Obama Wins Debate, but Race Is Still Close

October 23, 2012

Despite the president's strong showing, there are reasons that Mitt Romney remains in the running.

It's Time for President Obama to Become a Leader

The president's professorial approach to issues has left Americans wondering what he stands for. He needs to find his Berlin Wall and take a stand on something.

Message to Democrats: Don't Worry, Be Happy!

There are good reasons to be hopeful after the midterm elections. Just look at what happened in 1994.

Time to End the Criminal-Punishment Binge

Mass incarceration has not reduced crime, but it has made prison a more common experience for poor black men than joining a union or doing military service.

Coakley’s Failure, Obama’s Lesson

The president must address middle-class fears and stand up to Wall Street.

The Ann Nixon Cooper I Knew

A grandson looks fondly back on his grandmother, the 106-year-old voter who became a star when Barack Obama saluted her in his victory speech election night. To her grandson and the community that knew her, she was already a star. 

Obama's Right Mistake

If everybody is mad at the president, then he must be doing all the right wrong things.

You Can't Learn From a Sound Bite

Media outlets may be disappointed by the lack of access to the Rose Garden beerfest, but the truth is, real dialogue doesn't take place with the whole world watching.

The Place Where We All Can't Just Get Along

One of the great racial wedges in American life is the different ways blacks and whites view police authority. Black and white citizens have reacted differently to the Gates case because they have different historical experiences with the police.

What Do You Call a Black Man with a Ph.D.?

The Skip Gates arrest shows how little some features of the national racial landscape have changed over time.