Despite detractors, South still important

The New Republic's latest cover story ("What is the South?") focuses on the South's place today in politics. The conclusion: Despite detractors like Maryland Professor Thomas Schaller who believe the region has no worth, the South is politically distinctive enough that it can seriously influence national politics.

And, writes Nicolas Lemann in the Jan. 29 issue, race is the reason why the South still has an impact. In the story dominated by a look at memoirs by Sen. Jesse Helm and Sen. Trent Lott along with books by Schaller and Jason Sokol, Lemann says racial voting still is the implicit norm.

"It's as if there's a historic and demographic threshold above which white voters cannot avoid voting racially."

As the South gets more progressive, race-oriented voting will wither on the vine, just as it has in other parts of the country.