Dem Debate at Howard University

I was stuck at work when it happened Thursday night, but I was happy to finally see for the first time in my life a presidential primary debate that tackled issues of importance to my community, even if I did have to catch the repeat on C-SPAN. I did get to see the post debate focus group made up of African-Americans on PBS last night in addition to the C-SPAN interview Tavis did Friday morning.

The 90 minute Democratic debate was organized and moderated by Tavis Smiley and televised on PBS Thursday night. It brought all eight current Democratic candidates for president to the Howard University campus in Washington DC to answer questions on issues that haven't been discussed in the other debates such as HIV-AIDS, criminal justice, education, taxes, outsourcing jobs, poverty, the Bush administration's response to Hurricane Katrina and the hours old 5-4 Supreme Court conservative majority decision placing new limits on school desegregation plans.

The other unique feature was that it had African-American and Latino journalists Michel Martin, DeWayne Wickham and Ruben Navarrette asking those questions. The audience was also packed with African-American leadership ranging from entertainer and activist Harry Belafonte, congresspersons Sheila Jackson Lee (D-TX), Maxine Waters (D-CA), Elijah Cummings (D-MD)and John Lewis (D-GA)to National Urban League President and CEO Marc Morial, the Rev. Al Sharpton, Children’s Defense Fund founder and president Marian Wright Edelman and noted scholar Cornel West.


As to who I'd like to see get the Democratic nomination as of June 2007, it's a toss up between Sen. Barack Obama (D-IL) and Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-NY) with John Edwards running third. That still leaves much room for me to change my mind between now and when the primary elections actually start getting cranked up in February 2008. I'm not making my final choice until probably December 2007 or January 2008. But whoever ends up with the nomination by the time the convention occurs in Denver, I'm pleased with the quality of candidates we have in the Democratic primary and wouldn't be disappointed in the final outcome.

Sen. Clinton already according to some polls has 40% support in the African-American community and did plenty in this debate to ensure she not only holds on to it, but set herself up for the opportunity to build on it.

Sen. Clinton garnered the loudest applause of the night when she stated in a response to a question on HIV-AIDS, "Let me just put this in perspective: If HIV-AIDS were the leading cause of death of white women between the ages of 25 and 34 there would be an outraged, outcry in this country."


Sen Obama has a burden that the other candidates don't. He has to prove to many African-Americans that he's with us on our issues while not alienating his middle of the road predominately white support by not appearing 'too Black'.

African-Americans will be the decisive voting bloc in the Democratic primaries and the 2008 general election. While Hispanics outnumber us population wise, what many people forget is that they don't vote in the consistently high sustained numbers that African-Americans do and that some of that Hispanic population growth is made up of people who aren't eligible to vote yet. In 2004 African-Americans were one of of every ten voters in that election and that vote went 9-1 for Sen. John Kerry. In South Carolina, where an early primary test will be held February 5, African-Americans cast 30% of the votes in the 2004 election and were 50% of that state's 2004 Democratic primary voters.

In September there will be a similar Republican forum at Baltimore's Morgan State University for the Republican candidates. That will be the only debate featuring the GOP candidates I'll bother watching. It'll be fun to see them squirm while having to answer questions that address African-American concerns they've ignored.

Is the Lone Star State Turning Back To Blue?

I've been saying for several years now that the current GOP dominance of Texas is a temporary thing because of the Lone Star State's longer history as a bastion of progressive populist politics and the cyclical nature of politics in general.

A recent DSCC poll conducted from April 11-15, 2007 of 800 registered likely voters has some interesting findings. The polls plus-minus error rate was 3.5%

*Texas voters give President George W. Bush a negative job rating (47% positive – 51% negative) and they are split in their opinion as to whether their family would be better off with a Democratic or Republican majority in the United States Senate (41% Democrats – 43% Republicans).

* A strong plurality of Texas voters believes the country is headed in the wrong direction (34% right direction – 49% wrong direction). Voters give President Bush an even more negative job rating on his handling of Iraq (41% positive – 57% negative).

* Republican John Cornyn has lower than expected name recognition for an incumbent US Senator, with 40% of the electorate unable to rate Cornyn either favorably or unfavorably. Overall, Senator Cornyn’s favorability rating is 41% favorable – 19% unfavorable.

* Senator Cornyn’s re-elect vote preference against a generic Democrat is under 50% (47% Republican John Cornyn - 38% Democratic candidate - 15% undecided).

With 2008 being a presidential election year could Texas finally be carried by a Democrat for the first time since Jimmy Carter accomplished the feat in 1976?

Cornyn's plummeting popularity coincides with a long overdue resurgence in the Texas Democratic Party. In the November 2006 elections they sent former US reps Nick Lampson and Ciro Rodriguez back to Congress. The most delicious part of Lampson's victory is that he now represents the congressional district of the man who in 2003 Delaymandered him and five Democrats out of office during an unprecedented and contentious mid-year partisan redistricting.

That midyear redistricting resulted in the Democratic House and Senate contingents relocating to Oklahoma and New Mexico in order to deny the Republicans a quorum to conduct business. The GOP-controlled Lege couldn't come to consensus on what to do about Texas public school financing system despite being under a court ordered deadline to fix it, but Governor Rick Perry in order to do Delay's bidding called two special sessions specifically for the redistricting issue over the objections of many Texans.

Six new Democratic state representatives were elected to whittle the GOP margin down to 81-69 and put them within striking distance of regaining the Texas House. They also swept local, judicial and county races in Dallas and Hays counties. Last weekend a DSCC fundraising event in Austin raked in an astounding $1.1 million from supporters throughout the state. Back in my home county, according to the most recent credible polling data more Harris County voters call themselves Democrats than Republicans by a 43% to 33% margin.

It's positive trends like this across the state that have Texas Democrats energized. They are determined to take the Lone Star State back from the peeps that ruined it in the first place.

Many Texans are weary of 13 years of total Republican control of state government that has brought massive debt, scandal, reactionary policies and inaction on many issues. They remember how the late Ann Richards as governor from 1990-1994 efficiently erased a $6 billion debt, turned it into a $2 billion surplus, had the most inclusive administration in Texas history and through her magnetic personality got several major companies to relocate their corporate headquarters to Texas in just a single term.

Texas is also considering legislation to move the 2008 primary date up from early March to February 5. With Texas being a major electoral vote rich state, moving up the primary date would force presidential candidates of both parties to spend more time actually campaigning in The Lone Star State instead of treating it like a political ATM machine.

For national Democrats to continue their momentum toward becoming the majority party they have to get Texas back in the game. The Texas Democratic Party has to channel the spirit of great Texas women such as Ann Richards, Billie Carr and Barbara Jordan. They also need to combine it with the political courage of Ralph Yarborough and Barbara Jordan's rock solid ethics.

They've also got to be in it to win it. Texas Dems can't be 'scurred' to articulate their message against peeps whose 'proven conservative leadership' campaign mantra only proves how well they muck up things and gay bait to cover it up. Never again should an election happen in which every top statewide office went uncontested as it did to my disgust in 2000.

It looks like they may finally be doing just that. It couldn't have happened at a better time.

Barack Obama Is More Than 'Black Enough'

One of my TransGriot readers posted this commentary on the blog concerning Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama

Monica sistergirl,

I am sooooo fed up with people talking about whether Obama is black enough like Black people are actually sitting around arguing about it. I've made it clear to people that I think it's nothing but rehashing *other* people's stereotypes of blacks as being anti-education, driven by a herd mentality, and just plain silly but people insist that it's a real issue put forth by "prominent black leaders". Would you mind lending your eloquence to this subject? I'm eager to hear your thoughts.

Since TransGriot strives to be an interactive forum, I'll honor your request to add my two cents to this ongoing debate about whether Barack is 'Black enough' for the African-American community.

One of the painful legacies of slavery is African-Americans who aided and abetted our slavemasters. Whether it be the Black folks who 'told massa' when the slaves were planning a revolt or an escape' or helped thwart our progress during the Jim Crow era and beyond (see Condoleezza Rice, Clarence Thomas and other Bush misadministration Negroes as current examples), we have always been vigilant about being taken in by 'Oreos'.

Barack's appeal to the white electorate in this country, while refreshing, makes him suspect to many peeps the African-American community. His story as a kid that was born in Hawaii to a Kenyan father and a white mother from Kansas who didn't grow up in the hood but in Indonesia (and in their mind doesn't have any ties to the Civil Rights Movement leadership many of them detest) has many African-American people asking questions. We wonder whether he would be an effective advocate for those of us who did grow up in the hood, who never forget HOW we got to these shores in the first place and how much fighting we STILL have to do just to get our rights as human beings and American citizens respected.

Personally, I like him. I plan on reading his books Dreams of My Father and The Audacity of Hope . I like a lot of what he has to say in terms of what's wrong and what's right with this country because much of it mirrors my own views in many ways. I'm encouraged by his record as an Illinois state senator, by what I've heard about him from my relatives who live in Chicago and by some of the policy stances he has laid out.

My concern is whether Barack Hussein Obama would actually get to stand in front of the Capitol building on January 20, 2009 and take the oath of office as the 44th President of the United States.

I have observed throughout my life that African-Americans have a hard time just getting elected to statewide office. Granted, Barack is the sitting junior senator of Illinois. But I have seen enough of the GOP slash-and-burn win-at-all-costs election tactics to know that if they're losing, they will not hesitate to negatively use race to keep the White House in their hands (ask Harold Ford, Jr. and Harvey Gantt about that). They know that 10% of this country's electorate will not vote for an African-American no matter how qualified he is and that's a sizable enough chunk of votes in a close election to turn it.

We African-Americans define leadership in a different way as University of Maryland professor Dr. Ron Walters points out.

The task of Black leadership is to provide the vision, resources, tactics, and strategies that facilitate the achievement of the objectives of Black people.

These objectives have been variously described as freedom, integration, equality, liberation, or defined in the terms of specific public policies. It is a role that often requires disturbing the peace. And we constantly carry on a dialogue about the fitness of various leaders and the qualities they bring to the table to fulfill this mission.

This standard is what Barack Obama is being evaluated by in the African-American community. Contrary to what conservatives think, we are not monolithic lemmings who reflexively vote for anything with a 'D' behind their name or as Michael Steele, Ken Blackwell, Lynn Swann and the GOP found out last November we don't vote for peeps or support them just because they're fellow African-Americans either.


As Dr. Julia Hare said during the recent Tavis Smiley 'State of the Black Union' event at Hampton University, there's a difference between Black leaders and leading blacks. Right now we're trying to figure out which category Barack fits in. And let's be real here. It's only March 2007 and the first presidential primaries don't happen until January 2008.

If he is deemed to be a Black leader after some introspective thought, debate and input from the various sectors of the community, you will see his support rise. If he doesn't pass that community litmus test we will support the candidate who we deem not only has the best chance to get elected but who will pursue our interests once he or she is sitting in the Oval Office courtesy of our votes.

Barack Is In!

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. - (AP) Democrat Barack Obama declared himself a candidate Saturday for the White House in 2008, evoking Abraham Lincoln's ability to unite a nation and promising to lead a new generation as the country's first black president.

The first-term senator announced his candidacy from the state capital where he began his elective career just 10 years ago, and in front of the building where in another century, Lincoln served eight years in the Illinois Legislature.

"We can build a more hopeful America," Obama said in remarks prepared for delivery. "And that is why, in the shadow of the Old State Capitol, where Lincoln once called on a divided house to stand together, where common hopes and common dreams still live, I stand before you today to announce my candidacy for president of the United States."

Obama did not mention his family background, his childhood in Hawaii and Indonesia or that he would make history if elected president.

Instead, he focused on his life in Illinois over the past two decades, beginning with a job as a community organizer with a $13,000-a-year salary that strengthened his Christian faith.

He said the struggles he saw people face inspired him to get a law degree and run for the Legislature, where he served eight years before becoming a U.S. senator just two years ago.

"I recognize there is a certain presumptuousness, a certain audacity, to this announcement," Obama said. "I know I haven't spent a lot of time learning the ways of Washington. But I've been there long enough to know that the ways of Washington must change.

"Each and every time, a new generation has risen up and done what's needed to be done," he said. "Today we are called once more - and it is time for our generation to answer that call."

Obama, 45, gained national recognition with the publication of two best-selling books, "Dreams From My Father" and "The Audacity of Hope," and by delivering the keynote address at the 2004 Democratic National Convention. His optimistic message and his compelling biography immediately sparked talk of his White House potential.

Initially he said he would not run for president. But he said last fall that he was considering it after receiving so much encouragement. He formed a presidential exploratory committee last month.

Despite his thin political resume, Obama is considered New York Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton's chief rival among many vying for the Democratic nomination.

Obama planned to travel throughout Iowa on Saturday and Sunday before a rally Sunday night in Chicago, where his campaign has its headquarters.

He planned to visit New Hampshire on Monday on the heels of front-runner Clinton, whose first visit to the state as a presidential candidate over the weekend provided some early competition for attention from Obama's announcement.

Thousands of people in their warmest winter wear came out for Obama's campaign kickoff despite temperatures in the teens. The crowd huddled in close for warmth and to squeeze into the closed off streets around the Old State Capitol.

"This is a once in a lifetime opportunity for us," said Bethany Scates of Ridgway, Ill., who drove four hours with her family for the announcement.

Brenda and Michael Calkington of Muncie, Ind., said they have never been involved in a political campaign, but both were laid off from jobs with a lighting company and plan to volunteer for Obama.

"He makes you feel like it is possible to change things," Brenda Calkington said.

She seemed to be reading from Obama's songbook.

He spoke of reshaping the economy for the digital age, investing in education, protecting employee benefits, insuring those who do not have health care, ending poverty, weaning America from foreign oil, fighting terrorism while rebuilding global alliances.

"But all of this cannot come to pass until we bring an end to this war in Iraq," Obama said. "America, it's time to start bringing our troops home. It's time to admit that no amount of American lives can resolve the political disagreement that lies at the heart of someone else's civil war."

Obama was not yet elected to the U.S. Senate when Congress voted to give Bush the authority to go to war in Iraq, but Obama gave a speech in 2002 opposing the war. He said Saddam Hussein posed no imminent threat to the United States and predicted the invasion would lead to an occupation with undetermined costs and consequences.

Obama has introduced a bill to prevent President Bush from increasing troop levels in Iraq and to remove U.S. combat forces from the country by March 31, 2008 - legislation that has virtually no chance of becoming law while Bush is president.

Obama's address was steeped in American history.

He talked how previous generations have brought change - fighting off colonizers, slavery and the Great Depression, welcoming immigrants, building railroads and landing a man on the moon.

He repeatedly referred to Lincoln and his success in moving a nation. He said it is because of Lincoln that Americans of every race face the challenges of the 21st century together.

"The life of a tall, gangly, self-made Springfield lawyer tells us that a different future is possible," Obama said. "He tells us that there is power in words. He tells us that there is power in conviction. That beneath all the differences of race and region, faith and station, we are one people. He tells us that there is power in hope."



Associated Press writers Deanna Bellandi and John O'Connor contributed to this report.