Analysis: President Obama Asserts His Blackness

By: Michael H. Cottman

Was President Barack Obama out of line when he told Americans that police in Cambridge, Massachusetts “acted stupidly” in the recent arrest of Harvard professor Henry Louis Gates?

"I could've calibrated those words differently," Obama acknowledged at a surprise appearance before the White House press corps Friday afternoon.

Despite the president's back peddling on his choice of words, black America nonetheless witnessed a profound moment seven months into his term: Obama asserting his blackness from the White House bully pulpit while discussing the arrest of a fellow black man - a friend - by a white police officer.

Analysis: President Obama Asserts His Blackness....

Obama Takes on Health Care Reform, Gates' Arrest

By: Michael H. Cottman

President Barack Obama told Americans Wednesday night that police in Cambridge, Massachusetts “acted stupidly” in arresting Harvard professor Henry Louis Gates last week during a heated dispute inside Gates’ home.

"I don't know, not having been there and not seeing all the facts, what role race played," Obama said during a prime-time news conference at the White House in response to a question from the Chicago Sun Times' Lynn Sweet.

Obama acknowledged that Gates is "a friend” and admitted he may be "a little biased" about his opinion of the situation.

Obama Takes on Health Care Reform, Gates' Arrest....