The Washington Post today gave white supremacist Billy Roper of Russellville (pictured at a speaking appearance) his equivalent of crack cocaine — national publicity and even credibility. We’ve written about Roper’s hateful resume in the Times over the years. But that doesn’t mean we believe him. The Post accepts his pronouncement — and those of others — at face value about how the Barack Obama candidacy is good for the neo-Nazis.

Neo-Nazi, skinhead and segregationist groups have reported gains in numbers of visitors to their Web sites and in membership since the senator from Illinois secured the Democratic nomination June 3. His success has aroused a community of racists, experts said, concerned by the possibility of the country’s first black president.

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“I haven’t seen this much anger in a long, long time,” said Billy Roper, a 36-year-old who runs a group called White Revolution in Russellville, Ark. “Nothing has awakened normally complacent white Americans more than the prospect of America having an overtly nonwhite president.”

I’m guessing the Obama candidacy hasn’t increased the number of dead-enders who “follow” Roper, though I have no doubt that his very appearance riles them.

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