I’m a liberal on immigration — but it isn’t racism to favor tighter controls if you believe that high immigration lowers American wages. It sure isn’t racism to believe that the laws on immigration should be enforced, and that “sanctuary cities” violate that impeccably liberal principle. It isn’t racist to say that many of the Charlottesville counter-protesters came looking for a fight. Casting Trump supporters as fearful of change is risible — he was hardly the status quo candidate. And I cannot see what principle of political economy makes it stupid to be a fiscal conservative if you live in West Virginia.

It’s worth pondering that opposing the removal of Confederate monuments may soon make you a racist, if it doesn’t already. After Charlottesville, PBS reported that 86 percent of Americans condemn the rhetoric of the white supremacy movement, while six in 10 Americans, including a narrow plurality of African Americans, believe the statues of Confederate leaders should remain. This would seem to refute the suggestion that opinion on the statues has much to do with white nationalism. These findings were presented under the inviting heading “Confederate Statues and White Nationalism.”