I suppose that this line from National Review's heartwarming tribute to unreconstructed white supremacist, homophobe, and enthusiastic supporter of brutal authoritarian governments Jessie Helms was inevitable: "Helms’s real offense was a stubborn and victory-making political incorrectness." I'm not sure if I know of a better example of the current wingnut definition of "politically incorrect," which seems to mean "bigoted arguments we'd prefer not to defend on the merits but want insulated from any criticism."
Elsewhere, Jonah Goldberg claims that the "liberal line" on Helms isn't true, although for some reason he can't be bothered to actually refute the extensive and unambiguous evidence concerning Helms's bigotry. Perhaps he can start by giving the non-racist explanation for his penchant for whistling "Dixie" around Carol Mosley-Braun. That sure was "politically incorrect"!
--Scott Lemieux
