist, senator from Tennessee, was elected unanimously during a conference call of most Republican senators.

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CNN's Jason Carroll reports on Sen. Bill Frist's pledge to work toward unity and positive change (December 24)
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Sen. Bill Frist of Tennessee accepts election as Senate majority leader (December 23)
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In his first public remarks since resigning as Senate Republican leader, Sen. Trent Lott said he blamed himself for his political troubles and would support his successor (December 23)
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SPECIAL REPORT
• Gallery: Reactions
• Profile: Bill Frist
• Timeline: Fall of a Leader
• Timeline: Trent Lott's Career
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WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Newly elected Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist promised to turn the controversy over comments by Sen. Trent Lott into "a catalyst for unity and a catalyst for positive change."

Frist, a Tennessee Republican, was unanimously chosen to replace Lott on Monday in a vote of acclamation by most Republicans in the incoming Senate, participants said.

Forty-two of the 51 Senate Republicans in the incoming 108th Congress took part in the conference call, Sen. Rick Santorum of Pennsylvania said.

It was the first time a Senate majority leader was elected over the telephone.

The move was aimed at curbing the damage from the racially charged events that led to Lott's having to relinquish the position.

Lott, the junior senator from Mississippi, took part in the call, Santorum said.

Frist, a 50-year-old surgeon, compared his new duties to a task he has faced before: performing a heart transplant.

"My colleagues gave me a responsibility equal to that, and in some ways, many would say, even a heavier responsibility," he said after the vote. "I accepted that responsibility with a profound sense of humility."

Frist read from a statement but did not take questions.

Pledging to work for "all Americans" -- putting emphasis on the word "all" -- Frist said: "I honestly believe this will transform what has occurred in the last few weeks ... into a catalyst for unity and a catalyst for positive change."

Lott made a comment December 5 in support of outgoing Sen. Strom Thurmond's 1948 presidential bid, which was on a segregationist platform. The comment triggered an avalanche that eventually buried his opportunity to remain Senate Republican leader.

Despite Lott's repeated public apologies and claims that he supports civil rights and equality, public attention was drawn to his record of voting against policies espoused by civil rights leaders and to previous comments supporting Thurmond.

Lott gave up his post as Senate Republican leader Friday.

Frist, who has served in the Senate since 1994, is a relative newcomer compared to some of the senators he'll represent as majority leader. He told CNN on Sunday that the position of majority leader was "something I didn't go out there and seek."

The new Senate majority leader has close ties to the Bush White House. He is outgoing chairman of the National Republican Senatorial Committee that helped orchestrate November's midterm elections, which were a tremendous success for the GOP.

Sources told CNN the Bush administration preferred him as majority leader in the wake of the dispute over Lott. Publicly, however, President Bush said through aides that he did not see a reason for Lott to resign, and officials said the White House played no active role in Lott's decision.

Still, Frist's relationship with the White House could limit his influence with colleagues, who are wary of a leader who might try to push the president's agenda.

"I think there's no question that he has, I would say, support from the White House," Republican consultant Cliff May told CNN on Monday. But he insisted Frist was not "handpicked" by the president.

Democratic consultant Victor Kamber countered that Frist will "take his marching orders from the White House."



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