Real Clear Politics pointed me

Real Clear Politics pointed me to an article in Slate this morning that was pretty bad, except that it referred to this exchange between Trent Lott and Larry King that I hadn’t seen before. Even though we have been saying for the last week that Lott has to go because he is an idiot, I was shocked:
“LOTT: But I do still think that there are issues that Senator Thurmond has advocated that are in the best interests of his state and people of all backgrounds. So…
KING: But you don’t think he’d of been a better president, say, than Harry Truman who defeated him that year?
LOTT: You know, I’d have to go back and look at the election of that year. Harry Truman obviously did a lot of great things for our country, and, you know, I was trying to remember who the Republican nominee was…
KING: Dewey. Tom Dewey.
LOTT: Yes, it was Dewey. I don’t — you know, I couldn’t tell you one thing about what Dewey’s policies were at the time. I remember the headline, you know, that Dewey wins.
KING: Yes, Dewey defeats…
LOTT: Yes, Harry Truman won.”
This is simply beyond belief. And consider the context: Lott was trying to salvage his career, which was jeopardized by a firestorm of controversy ignited by his statement that the world would be a better place if Strom Thurmond had won the 1948 election. Wouldn’t you think he would anticipate being asked about that election, and be prepared to talk about it intelligently? Not to mention that the Senate Majority Leader should know more about American history than the average junior high school student.
No wonder the Republicans have been consistently outsmarted in the Senate over the last several years. Their leader is a moron. And what does that say about the Senators who vote for him?