In 2008, Barack Obama was widely described as having built a game-changing political coalition: young people, racial and ethnic minorities, educated professionals, urban and suburban voters. He was held to have built an innovative campaign infrastructure, leveraging big data and social media in an unprecedented way, increasing turnout and Democratic vote share with constituencies that… Continue reading Whatever Happened to the Obama Coalition?
Tag: Barack Obama
Abandoning the Iran Deal is a Grave Miscalculation
Many people understand credibility to mean something like, “sticking to one’s word” or “following through on one’s commitments.” By this standard, President Trump’s Tuesday decision to withdraw the United States from the Iran Deal (formally, the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, or JCPOA) would bolster Trump’s cred. After all, during his campaign he claimed it… Continue reading Abandoning the Iran Deal is a Grave Miscalculation
In the Trump Administration, Principled Civil Servants Like James Comey Are Critical
Let’s be clear about one thing straightaway: James Comey did not sabotage Hillary Clinton. If that had been his intention, it was well within his power to outright destroy her candidacy. In the wake of Attorney General Loretta Lynch’s improper meeting with former President Bill Clinton, the Department of Justice was scandalized. Under pressure, Lynch… Continue reading In the Trump Administration, Principled Civil Servants Like James Comey Are Critical
An Emerging Democratic Majority? Don’t Count on It.
“What is at stake in the conflict over representations of the future is nothing other than the attitude of the declining classes to their decline—either demoralization, which leads to a rout….or mobilization, which leads to the collective search for a collective solution to the crisis.What can make the difference is, fundamentally, the possession of… Continue reading An Emerging Democratic Majority? Don’t Count on It.
Hillary Clinton Is No Friend of Black Empowerment
As an African American, I have struggled to understand why so many of brothers and sisters seem to prefer Hillary Clinton over Bernie Sanders. Some have argued that black people are terrified at the prospect of a Trump presidency, and so they rally around Clinton under the belief that she is more electable in the… Continue reading Hillary Clinton Is No Friend of Black Empowerment
America’s Biggest Terror Threat is from the Far-Right, Not the Middle East
According to a New America Foundation report, right-wing extremists have killed nearly twice as many Americans through domestic terrorism as Islamic jihadists have since 9/11. However, this same database shows that jihadists constitute a much higher percentage of those indicted on terror charges or killed when confronted by authorities: despite causing only 35 percent of… Continue reading America’s Biggest Terror Threat is from the Far-Right, Not the Middle East
Change We Can Believe In
“It was like hamburger meat shootin’ out of his chest.” His burger was rare; blood & oil ran down his double-chinned beard, down his marshmallow-chain fingers, staining his freedom fries. Nirvana on his face. Brown on the outside, pink on the inside. Just like a nigger. I. That nicotine itch on the back of… Continue reading Change We Can Believe In
Do Black Lives Matter? The World’s Shameful Response to Charleston
In the wake of the massacre at Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church (AME), analysts have been busying themselves with apparently self-evident questions as to whether the atrocity was racially motivated, or constituted an act of domestic terrorism. Americans have been focused on questions about gun control and the ubiquity of the Confederate Flag—with an emerging… Continue reading Do Black Lives Matter? The World’s Shameful Response to Charleston
Police Reform Is More Important Than You Think
In the wake of Freddy Gray’s death and the uprising which followed in Baltimore, President Obama acknowledged the need to reform police practices and accountability, but insisted that the real problem faced by the black community in Baltimore, and around the country, is not the police—but a system of institutionalized racism, socio-economic polarization, and a… Continue reading Police Reform Is More Important Than You Think
Foreign Policy Fundamentalism
Originally published in The Wilson Quarterly, Vol. XXXIX, No. 3 (Summer 2015) Print version available here. With pomp and polish and platitudes, the 2016 presidential campaign is underway. It began in December, as former Florida Governor Jeb Bush announced he was “actively exploring” a run for the White House. Bush is more moderate than much… Continue reading Foreign Policy Fundamentalism
Gen. Petraeus Must Face Justice
The U.S. Justice Department and Federal Bureau of Investigation have recommended felony charges against David Petraeus for giving classified information to his biographer and mistress, Paula Broadwell. While not a crime in itself (because Petraeus was retired from the military at the time the scandal broke), the affair put Petraeus, then director of the Central Intelligence… Continue reading Gen. Petraeus Must Face Justice
Obama is Falling into Al-Baghdadi’s Trap
Just prior to the U.S.-led anti-Daish (ISIS) campaign into Syria, the group released a highly-polished 55-minute documentary, “Flames of War,” in which they challenged the United States to heavily mobilize in Iraq and Syria. They have made similar taunts when they executed Western hostages, seized American weapons, or co-opted the rebels trained to fight against… Continue reading Obama is Falling into Al-Baghdadi’s Trap
Arming the Syrian Rebels is Counterproductive: Here’s Why…
A critique circulating by many foreign policy hawks is that the Obama Administration was far too concerned about delineating the “moderates” from the “extremists” of Syria’s rebellion, and only providing support to the former. They speculate that if the United States had provided more aid early on, extremists like the Islamic State would have never… Continue reading Arming the Syrian Rebels is Counterproductive: Here’s Why…
The Obama Administration’s Case for Military Intervention in Syria? Bullshit.
In philosophy circles, bullshit is a technical term denoting a claim presented as “fact” although its veracity has not been established. The truth value of bullshit is largely irrelevant to its propagators. Bullshit is disseminated in the service of particular ends, typically opaque to the audience. There is no better description for the White House’s… Continue reading The Obama Administration’s Case for Military Intervention in Syria? Bullshit.
Moral Outrage from Munafiqun
“When it is said to them: ‘Make not mischief on the earth,’ they say: ‘why, we are but peacemakers!’ Surely, these are the ones who foster discord, but they perceive it not.” Al-Qur’an 2:11-2 In the midst of his ill-fated case in the Parliament to authorize the use of force in Syria, PM David Cameron… Continue reading Moral Outrage from Munafiqun
Red Lines, Syrian Blood
It doesn’t matter whether or not Bashar al-Asad used chemical weapons. The U.S. and its allies are going to carry out an attack on Syria in the very near future; the reasons for this attack have nothing to do with the recent incident in Ghouta. In response to the chemical attack in April, two months… Continue reading Red Lines, Syrian Blood
Barack Hussein Obama, Moderate Neoconservative
In early 2003, Saddam Hussein’s regional and international allies were all warning him that an American invasion was imminent. Hussein’s reply was basically, “I know Washington’s tone is getting aggressive, but they aren’t going to try to remove me. I’m the only one in the region who is really taking the fight to the terrorists… Continue reading Barack Hussein Obama, Moderate Neoconservative