Instead, ravenous, righteous media reminded us that Thurmond had run as a segregationist.

Never mind that it had been 54 years previous. It might as well have been 54 days. A pound of flesh was exacted by the liberal inquisition. Worse, many of Lott's colleagues abandoned him and ran for cover. He had to resign as majority leader of the Senate. It was the most despicable railroading of a public official I've ever witnessed.

Now I read media reports of Lott's return to power. He has scored an upset win over Sen. Lamar Alexander of Tennessee to become minority whip of the U.S. Senate.

One report this week paraphrased Lott's 2002 Thurmond comments as having said the nation would be "better off had it elected Strom Thurmond president in 1948, when he ran on a segregationist platform."

The quotation marks encase the journalist's words, but those words might as well have been attributed directly to Lott.

This characterization is like too many others. They take what was meant to be harmless praise to a very old man and turn it into a sort of verbal Klan ride. Lott never even mentioned segregation.

We will never end the media mentality that takes causal leaps to connect Republican or conservative stumblings with abominable intentions. Nor will we ever see liberal misstatements treated in a like manner.

The sweetest redemption for having been lynched by opportunistic media is renewed success. Way to go, Trent Lott. You beat them all.