Senator loses his battle with redneck Jesse Helms

The best summer drama on offer in Washington, an internecine Republican clash pitting brains against beast, concluded yesterday with victory for Jesse Helms, the senator from North Carolina, over William Weld, a Harvard- educated classics scholar and former governor of Massachusetts.

Mr Weld quit his post as Governor after President Clinton nominated him for the job of ambassador to Mexico. But yesterday, Senator Helms, the hard-right chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, refused to grant Mr Weld a confirmation hearing. Mr Weld, who vowed four weeks ago to wage "a land war, if need be" against Senator Helms, threw in the towel.

Mr Helms' stated reason for opposing Mr Weld's appointment was that the former governor, who supports the medical use of marijuana, could not be counted upon to conduct the war against drugs with vigour. The real reason, observers say, is that Mr Weld has made no secret of his belief that Senator Helms is an ignorant redneck, woefully unsuited to one of the most powerful foreign policy positions in Washington.