Politics

This Sunday, about 4 million Sudanese in the war-torn Southern part of the country will go to the polls to cast their ballots in a referendum to decide if they should remain a part of Africa’s largest country or become the continent’s newest nation. The debate over maintaining Sudan as a unitary state or separating…

When the Republican-led Congress took to the House floor to read the entire U.S. Constitution, it omitted several provisions in the document, including two that allude to slavery: the “three-fifths compromise” and the fugitive-slave clause. While leaders like Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr. (D-Ill.) objected to such redactions that ignore the “long history of improving the…

Yesterday morning during the much heralded reading of the Constitution (minus the awkward bits) on the House floor, the situation got a little, well, awkard, when a Birther interrupted the proceedings. It’s been a while since we’ve heard from Birthers in such a public forum, so I guess it’s high time one of them reared…

In 2008, Democrats were winning in every possible way. They won the presidency, the House and the Senate! In 2010, “winning” might not be the best word to describe the left. As the party’s leader, Barack Obama, notably said, the Dems got “shellacked” during November’s midterm elections. And now this: A recent Gallup Poll shows…

By Eugene Robinson If the incoming Republican leadership in the House of Representatives is serious about trying to repeal health care reform, there’s only one appropriate Democratic response: “Make my day.” Just to be clear, there’s no earthly chance that a bill repealing the landmark health care overhaul could make it through Congress and be…

A new Gallup Poll indicates that President Obama’s approval rating has increased to 50 percent — up from the mid-40s for the latter part of the year. According to the poll, Obama’s approval rating is 80 percent among Democrats, 47 percent among independents and only 16 percent among Republicans. The overall increase might have something…

Tavis Smiley is unabashed about bringing his controversial road show to President Obama’s turf. The talk show host, a persistent critic of the president, has been an advocate of a “black agenda” that would focus federal resources directly on issues that affect black America. Next week Smiley will preside over a three-hour discussion in Washington,…

This week we will hear a certain amount about how the newly unearthed short stories by Zora Neale Hurston reveal her interest in urban black culture, often obscured because of her rural focus in books like Their Eyes Were Watching God. Seeing Hurston rounded out for us is always welcome because she was complicated indeed.…

Rep. Allen West, one of two new black Republicans in the House of Representatives, still has a lot to learn about politics on the national stage. Mainly that you should learn from mistakes you make. West caught flack late last year when he announced that his friend Joyce Kauffman, a talk-radio host known for making…

Roscoe’s House of Chicken ‘n’ Waffles, the landmark soul food eatery tucked in a dreary lot at the northern extremity of L.A.’s 10th City Council District, is a popular gathering place for the hip and the hungry. Slumming celebrities, multimillionaire athletes and just plain folks mingle among the tourists and the curious at the Southern-style…