Adam Serwer

The Washington Post has an article today on the efforts of activists who have been working to register former felons to vote. The conventional wisdom is that such things help Democrats, given that often the felony disenfranchised are African-American. But Republicans have been pretty receptive to the idea of former felons voting as well, as […]

My eternal nemesis Tim Fernholz (j/k) insists that Obama’s new attack ad works, citing the media coverage the ad, which calls John McCain “Washington’s biggest celebrity,” is sure to receive. We have yet to see if it “guarantees” the kind of media coverage Obama is looking for, but I wouldn’t be surprised if the talking […]

I’m not sure why reporters, intellectuals, pundits and the like are always trying to declare the end of black “something.” In a piece for the New York Times Magazine, Matt Bai asks whether Barack Obama is a symbol of “the end of black politics”. Bai’s article is, in my view, a bit off the mark. […]

I don’t have much to say about Barack Obama‘s ad calling McCain Washington’s biggest “Celebrity,” except that imitation is the sincerest form of validation. I think the ad has a strong case to make but that it mostly highlights how successful the McCain campaign’s attacks in this vein have been. — A. Serwer

In Maryland last Friday, Prince George’s County Police Chief Melvin C. High apologized for a recent paramilitary police raid on the home of Berwyn Heights Mayor Cheye Calvo, in which both of Calvo’s dogs were killed and he and his mother in law were handcuffed under suspicion of smuggling marijuana. A package containing 30 pounds […]

Is it just me or has the world been having a rough 24 hours? In Iraq, lawmakers may have to postpone provincial elections set for October after they failed to come to a power sharing agreement between Kurds, Turkmen and Arabs over Kirkuk. As a result, the Sunni Awakening leaders may become disillusioned about the […]

I’m going to cosign what Ta-Nehisi Coates said about Stephen Cohen being able to join the CBC. Rep. William Lacy Clay‘s explanation is patently ridiculous. “Quite simply, Rep. Cohen will have to accept what the rest of the country will have to accept — there has been an unofficial Congressional White Caucus for over 200 […]

The recently released Democratic Party platform places “fatherhood” among its priorities. But a closer look indicates that the party may be willing to move forward on the problem of more than two million Americans in prison, and even more who have just left or are on their way back. (emphasis mine). Children who grow up […]

Following up on my post from yesterday, McCain bundler Harry Sargeant III just keeps getting more interesting. According to The New York Times, Sargeant raised a great deal of money from contributors who appear to be giving beyond their means. In some cases, donors seem either apolitical or utterly opposed to McCain as a candidate, […]