Re: "...I believe Newman is correct that the "Klan" today is no political force...
Oh no?
Just for starters, think about these current and former members:
Former Louisiana State Senator David Duke, Current West Virginia Senator Robert Byrd, almost all governors of southern states beginning 1865 up through the 1950's, Alabama Governor Georce C. Wallace's Press Secretary (who also was the author of The Outlaw Josey Wales), U.S. President Harry Truman, almost all American FreeMasons from post Civil War times to the mid-20th Century, ...and the list goes on and on and on...
Not to mention how many current state and city law enforcement officials are members, and the very large number of the American population who sympathizes with their views.
In fact, the only way to seriously consider to what degree the Klan holds sway to political influence, is to weigh all of the like-minded groups together as one membership, one ideology, and one large influence: Amren, Aryan Nations, KKK, Skinhead Groups, National Alliance, Christian Identity Movements, American Nazi Party, and the countless other groups which are all in essence one movement.