It seems the political wheels are spinning too fast for Trent Lott, even as he continues to make apologies for the comments he made about one-time segregationist presidential candidate Strom Thurmond.

Although Republicans won’t meet until Jan. 6, it is likely Lott doesn’t have the votes to keep his position as incoming Senate majority leader.

Let’s face it, that would be a loss for Mississippi. But at this point &045; faced with such a political and public relations nightmare &045; it seems as if it’s what Republicans will do.

How Lott intended his remarks to sound doesn’t matter anymore; how they have been interpreted is the reality of the situation.

The GOP needs to resolve the political argument so that we can move on to the more important issue.

In an interview Monday night on BET, Lott said he wants to set up a task force on reconciliation, as well as an Afrian-American summit.

We hope, even if Lott doesn’t become majority leader, that Congress will take such steps &045; and that those are just the first steps.

The controversy surrounding Lott’s comments should not be swept under the rug simply by forcing him out of his leadership role.

That takes care of the public face of the Republican party, but it does nothing to solve the underlying problems brought to light by the uproar.

We need a national conversation about race and its impact on our American society.

We have come light years ahead since the Civil Rights movement, but we have so much further to go in terms of dealing with our history, in terms of finding a way to heal.

We have the opportunity to make this incident a footnote in political history &045; but a turning point for our society.