From CNN to Fox News and beyond, black political thinkers are appearing more in the news. This shows that an affirmative action approach can work, but will it cross over to the community?

Everyone expected a positive change with the nomination of Sen. Barack Obama, as we do now with him as President. Positive change has come to politics as a result, at least in political media.

A recent report noted the uptick in black political pundits and bloggers, which seems to be a result of the presence of President Obama in the last political cycle. This is a good thing, not just for people like me, but for plenty of other Americans who are finding their points of view being voiced in a manner not seen before the 2008 election.

We now regularly see black political representation from both sides of the aisle in the media, giving those Americans following politics a chance to see the diversity of black America. ...

Some call the honesty shown by Michael Steele erratic, but it is good to see humanity in leadership at a time when many are failing

"Was I partying? Absolutely! Absolutely!" Steele said recently. "I was like 'Look at her. Hey, what's up!' I was doing the whole thing."

Many people are reading about and viewing the media appearances by Michael Steele and taking pause. Some are wondering why the new chairman of the Republican National Committee would say or do the things that he does. Calls claiming he's not ready for the position have been made since he took the mantle of running the minority party.

I see it as neither. ...

With the announcement of the private-public partnership, the AIG bonus outrage, and Congress' tax assault on American constitutionality, our prime-time performer must hit the big shots and perfect the grunt work as well if America is going to make a comeback run.

The college basketball postseason is among us. Everywhere you go, you hear about tournament brackets, championship predictions and performers to watch on the sport's biggest stage.

But President Barack Obama's March Madness campaign tour to win over the American people will end Tuesday night on prime-time television. ...

The masses of the GOP are not working from the ground up because they do not have a leader. It goes a little deeper.

AOL recently reported findings from polling leader Rasmussen, which found that 68 percent of Republicans do not feel that the GOP has a "clear leader."

Among the people actually named in the poll, RNC Chairman Michael Steele received five percent of the vote, John McCain received five percent of the vote and Sarah Palin received one percent of the vote.

Ironically, conservative talk show host Rush Limbaugh received two percent of the vote, less than half of the percentage that Steele received, but clearly more than other prominent Republican leaders such as Tim Pawlenty, Bobby Jindal and Mitt Romney. ...

The tussle between the two leading members of the Republican Party is quickly becoming a battle for the conscience and direction of the party.

The contrast in style and focus between the old guard and the new is clear.

Symbolized by the friction between conservative commentator Rush Limbaugh and Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Steele, the Grand Ol' Party is caught between its good old boy image and the new agenda, new look, and new focus many in the party want to embrace.

While some see this internal development as a change reflective of the increasing diversity of our nation, others see it as the ultimate RINO (Republican In Name Only) betrayal and have fought to reclaim the party in a quest to restore Republican political power in Washington. ...

Tuesday night's prime time political event displayed the power of President Obama's delivery, where he takes the Democrats and where the Republicans need to go from here.

President Barack Obama addressed the Congress and America last night to recap the first meaningful legislative effort by this historic administration. In order to sell the merits of his plan, the president spoke to many sections of a suffering America, addressing the need for renewable energy, greater educational achievements, and the consistent flow of credit within our economic markets.

The president reminded both America and Congress that there will be sacrifices that all must make, including himself. He reminded America that there will be times in the future that we will disagree on the methods to use to improve our great land. He praised the courage of the military while calling out the lack of civic responsibility shown by high school dropouts, pointing out that those individuals let themselves and their countrymen down by giving up on their education.





Obama spoke with the power of an orator, the presence of a statesman, and the connectivity of America's professorial neighbor. If his four-year term can be equated to the World Series of Politics, Obama won game 1 in a Bob Gibson-like fashion, taking command early on his home turf and never relinquishing it.

Then there was Bobby Jindal.

The governor from Louisiana has been widely praised as a rising star within the Republican Party. As such, he received the monumental task of delivering the response to the president's first major address of his administration. He was asked to match the passion and delivery of a master speaker to balance the scale back towards Republicans, showing that the minority party still has the relevancy and creativity that America needs to turn the tide of this national crisis.

When is the promise of America going to stop being such a dichotomous, partially-empty promise for Black people? Perhaps starting this weekend in Los Angeles

What a time to consider the conditions of Black people in America.

We live in such a time of dichotomies.

An African-American man has become president for the first time in the history of the country. And we have an increasing number of Black males going to jail and dropping out of high school.

There are some communities in the United States that may have a Black city council member, a Black governor, and a Black president simultaneously. And those residents may still not feel safe enough to walk the streets of their communities.

We can note the accomplishments of Black professionals such as Dr. Ben Carson as documented in "Gifted Hands" on TNT. And we have an alarming rate of new HIV cases to add to our disproportionate rates of hypertension, diabetes, and heart disease.

Yes, we are at a crossroads of action and accountability, apathy and despair. Hopefully, this weekend's "State of the Black Union" in Los Angeles will put us on the right path. ...

Juan Williams is an example of why many in the community think black Republicans and conservatives can't relate to Black America.

There are several items that most Americans can not pinpoint about why they can not believe, deal with, or accept Black Republicans or conservatives, notably Black conservative political pundits.

Williams just highlighted one reason that they can get their hands all over. ...

Chairman Steele's decision to start from scratch may prove to be political genius yet be institutional heartburn if not handled properly.

Both sides of the political aisle have signaled that they want a change, using their votes to select new leadership in the White House and at the head of the RNC.

Whereas President Obama is losing political capital trying to get Congress to work together on an important stimulus package to help Americans, Chairman Michael Steele is going one step further to achieve success for Republicans.

He's just going to lose his help.

Steele's decision to release the old guard at the RNC from its duties signifies a potential shift in the way the RNC reaches out to America as it moves forward. The move suggests that the infrastructure of the RNC does not provide the aptitude, flexibility, and vision to make the needed changes to the Republican brand to provide better results at election time. Most would agree that the RNC must do a better job of articulating its message to America, compete in all facets of the American electorate for votes, and eliminate its image as an elitist party that has a small minority of Americans at heart; (of course, that image does not include actual minorities.)

But does that necessarily mean that the structure of the RNC was at fault for its failures? Is the party structure taking the fall for the sins of the politicians? After all, if elected officials (in government and political parties) are the rock stars of politics, those in the infrastructure of the party are the stage crew.

So, is the RNC out of tune with America because the crew broke the sound equipment before the main event got on-stage, or is the main event merely tone-deaf to its audience?

You know what they say: a good musician never blames his instrument.

Those that look at the current political significance of President Obama and fail to understand why people give the former Illinois senator the social and historical clout that he garners need only to look to the minority party in Washington.

Within this election cycle, has seen a historical occurrence that few – if any – thought would ever come about.

And no, I'm not talking about the Black family living in the White House.

I'm referring to the Black man heading the Republican Party.

Yes, the Grand Old Party has a brand, new leader, and they have President Barack Obama to thank for it.

Many will view the election of former Maryland Lt. Gov. Michael Steele as merely a symbolic gesture for the Republican Party to match the presence of an Obama Administration. Those that make this an one-to-one electoral match based on BOPE (the Barack Obama Presidential Experience) not only color the Republicans as a lot full of racist trend-followers, but they also promote a view that Obama also won on the strength of skin color alone.

Both are extremely near-sighted. It also downplays the historical significance of Steele's election to the post, even as proponents of this view will continue to call the GOP the party of the old, White, and rich.