WASHINGTON-Senator Trent Lott (R-Miss.) announced he would be stepping down Jan. 6 as the Republican leader in the Senate after raising eyebrows with remarks that he made at retiring-Senator Strom Thurmond's (R-S.C.) 100th birthday party. "To all those who offered me their friendship, support and prayers, I will be eternally grateful. I will continue to serve the people of Mississippi in the United States Senate," Lott said. Front-runner for his replacement appears to be Tennessee Senator Bill Frist. Lott intends to maintain his seat in the Senate representing Mississippi. NCUA Chairman Dennis Dollar is friends with the senator who shares his home state. "Sen. Lott, at several junctures as leader, demonstrated his friendship to credit unions; we always appreciated and valued his open-door policy toward credit unions. From what we have learned, we are confident that the Republican majority in the Senate will choose a leader with whom credit unions can work," said CUNA SVP of Governmental Affairs John McKechnie.