Politics
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President Obama Celebrates Diversity With Young Scientists at White House Science Fair
The lack of gender and ethnic diversity in the science, technology, engineering and math fields is not a secret—and the 2015 White House Science Fair’s main focus was on just that. The fair, held on Monday, included students from underrepresented backgrounds who could be the next generation of innovators. “We don’t want to just increase…
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CBC Budget Is Too Smart for the Rest of Congress to Care
In the Congressional Black Caucus’ Alternative Budget for Fiscal Year 2016 (pdf), which lays out where the CBC thinks the nation’s finances should be, it finds itself—yet again—in the unenviable position of voiceless “Malcolm in the Middle” screaming through white noise and clamor. The plan is captured in five high-level bullet points: a fairer tax…
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Why Not Make Voting Mandatory?
Convoluted and restrictive voter ID measures got you down? Still rubbing the migraine you got from voter-suppression laws? Banging your head against the wall when voter turnout is too low? Worry no more, fam, we’ve got a magic potion for you: mandatory voting. No more excuses. No more rich folks across town getting better everything…
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If Republicans Believed in a Meritocracy, They’d Confirm Loretta Lynch Now
The U.S. Senate had been expected this week to take up the nomination of Loretta Lynch to replace Eric H. Holder Jr. as attorney general, but the vote has been delayed, yet again, by the Republican majority as part of an attempt to force Democrats to relent on an unrelated bill. The nomination, which would…
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9 HBCU Students Just Made the Voter-ID War Hot Again
The voter-ID war just opened up a huge new front. This time in Tennessee. A group of nine students from HBCUs Fisk and Tennessee State have filed a federal lawsuit against the Volunteer State’s heavily contested and controversial voter-ID law. Johnston points to identification cards for state university faculty and staff, which are perfectly legal…
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Slow Your Roll, Giuliani. By Your Own Standard, Obama’s More Conservative Than You
I suppose we’re almost to the point where there’s less than nothing to be gained by evaluating Republicans’ now yearslong running narrative about how un-American, unpatriotic and unlike anyone else we’ve ever seen President Barack Obama is. For convenience’s sake, let’s call it “the Othering.” But just in case we’re not quite to that point…
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2 Mo. Congressmen Offer Reward in Ferguson Cops’ Shooting
Rep. Lacy Clay (D-Mo.), whose district includes Ferguson, and Rep. Emanuel Cleaver (D-Mo.) are offering a reward for the capture of the individual or individuals involved in the the shooting of two police officers in Ferguson early Thursday. Clay and Cleaver are offering $3,000 for information leading to the capture of the person or persons.…
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How Employer Credit Checks Are Keeping Black People Unemployed
When New York State Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman announced that his office had cut a deal with the three big credit bureaus—Experian, Equifax and TransUnion—to improve the customer experience, the news shook the financial-services world into a frenzy. “In today’s world, the consumer’s input is less important than the bank or collector’s input,” John…
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Md. Rep. Donna Edwards to Run for Barbara Mikulski’s Senate Seat
Rep. Donna Edwards (D-Md.) has intentions of succeeding Maryland’s Democratic Sen. Barbara Mikulski, who announced earlier this month that she will not be running after her current term ends in 2017. According to USA Today Politics, Edwards, who became the first black woman to represent a Maryland district in Congress after being elected in June…
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Can We Get Some More Black Senators and Governors?
Little-known fact: The crab state of Maryland has one of the highest percentages of black population in the United States. Theoretically, you might think that that would make the state one of the more powerful black political blocs in the land. Yet while the state is nearly 33 percent African American, it’s never had an African-American governor…