Politics
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Obama-thon '09: The Health Care Edition
From the Washington Post: “Six months into his presidency, Barack Obama may have no greater test of his ability to translate personal popularity into a successful legislative agenda than the upcoming two weeks. With skepticism about the president’s health-care reform effort mounting on Capitol Hill — even within his own party — the White House…
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Filling a Black Hole
Last week, National Black Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Harry Alford gave Sen. Barbara Boxer the business over their disagreements about the climate bill before her committee. In testimony before the Senate’s Environment and Public Works Committee, Alford admitted that he spoke “not as an economist” and as “not a climate change expert,” but…
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NASA, We Have a Problem
Forty years ago this week, a man walked on the moon. The ultimate prize in the decade-long “space race,” the two-and-a-half-hour moonwalk by Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin remains a testament to American exceptionalism, technological prowess and nationalist fervor. And face it, it’s pretty thrilling to watch. In honor of meeting the scientific challenge that…
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Goin' Up Yonder: Walter Cronkite Passes at Age 92
From CNN: Walter Cronkite, the CBS anchorman known as “Uncle Walter” for his easygoing, measured delivery and “the most trusted man in America” for his rectitude and gravitas, died Friday night in his New York home, CBS reported. Cronkite was 92. “Walter was always more than just an anchor. He was someone we could trust…
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We’re Relevant, Really!
“What we gonna do now?” As part of the ongoing celebration of the NAACP’s centennial, Cornel West and Julian Bond got together in a New York City bookstore Thursday to try to answer this question. Lately, the venerable (read old, stale, irrelevant) civil rights organization, while universally lauded for its past contributions to fighting discrimination…
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Obama Says: Those Indonesian Attacks Were Extremely Lame
From Breibart: “President Barack Obama is condemning a pair of suicide bombings at American hotels in Indonesia on Friday. Investigators say the attacks at two hotels in Jakarta killed eight people and wounded more than 50. Obama says the U.S. government “stands ready” as a friend and partner to help its ally in the effort…
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The Obama Doctrine: Racism’s Real; Deal With It
Everybody wants to know how, if at all, we should think about race in the Obama era. Well, President Barack Obama himself offered an answer in his speech to the NAACP last night. The address—his first explicitly on race as president—put a coda on his remarkable Philadelphia campaign speech, in which he addressed questions raised…
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Obama Goes to Chuuuuuuuurch at NAACP Convention
Obama was preaching at the pul—er podium last night, focusing much of his discussion on education and what the Black community needs to do in his address to the NAACP convention. He got worked into a pretty good lather too, talking about what we need to do and how we need to focus on personal…
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…And So Began the Health Care War…
From The AP: “House Democrats are preparing to advance legislation that would deliver on President Barack Obama’s promise to remake the nation’s costly health care system and cover some 50 million uninsured. On the heels of the Senate health committee’s approval Wednesday of a plan to revamp U.S. health care, three House committees with jurisdiction…
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Black to the Future?
A 100th birthday is a terrible thing to waste. Mindful of that fact, the NAACP has embarked on an all out celebration at its centennial conference in New York. It has attracted almost 2,500 delegates, including Gen. Colin Powell and Attorney General Eric Holder. President Barack Obama will also address the gathering. In all likelihood,…