In an area that calls for careful choice of words and frequent expressions of respect, King has too often been willing to paint with a broad brush that alienates the very community whose help he seeks.

At the same time, it is a parody of political correctness to argue that a hearing on domestic terrorism cannot focus solely on the Muslim community to be acceptable.

“It’s absolutely the right thing to do for the chairman of the Homeland Security Committee to investigate radicalization, but to say we’re going to investigate a religious minority . . . is the wrong course of action to take,” Minnesota Democrat Keith Ellison, the first Muslim elected to Congress, told CNN.

Yes, there are other sources of terrorism. Radical Islam is the biggest and most dangerous. And, yes, King is a flawed questioner. But the question he poses is an appropriate – and important – one.