Tim Scott Becomes First Black Senator From the South Since Reconstruction

I see that South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley chose Rep. Tim Scott to replace Jim DeMint in the Senate. The nation’s second Indian-American governor appointed the only African American who will be serving in the Senate come 2013.

I don't agree with Tea Party politics or politicians ... but, I have to admit that I ain't mad at either Nikki Haley or Tim Scott. The two of them made history today! Tim Scott is the first Black senator from the South since Reconstruction.

Scott burst onto the national scene in 2010, when he defeated Paul Thurmond in a runoff election for the Republican nomination in the state’s 1st Congressional District. When he won his seat in Congress that November, Scott made history, becoming the first black congressional Republican from the Deep South since Reconstruction.

I encourage all 'villagers' to give him the benefit of the doubt. Take a moment to learn more about Tim Scott.  From all I can see he will represent the citizens of South Carolina much better then Sen. Roland Burris represented the state of Illinois. Anyhow, I 'spose that he and Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) are going to become good buddies, huh?!

South Carolina GOP Debate Covers Drugs, Obama and the Economy; Herman Cain Declared the Winner

If past political history is any judge ... then the Republican Party will select businessman Herman Cain as their candidate in 2012 to run for the presidency against incumbent Barack Obama. After all, the GOP voters in South Carolina primaries have been right on the GOP presidential candidate in every election since 1980 and the GOP voters in a focus group following last night's South Carolina GOP presidential debate OVERWHELMINGLY indicated that Herman Cain was the winner of the debate.

See for yourself:





It was a surreal event in many respects. There were five candidates on the stage at this debate: Rep. Ron Paul, Herman Cain, former governor Tim Pawlenty, former senator Rick Santorum and former governor Gary Johnson.

Herman Cain

• Ron Paul - Paul is like your crazy uncle at the Thanksgiving dinner. You're never quite sure what he's going to say in front of the kids ... and you're never quite sure if he's right in the head. Last night, Paul made a passionate defense of the need to legalize heroin. His rant seemed to get the largest audience response of the night.
• Herman Cain - The focus group says that he won the debate. I smiled when one of the focus group members noted that Cain was 'articulate'. White folks are still amazed when they see a Black man who knows how to correctly use verbs and adjectives in a sentence. Quite frankly, the best part of last night's debate for Cain was the Fox News focus group afterwards. He was the definite winner in the minds of those 29 folks.
• Tim Pawlenty - He had the highest profile of any participant in last night's debate. I thought that the others might pile on him ... but, Pawlenty managed to hold his own last night. His roughest moment came when he tried to squirm his way out of a question about 'Cap and Trade' legislation in Minnesota. It turns out that he was for it before he was against it.
• Rick Santorum - He is still a cultural warrior. He doesn't have many ideas on any of the economic or foreign police issues ... but, he had a lot to say last night about family values.



Gary Johnson

• Gary Johnson - I need to be honest. I had never seen or heard about Gary Johnson until last night. Who knew that he was a governor in New Mexico? Who knew that he admits to smoking marijuana and feels that marijuana use should be legalized? Who knew that he doesn't care for the reality shows of either Donald Trump or Sarah Palin? Who knew that one of his life goals is to climb the highest mountains on each of the 7 continents? These were all things that we learned during the debate last night!

Did any of you watch the South Carolina GOP debate?

More GOP Racism: Why Would Any African American Join the Republican Party?

Politics is rather boring this year in Ohio. We don't have the same excitement that is occurring in other parts of the nation.

• In Delaware it appears that a GOP civil war is about to break out now that Christine O'Donnell is their candidate for senator.
• The GOP candidate for New York governor, Carl Paladino, is a guy who sends out racist and pornographic emails to his GOP buddies. He's also made controversial statements such as teaching welfare recipients job training and "personal hygiene" while housing them in converted prisons and calling outgoing Gov. David Paterson a drug addict.
• South Carolina heavy-hitters in the Republican Party hosted 'The Southern Experience' at the Country Club of Charleston a few days ago. SC Gov. Mark Sanford and SC Senate President Glenn McConnell (shown in the above photo) hosted this event in which the only Black people present were dressed up as slaves.

I have never voted for a Republican candidate on a state or national ballot.  The policies, actions and culture of the Republican party never appealed to me. I don't feel any different about the Tea Party. They seem like a bunch of folks who strongly believe in white privilege and who've never interacted on a professional or personal basis with a Black person in America.

I don't like the way that the GOP and Tea Party have taken such a personal and pre-meditated hatred of our nation's first Black president and turned it into a 'Just Say No' or 'birther' or 'socialist' mantra over the past year. The GOP leadership is now calling our president a 'con' and a man with a 'Kenyan, anti-colonial world view'. What kinda shyt is that?

I try to stay open-minded. I include A Political Season and Booker Rising on my RSS-feed so that I don't miss any blog postings that either Aaron or Shay put on their blog.  However, I still don't have a clue why any person of African descent would become a member of the Republican Party.  It must be lonely to be a Black Republican. If the African Americans in Alaska weren't fooled by Sarah Palin ... why should those of us in the lower 48 be fooled?

Can any of y'all explain it to me?

How can a Black Republican have so much self-hate in them that they would want to be associated with these racist wackos who have no love for people of African descent living in America?

Meet Democratic Senatorial Candidate Alvin Greene (D-SC) [Video]

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Some shyt doesn't really need much in the way of commentary. That being said ... do you have any thoughts on candidate Greene?

Friends and Family Speak Out on Dragging Death of Anthony Hill

Anthony Hill was a son, a father, a military veteran and a friend to many. His dragging death in South Carolina was shocking on many different levels. One of his friends recently posted the following video on YouTube:

Mr Hill's cousin, Karen Hill said, "I don't know enough about the truth right now to say anything, but I'll say it like this: he needs to be punished for what he did, because that's a sad way to take somebody's life. It's hurtful to see him die like that, not just for me but his mom and sister."

Karen said her cousin Anthony was a quiet person who kept to himself, but he would help a stranger. [SOURCE]

Can South Carolina Republicans Improve Reputation?

I was glad to see that House Majority Whip James Clyburn (D-SC) responded to Rep. Joe Wilson's (R-SC) heckling of the President last night by saying that Wilson "took our state's reputation to a new low."

"I thought Mark Sanford had taken it as low as it could go, but this is beyond the pale," said Clyburn.

South Carolina Republicans are trying to stop the bleeding. Sixty-one of the 72 House Republicans in South Carolina have signed a letter asking Governor Mark Sanford (R-SC) to resign due to inappropriate conduct revolving around his extramarital affair.

The letter concludes, "We have collectively come to the conclusion that South Carolina will not be able to move forward under your leadership."

Illinois already impeached their governor this year ... can South Carolina be far behind?

Apology from Rep. Joe Wilson ... Latest South Carolina Republican Unable to Control Himself

It stunned me to hear someone heckling the president during his speech before the joint session of congress. However, once I learned that the heckler was Rep. Joe Wilson (R-SC) ... I was less surprised. After all, it is evident that Republicans in South Carolina have a difficult time controlling themselves. Self-restraint isn't high for governors or congressional representatives from South Carolina.

Here is the video for those that missed the moment...



I guess that Rep. Wilson thought that he was at a Republican town hall meeting. A number of his colleagues, including Sen. John McCain, disowned him for his actions. As a result, he issued the following apology tonight:

"This evening, I let my emotions get the best of me when listening to the president's remarks regarding the coverage of illegal immigrants in the health care bill," the statement said. "While I disagree with the president's statement, my comments were inappropriate and regrettable. I extend sincere apologies to the president for this lack of civility."

I hope that Rep. Wilson pays a political price for his disrespect of the President. What say u?

Political Suicide by Mark Sanford (R-SC) Sealed by Emails w/ Maria the Argentine Booty Call

Villagers have seen this blog target South Carolina Governor Mark Sanford in the past for his wacky decisions on stimulus funding and state education.

All the chickens came home to roost today when he arrived at the Atlanta airport from his Buenos Aires flight today to be confronted by a reporter about the lies told by his staff earlier in the week ('Hiking the Appalachian Trail?'‎). Is it so hard to find politicians that make us proud?

The truth of the matter is that Sanford spent the last five days with Maria, his Argentine girlfriend. The two met a year ago and the relationship moved swiftly from innocent to romantic. Maria has two sons, one a teenager of driving age and the other younger.

Click here to see romantic emails between Mark Sanford and his Argentine girlfriend.

Sanford held a press conference earlier today to apologize for his extra-marital affair. He explained that his wife Jenny has been aware of the other woman for about five months now. They are not legally separated, but are apparently estranged. He indicates that he would like to work things out with her. The couple have four sons. Mark Sanford was 'hiking the Appalacian Trail' instead of talking with his four sons on Father's Day. That alone is reason to think that Sanford must have 'mad cow disease'?

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In an effort to appease those who may want to call for his resignation, he has resigned as Chairman of the Republican Governors Association. Personally, I think that Mark Sanford needs to resign as governor.

What are your thoughts on this growing scandal?

Ty’Sheoma Bethea's Letter Results in New Furniture for her Run-Down South Carolina School

Villagers, do you remember Ty’Sheoma Bethea? She was the young 8th grader who wrote a letter to congress to let them know about the dilapidated condition of her South Carolina school. Check this video as a reminder:




The students of J.V. Martin Junior High School in rural South Carolina were elated Monday to find new furniture and a freshly painted cafeteria, thanks to a student’s plea, a president’s speech and a businessman’s response. [SOURCE]

"I was amazed. They changed the whole thing," said eighth-grader Jessica Manning, 13. "It let me know somebody cares about us."

Darryl Rosser, CEO of classroom furniture supplier Sagus International, called Principal Amanda Burnette the day after Obama read Bethea’s plea. Over the past weekend, Sagus sent nearly 2,000 pieces of furniture (value: $250,000) on four tractor-trailer loads. Volunteers worked throughout the weekend to put the surprise together.

The cafeteria is newly painted in the school’s black and gold colors, with a three-dimensional Wildcats logo behind the stage. Words of encouragement from leaders such as Thomas Jefferson and Martin Luther King Jr. adorn the walls. But the students chose as their favorite these words of President Obama: "Change will not come if we wait for some other person or some other time. We are the ones we’ve been waiting for. We are the change that we seek."

The student who brought the attention to J.V. Martin said the correctly-sized furniture will help students focus.

"Even though our dream is not yet completed … We now have a better school. We now feel better about our school," Ty’Sheoma Bethea said. "We are not quitters," she added, mimicking the words in her letter, "and we are not through."

Villagers, I think that this is where we should all remind ourselves ... 'YES WE CAN!'

High Schooler Sues Gov. Mark Sanford (R-SC) Over Stimulus Stalemate

In South Carolina, high school senior Casey Edwards has "filed a lawsuit asking the S.C. Supreme Court to decide who -- Gov. Mark Sanford or the Legislature -- controls $700 million in disputed federal stimulus money." Edwards believes that state schools need the funds, and there are indications that the court will "act swiftly" on the case. [SOURCE]

"I've had a great experience in my Chapin schools," said Edwards, who said she sold Chick-Fil-A chicken sandwiches to raise money for a Dillon County school last year after seeing a documentary on the poor conditions at schools along the Interstate 95 corridor. "Every student should have that same quality of education."

Well done little sista!

Gov. Mark Sanford (R-SC) on Defensive in Fight Over Stimulus Dollars

The online activism against Gov. Mark Sanford continued today.

Hundreds of phone calls are streaming into Governor Sanford's office this week from angry citizens decrying his plan to reject desperately needed funds from the federal stimulus bill. More than 600 calls were made to the Governor on Monday by members of ColorOfChange.org, the nation's largest online African American advocacy group, demanding that he accept the full amount of federal stimulus funding intended to buoy his struggling state's economy. The calls continue today.

Sanford's office was put on the defensive, with callers reporting that aides struggled to explain the Governor's decision in light of its likely effect on South Carolina's education system. They seemed unaware that Sanford's rejection of stimulus funds could lead to thousands of teachers losing their jobs.

Have you made the call to Gov. Sanford's office yet?

Online Activism: Call Gov. Mark Sanford’s Office Today

Members of ColorOfChange.org, the nation's largest online African American advocacy group, are scheduled to flood South Carolina Governor Mark Sanford's office with phone calls today demanding that he accept the full amount of federal stimulus funds intended to buoy his struggling state's economy.

The effort is set to launch just days after Sanford announced he may refuse nearly a quarter of the stimulus dollars, including those targeted for education, unemployment benefits and other social programs. The group said it expected to tie up the lines at Sanford's office throughout the day with hundreds of calls to drive home the importance of putting economic recovery -- in South Carolina and throughout the country -- before political posturing.

Villagers know my perspective on Sanford. I think he has 'mad cow disease'.

The callers are among more than 28,000 ColorOfChange.org members who recently signed an open letter to Sanford and five other Republican governors who have threatened to reject federal stimulus funds. The letter urges them to put their constituents' well-being ahead of their desire to build their own national profiles within the Republican party.

Sanford, chair of the Republican Governors Association, has said he would accept a portion of the stimulus funds only if he can use it to pay down debt, a position that ColorOfChange.org Executive Director James Rucker called indefensible.

"As people in South Carolina struggle with this recession, Governor Sanford has decided to stand in the way of the help," said Rucker. "It's obvious even to Republicans in South Carolina that this has nothing to do with what's best for the state -- it's all about scoring political points."

"Schools in South Carolina can’t afford for thousands of teachers to lose their jobs, and neither can America’s economy," Rucker continued. "But it seems like Governor Sanford thinks that currying favor with the far right of his political party is more important than stopping the economic bleeding."

The group noted that Black South Carolinians, nearly a third of the state's population, will be hit particularly hard by Sanford's decision to reject stimulus funds. The Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that Blacks in that state are twice as likely as whites to be unemployed. The state's jobless rate, at 10.4%, is second highest in the country.

Barack Obama Spanks Team Clinton in South Carolina

1/28/08 Update - Jesse Jackson gave interview to AfroSpear member Gina McCauley on the South Carolina results.

---

South Carolina is giving a landslide victory to Barack Obama in the Democratic primary tonight. Not just Black voters ... but, young voters, women voters, rural voters and everyone else that could reach the ballot box voted in favor of Barack Obama. The racially divisive politics that Bill & Hillary Clinton brought to the campaign in South Carolina failed. There is no other way to look at it ... Barack Obama regained his footing as the transformative candidate for the 21st century.

Exit polls show that Barack Obama won a majority of white voters under 30, white men, and white college-educated voters. Hillary Clinton had many endorsements from Black preachers and congressmen in South Carolina. However, Hillary only received 17% of the Black vote in South Carolina. I bet those Black preachers and congressmen are feeling pretty lonely out there tonight.

The question now is whether Team Clinton will learn a lesson ... or does Team Clinton feel that race-baiting will help them with white and Hispanic voters on Super Tuesday. When asked about the Obama victory in South Carolina, Bill Clinton reminded the reporter that "...Jesse Jackson won here in 1984 and 1988.". That sounds like racial code words for white voters around the country that they should discount the South Carolina vote. After all, what comparision is there between Obama and Jesse other than the fact both candidates are Black. Bill Clinton could have noted that he won the SC primary in 1992 or that John Edwards won the SC primary in 2004 ... but, he went directly to the white boogeyman (Jesse Jackson). Is Team Clinton truly that cynical about the Democratic electorate?





Time will tell. My view is simple. Team Clinton feels entitled to the presidency as if they are royalty. In my view Team Clinton is 1990s .... yesterday ... fights and tactics that worked well last century. This year we have an opportunity to elect a leader for the 21st century ... a leader that can transform America and bring us together in ways that Hillary Clinton can never do.

The policy differences between the two (or three if you count Bill) aren't that different. Therefore, the message of change and the image of Obama as a unifying person should make the difference.

What are your thoughts on the South Carolina results?

Barack Obama Victory Speech in South Carolina

JFK's daughter sez she has found a president like her father. Villagers, what say u?

Oprah and Barack Obama Streaming Live in the Electronic Village

My thanks to those that watched the live feed from South Carolina! Please let me know if there is a YouTube or other video of today's speech from Oprah & Obama. I'll place it in this post to replace the live feed box. OK?

• Final update [4548 viewers] - Barack ends by telling a story of his trip to Greenwood, SC and the 'Fired Up' chant of a local city council member. One voice can make a difference. He leads chant, Fired Up ... Ready to Go. The crowd eats it up. This appears to be a slam dunk for Barack Obama. I imagine that he will get a big bump in South Carolina and elsewhere.
  
  
• 3:30 pm update [4494 viewers] - Barack Obama calls on voters to be bold. He gives a story about home health care worker in Oakland. He shows his compassion for women and other common folks that need some help from government to knock down some of the barriers to the American Dream. Barack breaks it down about why he is running for President. He talks about his foreign policy vision. He talks about criminal justice system ('no more Jena 6'). Our moment is now ... the fierce urgency of now. He gives list of things that he doesn't want to see four years from now.



• 3:15 pm update [4523 viewers] - Barack Obama is on fire! He acknowledges his wife, Oprah and the largest crowd in the election cycle. Big applause from the crowd when he reminds them that George W. Bush will not be on the ballot next year. He challenges the audience to ask, 'What is next for America?'. He talks about how America has lost trust in government. He says that this is a chance to come together and work on big problems (healthcare, energy, poverty, children in prison instead of college) that have been on our agenda for decades.



• 3:00 pm update [4450 viewers] - Oprah is breaking it down. She is sharing why she is inspired by Obama. She isn't telling the audience to just trust me, rather she is breaking it down in terms of the reasons she believes we should vote for Obama --> statesmanship, strength, honor and compassion. She looks to see Obama inspire us to fix education problems ... fix health insurance ... Now is the time for Barack Obama. Oprah is sick of politics as usual. We need to tell the truth and be the truth. Oprah hits Hillary, "...the amount of time you spent in Washington DC doesn't matter if you haven't used good judgement while you are there." She challenges the experience argument. She wants us to see if there is wisdom in the candidate. She breaks down his resume and track record as community organizer, state legislator and US senator. Clarity and conviction and proceed with moral authority. Oprah sez, "it does matter what the rest of the world thinks about us." She reminds the audience that Jan 23rd is the time for South Carolina to seize the moment. Some say Barack Obama should wait his turn ... Oprah knocked down this argument by saying that we can't wait for the future ... the moment is NOW. She took the microphone and is walking around the stage now to tell her Jane Pittman story. Is he the one? she asks. It's Obama-time!



• 2:40 pm update [4273 viewers] - Michelle Obama did a wonderful job of introducing Oprah Winfrey. Is Michelle taller than Barack?



• 2:30 pm update [4133 viewers] - World record set for the Largest Phone Bank with 36,426 participants, beating previous record of 15,000.



• 2:15 pm update [4176 viewers] - Two members of the Obama campaign staff are on stage asking folks in the stadium to take out their cell phones and join the campaign text-messaging program. The two staffers are now using a gimmick to get the folks in the stadium to make phone calls to potential voters that are not in the stadium. They are trying to break a world record evidently. This is boring for those of us viewing on streaming TV. I'm ready for Oprah, Michell and Barack now!



• 2:00 pm update [3753 viewers] - The crowd appears to be building. Of course, the camera view doesn't give the full stadium, however, you can see the crowd grew considerably since the show first came on 90-minutes ago. Arrested Development first started 17 years ago. These two sisters that are dancing are probably in their 40s. I see one of them is sitting down now. I know that I would be sitting after the energy that they placed into the early part of their set. OK. I'm ready for Oprah, Michelle and Barack now!



• 1:45 pm update [3425 viewers] - The first hour was filled with performances by local groups, including some high school marching bands. The real show appears to be heating up now with the appearance of Arrested Development. They are setting stage with song called, I Believe in Miracles.

Barack Obama Winning in South Carolina; Where Is Oprah Event Coverage This Weekend?

A new Insider Advantage poll of South Carolina (conducted Dec. 3-4 of 421 likely Dem voters) has Obama at 26%, Clinton at 24%, Edwards at 15%, and Biden at 10%.

C-Span TV will have live coverage of the Obama-Oprah event in Iowa today at 4:30 pm here is a preliminary indication the "Road To The White House" program on C-Span TV will have taped coverage of a portion of the Obama-Oprah event from South Carolina on Sunday December 9, 2007 at 6:30 pm and 9:30 pm ET.

Villagers can watch the South Carolina event with Senator Barack Obama, his wife Michelle and special guest Oprah Winfrey LIVE on the web at http://www.ustream.tv/ starting at 12:30pm ET on Sunday, December 9.

What do you think about Oprah's support of Barack Obama? Will it matter?

Demand is Overwhelming for Barack Obama and Oprah Winfrey in South Carolina

Barack Obama invited Oprah Winfrey to join him at a campaign stop this coming weekend in Columbia, SC. The campaign had been scheduled to hold the rally at the Colonial Center in downtown Columbia, which seats 18,000 people, but Obama's campaign announced that "overwhelming excitement" had caused a run on free tickets.

The rally on Sunday is being moved to the 80,000 seat college football stadium at the University of South Carolina. There had been a waiting list for tickets, but the move to the football stadium will allow the campaign to accommodate every man or woman in South Carolina who wants to go.

Obama/Oprah may not fill the stadium up to capacity ... but, the mere fact that they are moving to sold-out the initial arena so quickly is a sign of the momentum that continues to build for Obama.

Billary must be sick in their stomach about this support booming in South Carolina!

African American Women: Where They Stand

Drumbeats from Blackfolks blog tell us that throughout the week of November 26, "NBC News With Brian Williams" will take a look at the issues facing African American women across our nation in a new series "African American Women: Where They Stand." The series will cover a wide-range of issues from their role in the '08 Presidential race, to the increased health-risks that they need to be concerned about.

Monday's installment will discuss African American women's progress in the education field. Nearly two-thirds of African American undergraduates are women. At Black colleges, the ratio of women to men is 7 to 1. And that is leading to a disparity in the number of African American women who go on to own their own businesses. Rehema Ellis will talk to educators, students and businesswomen about why this disparity exists.

Tuesday, Ellis will look at relationships within the African American female community. Many agree the gender disparity in education and business among African Americans is having an effect on relationships that African American women have. Some even say the implications could redefine "Black America's family and social structure." In the past fifty years, the percentage of African American women between 25-54 who have never been married has doubled from 20% to 40%. (Compared to just 16% of white women who have never been married today). Ellis sits down with the members of a Chicagobook club and talk about this difference and how it impacts them.

Dr. Nancy Snyderman will discuss the increases risks for breast cancer for African American women on Wednesday. Mortality rates for African American women are higher than any other racial or ethnic group for nearly every major cause of death, including breast cancer. Black women with breast cancer are nearly 30% more likely to die from it than white women. Premenopausal Black women are more than twice as likely to get a more aggressive form of the disease. And, not only are African American women more likely to die from breast cancer, but they're less likely to get life-saving treatments. Dr. Snyderman will profile one of the only oncologists in the world who specializes in the treatment of African American women with breast cancer.

On Thursday, Ron Allen will take viewers to South Carolina -- the first southern primary state -- and ask the question: Will race trump gender or gender trump race? In South Carolina, Black women made up nearly 30 percent of all democratic primary voters in 2004. This year, polls show a significant number are undecided, torn between choosing the first African American or first female Presidential candidate. Allen talks with the undecided, as well the state directors for the Clinton and Obama campaigns, who happen to be African American women.

To close the series on Friday, Dr. Snyderman will raise the frightening statistic that African American women are 85% more likely to get diabetes, a major complication for heart disease. And, like breast cancer, more Black women die from heart disease than white women. Dr. Snyderman will profile a leading expert and a unique church-based outreach program in South Carolina that seeks to spread the word about heart disease risks to black women congregants.

Mara Schiavocampo, Digital Correspondent for "Nightly News," will address two hot topics in the African American community: interracial dating and the impact of hip hop music on Black women. Interracial dating is a growing trend in the African American community. An Essence.com poll found that 81% of participants approved of Black women dating non-Black men. According to a U.S. Census Bureau report in 2000, 95,000 Black women were married to white men. In 2005, that number increased to 134,000. Schiavocampo will talk to experts about the trend and discuss how this defines the "Black family" of the future. Schiavocampo will convene a panel of leading Black men and women from the hip-hop industry for an engaging discussion on whether hip hop lyrics and videos positively or negatively affect Black women. The roundtable also will address how these portrayals are affecting relationships between Black women and Black men.

Villagers, I look forward to seeing your comments on this NBC news reporting. Do you plan to watch it?