Something has indeed changed in race relations, author Ellis Cose concludes. There is less anger and rage, more hope and faith toward the future among African Americans of all income levels than there has ever been; more willingness by most white Americans to regard their fellow black citizens on an equal footing. This is especially true among the younger generations within both groups.

This compelling book traces the history of the assault on democracy and the rise of a police state that reached its zenith in the George W. Bush administration. From the war on communism, to the war on labor, to the war terrorism, our government has used surveillance, preventive detention, torture, and a climate of fear to consolidate its power and neutralize dissent. Under the guise of nurturing democracy at home and abroad, the U.S. government has actually undermined it.

Let’s highlight the absolute trouncing given by Ron Sparks in the Alabama Governor’s race to Artur Davis, an African-American candidate who thought it would be a good idea to try and run the general election in the primary, amassing the voting record of a Dixiecrat and ignoring the black political leadership in the state.

I jumped on a White House conference call with Barbara Lee (D-CA), chair of the Congressional Black Caucus, yesterday. The topic was the youth summer job program, which the House has passed but the Senate has yet to take up. I get an advisory in my inbox that there’s another call with Lee today, where she’ll be joined by Rep. Laura Richardson (D-CA) and Biden economic advisor Jared Bernstein.

What’s going on?

A big issue in the Arkansas Senate primary is Blanche Lincoln’s relationship to the African-American community. She has been going around the state touting her “A” rating from the NAACP. But someone has a problem with that – the President of the Arkansas NAACP.