Politics

Sure, Ken Starr’s a creep who’s made a career as the right wing’s legal hatchet man. But when he told the California Supreme Court yesterday that it couldn’t throw out Proposition 8, he was probably right. Don’t get me wrong: I think Prop 8, which repeals previously granted same-sex marriage rights, is a shameful blemish…

The Rev. Al Sharpton doesn’t accept the New York Post’s apology, but this isn’t new—in fact, for a man of God, Sharpton is quick to take offense and slow to forgive for a state of affairs he might describe as “troubling, at best.” You don’t ask for an apology that you expect to really come…

David Swerdlick is an associate editor at The Root. Follow him on Twitter. 

In a few words, Rush Limbaugh has lost it. Not only did he show up at CPAC last weekend to rile up the conservative GOP base, but he challenged the president of the United States to a debate on his show. Is this guy for real? As for my friend and fellow Republican Michael Steele, who…

It’s impossible to have a conversation about fashion in Africa—traditional or contemporary—without talking about the used-clothing industry and how damaging some people say it’s been.   A whole industry has cropped up around apparel that’s been donated to charities located oceans away, imported throughout the African continent and then sold cheaply in African marketplaces. These low…

Tavis Smiley’s genius doesn’t come from his radio and television talk shows, nor does it come from his appearances as a guest social commentator on multiple international outlets. It comes from his formation and continuation of the “State of the Black Union” annual symposium. The genius of the panels during C-SPAN’s most-watched event doesn’t come…

Every day, it seems, financial markets whiplash themselves over nationalization. Obviously, the jury is still out on whether nationalization is the inevitable fate of too-big-to-fail institutions such as Citigroup and Bank of America, already underway via the vast ongoing federal prop-up of AIG, or such a horrific notion that even the French wouldn’t try it…

It must be pretty disconcerting to be part of the white male political class these days. Nancy Pelosi is the first woman speaker of the House; Michael Steele is the African-American chairman of the Republican National Committee. Bobby Jindal, an Indian-American governor, “delivered” the official Republican response to the first congressional address by the first…

Read the washingtonpost.com Live Online discussion on A FAITH-BASED FIX with The Root’s Washington reporter Dayo Olopade. ***** The first month of Barack Obama’s presidency brought change to all parts to Washington—none more sweeping than the passage of his American Reinvestment and Recovery Act, designed to shock the U.S. economy out of its slump. A notable…

Last week, the Obama administration tapped Georgetown University researcher Jeff Crowley to lead the Office of National AIDS Policy; the director is the president’s top AIDS adviser, acting as point person for Congress and coordinating work across federal agencies. Crowley’s a longtime AIDS advocate and a smart policy wonk, an all-around competent guy. He’s also…