Politics

In this political season where the ghost of the Southern strategy has risen again via Donald Trump, political analysis from African Americans is more vital than ever. We need their thoughts, insight, wit and wisdom. Here are The Root’s top black political analysts, reporters, strategists and public intellectuals who we tune into when we want…

Code name: Renaissance. How apropos that first lady Michelle Obama’s Secret Service code sums up her life and persona perfectly. She is indeed a Renaissance woman in that she is accomplished, refined, has far-ranging talents and seemingly does it all: (working) mother, loving wife, dutiful daughter. Twice-Ivy League-educated lawyer and slayer of fashion all day,…

It’s no secret that former President Bill Clinton and President Barack Obama are more “frenemies” than political friends. Bill Clinton was his wife Hillary Clinton’s biggest attack dog in the 2008 Democratic presidential campaign, and both publicly and privately suggested that then-Sen. Obama wasn’t up to being commander in chief. Hillary Clinton and Obama have since…

Editor’s note: This story was first published in March. We’re featuring it again in light Fidel Castro’s death. On his first day in Cuba, President Barack Obama walked to the center of the Plaza de Armas in the colonial section of Havana to view the imposing marble statue of Carlos Manuel de Céspedes—the George Washington…

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Editor’s note: This story was first published in March. We’re featuring it again in light Fidel Castro’s death. When Air Force One lands at Havana’s José Martí International Airport Sunday afternoon, President Barack Obama will quickly get a symbolic look at the daunting challenge he faces to make the changes he’s forged between the United…

It all began with a chance encounter between two men with a bad habit. Officially, Barack Obama’s historic visit to Cuba on Sunday is the culmination of almost three years of intense diplomacy between former Cold War foes. Behind the scenes is another more human and less well-known story, of a rising black politician and…

The Republican Party has largely been tone-deaf to the changing electorate, adopting a hands-off approach to the increasingly heated rhetoric we have heard from the party’s presidential front-runner. It’s no coincidence that Donald Trump’s divisive, race-baiting campaign has vaulted him to the top of the Republican primary field. The Republican Party has a long history…

In a presidential election jam-packed with theatrics, protests and even acts of violence, it’s easy to overlook the other races on a ballot, but on Tuesday we got a reminder that a powerful group of politicians are trying to defend their seats against the movement to reform our broken criminal-justice system. In an election that…