MichaelFauntroy.com

Obama's FISA Betrayal

From Matthew Rothschild at The Progressive:

Barack Obama’s rightward sprint is nowhere more obvious than in his betrayal on the FISA bill.  

This bill allows the President to grab all incoming and outgoing international communications without a warrant. The ACLU says it represents “an unprecedented extension of governmental surveillance over Americans.”

Obama, sounding on Friday a lot like Bush, said: “Given the legitimate threats we face, providing effective intelligence collection tools with appropriate safeguards is too important to delay.”

Here’s what Bush said the same day as Obama: The bill “allows our intelligence professionals to quickly and effectively monitor the plans of terrorists abroad, while protecting the liberties of Americans here at home.”

Read all of Rothschild on Obama's FISA vote here.

Interview Clip: Fauntroy Discusses Race Relations on NPR

I participated in a discussion on race relations and the continuing need for affirmative action on the Wednesday, June 25 edition of NPR's News and Notes with Farai Chideya.  I was joined by Danielle Belton of Black Snob, and Amani Channel of My Urban Report.

While I think he has largely ignored his capacity to lead on the issue, Barack Obama's presidential campaign is providing the opportunity for thoughtful discussion and debate on issues that center around race.  Let's hope intelligent discussion can continue and, further, that we wrest control of the language that we use to discuss race from those who only want to use race to validate their own warped view of the world.

(The Politicization of) Federal Civil Rights Enforcement

I’m working on a book on federal civil rights enforcement and the Department of Justice will be the focus of a chapter or two.  Consequently, I'm always on the look out for any developments in this area.  This article lays out why the enforcement of federal civil rights is no longer a priority of the government.  Indeed, it appears that the Bush administration has embedded lawyers within the bureaucracy with limited backgrounds and, perhaps, interest in enforcing civil rights.  According to a New York Times report --

Justice Department officials over the last six years illegally used “political or ideological” factors to hire new lawyers into an elite recruitment program, tapping law school graduates with conservative credentials over those with liberal-sounding resumes, a new report found Tuesday.

The blistering report, prepared by the Justice Department’s inspector general, is the first in what will be a series of investigations growing out of last year’s scandal over the firings of nine United States attorneys. It appeared to confirm for the first time in an official examination many of the allegations from critics who charged that the Justice Department had become overly politicized during the Bush administration.

There are a lot of people who think concern about civil rights enforcement is passe'.  Those people will rue the day when the federal bureaucracy was undermined by politics.  Here is the full report, which is required reading for anyone interested in this issue.

Interview Clip: Michael Fauntroy Discusses Black Conservatives on NPR

I had the pleasure of participating in a discussion on NPR's Tell Me More with Michel Martin.  I, along with Armstrong Williams, discussed the quandary in which some Black conservatives find themselves.  Williams recently wrote a column in which he noted he may vote for Obama.

I've kept in touch with some of the African American Republicans I interviewed while writing Republicans and the Black Vote.  They seem both frustrated that the Party has done virtually nothing to compete for Black votes and embarrassed that the Democrats are running circles around them when it comes to developing candidates from all backgrounds.  It will be decades before the Republicans have women and minorities that can run serious campaigns for the presidency and the GOP should be more than a little embarrassed by this reality.  I'm convinced that there will be large numbers of African American Republicans, particularly those moderates and liberals among them, who will not be able to resist the urge to vote for the first Black president.  They won't want to answer "no" when their kids, grandkids, nieces, and nephews ask, "So, did you vote for Obama?"

You can listen to the discussion here.

Interview Clip: Michael Fauntroy Discusses Barack Obama on the Brian Lehrer Show (WNYC)

I, along with David Mark of The Politico, discussed Barack Obama's decision to forgo public financing of his general election campaign on the June 19 edition of The Brian Lehrer Show on WNYC in New York.  You can check out the discussion here.  Thanks to everyone on the show for having me.

While it's unlikely to be much of an issue this fall, I do think Obama's decision to solely go with privately raised funds really undermines progressive efforts to reduce the influence of money in elections.  Obama has raised and spent more than $250 million -- an incredible sum by almost any measure.  Yes, he has an unprecedented number of "small" donors, but the reality is that too much money is a problem in American elections.  He's the outlier, as it's unlikely other Democrats will be able to replicate the political tsunami that is fueling his campaign.

Mike's Minute: Hey Tom Joyner, Make Mike Fauntroy The Commentator!

Click here to listen to Mike's Minute.

I want to be the next Tom Joyner Morning Show (TJMS) commentator and I need your help to get there.

Please forgive the self-promotion, but I think I can bring new energy and ideas to the show.  I will provide a mix of political commentary and information to the TJMS nation and will do so in my own voice.  I can’t, and won’t, try to be Tavis, part II. 

I know politics and government.  I’ve studied and taught it at the university level for years.  Consequently, I can explain politics in a way that makes it relevant to almost anyone.  I’ve been doing TV and radio for the past four years and have been been seen or heard on every major national network addressing the issues of the day.  I am not afraid to speak truth to power – even if it makes some uncomfortable.  I also have a few ideas about making the segment my own while staying true to its mission.

Here is my bio.  Click here to register your vote.

America May Be Ready for a Black President, But . . .

I recently participated in a CBS Early Show political roundtable discussion regarding race and the presidential election.  In it, I agreed with the other panelists who contend that America is ready for a Black President (we discussed this in the context of a just-released CBS News poll which showed 68% of those polled said that the country is ready for a Black president, a figure that is up more than 30 points from eight years ago).  While I believe that the country is ready, being ready for a Black president and electing Barack Obama is two different things.  I believe that things change once we go from theory to practice.  The poll notwithstanding, it’s an open question to me whether or not America is ready.  In a close election, small pockets of race-based resistence, coupled with legitimate support for Senator John McCain could well be enough to keep Obama from winning in November.

The new poll is a reflection of the public’s response to Barack Obama.  He doesn’t strike fear in White voters the way other Black candidates seem to.  That’s good and bad.  It’s good because Obama has shown the country that the stereotype of the angry Black man is not universal.  It’s bad because it also shows that the “fear” bar is way to low; it seems that articulate, intelligent Black men are feared in ways that strike me as nonsensical.

No one, certainly not me, can say with any certainty what extent racism will play in the November election.  I have been studying race and politics for some time, so I’m convinced that racism will be an issue.  As I see it, racism is the bully in America’s political and social schoolyard.  You don’t beat a bully by ignoring it, as far too many people, especially among some Obama supporters have been all too willing to do.  You have to stand up to it and expose it for what it is.  People who oppose a candidate because of his or her race should not be able to make that choice in comfort.  They should know that they are flying in the face of humanity.  However, in confronting racism (which he has yet to do in a meaningful way), Obama runs the risk of igniting a fear in White voters that can actually increase the likelihood that Obama could be done in by race.  This may explain his campaign’s approach to race, which borders on timidity.

New Poll: Obama, McCain, Nader, and Barr

A recently released CNN/Opinion Research poll shows the general election is starting as a close contest.  According to the poll, Barack Obama leads John McCain 49 percent to 46 percent among registered voters – a statistical tie, given the question's 3-point margin of error. 

The under-the-radar statistic in the poll is that Ralph Nader is polling at about six percent.  That’s enough of a following to potentially damage Obama in November.  Republicans hope that Nader will repeat his 2000 kneecapping of Vice President Al Gore (go back and look at West Virginia if you need a refresher), while Democrats hope Libertarian nominee former Representative Bob Barr will do for them what Nader did for the Grand Old Party.  Barr is polling at about two percent.  Nader and Barr will be factors in November if Obama or McCain fail to put some distance between one another.

Here’s the full story on the poll.

CBS Early Show Video: Fauntroy, Trippi, and Murphy

I appeared on the CBS Early Show Wednesday with Joe Trippi and Mike Murphy.  We discussed a just released CBS News poll which indicated that 68 percent of registered voters said the country is ready for a Black President.  I was somewhat surprised by the number, which I think is high.  The poll is a total reflection of the extent to which Barack Obama has, by the attractiveness of his personality, been able to allay many of the fears Whites have about Blacks.  However, it should be noted that this poll is of registered voters, which is a less accurate indicator than those of likely voters.

Obama Leaves Trinity United Church of Christ

First the Pastor, now the church.  Democratic frontrunner Barack Obama and his family resigned their membership from Trinity United Church of Christ (TUCC) on Saturday, in the wake of the video of guest speaker Father Michael Pfleger mocking Hillary Clinton’s tearing response to a question just before the New Hampshire primary.

I guess Obama had to do it, but the reality is that this is a form of capitulation that may reveal something about how Obama would conduct himself as president.  It’s unfortunate that he felt the need to leave.  It’s as if he’s trying to run away from his problems with the church.  Moreover, it may just embolden those who feel that they may be able to hound someone into submission. My political friends tell me that it was TUCC that helped give Obama legitimacy and credibility as he launched his political career.  I'm curious to see how this plays out on the South Side.

There is another angle to this as well.  Yes, Pfleger’s comments were incendiary, but the reality is that there are plenty Black Obama supporters, and probably more than a few White ones as well, who take the position that Clinton believed she was entitled to the presidency.  I hear it all the time.  Indeed, the “she acts like she is entitled to it” is a significant, if not dominant, undercurrent among some Obama backers in explaining why they don't like Clinton.  In that way, Pfleger told the truth.  But in politics, it is often the truth that gets one in trouble.

Here is video of Obama’s statement discussing his resignation from TUCC.

Here are Father Pfleger's comments that marked the beginning of the end of Obama at TUCC.