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Hillary Clinton is talking and she has a lot to say! During an interview at Recode's Code Conference, Clinton argued that the Russians "could not have known how best to weaponize" damaging information about her campaign and fake news stories perpetrated on social media unless they had been "guided" by Americans. Hmmm ... wonder what Americans she meant specifically? Also, we don’t know when, but ousted FBI Director James Comey is expected to testify before the Senate Intelligence Committee next week. C-SPAN has likely never seen such ratings. Meanwhile, at least 40 Dems want Jared Kushner’s security clearance revoked. And today, 45 will make his announcement on the Paris Climate Accord. Any chance all the WH leaks about us pulling out are “fake news?” #FingersCrossed. Here's what's up this Thursday:- The Obama Presidential Library boosts property values on the South Side.
- Congressman Juan Vargas (D-CA) introduces a Deported Veterans Bill package.
- Somebody was mad about Melissa Harris-Perry coming for the NAACP.
- Dems and the missing Black voters.
- David Sutphen makes a move.
- Voto Latino staffer heads back to the Hill.
- Vanita Gupta takes the reins at The Leadership Conference and names three new staffers.
- Actors Hill Harper and Laz Alonzo join the Lawyers' Committee to honor Congressman John Lewis (D-GA).
- Leah Daughtry gets surprised.
- A noose found at the Blacksonian. Guys ... really. Don't let these current political times embolden you and get you hemmed up in these DC streets.
- CAPAC and CHC members say immigration worries creating a mental health crisis for many children.
- Congressman Elijah Cummings (D-MD) readies to square off with Congressman Trey Gowdy (R-SC).
- Journal focuses on #BlackLivesMatter but doesn't actually include any Black authors.
- Hits keep coming for Senator Ted Cruz (D-TX) -- unpopular at home and in the Senate.
- HBCUs reveal some "Hidden Figures."
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Activist José Antonio Vargas was honored at John Jay College in NYC on Wednesday, alongside Mary L. Bonauto, one of the legal architects of marriage equality. | |  |
Congresswoman Michelle Luján Grisham (D-NM) met with some constituents at a coffee shop in her district on Tuesday. | |
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Obama Presidential Center Increases Chicago Real Estate Prices
When you stand just right looking out from the 12th floor of Jackson Towers, a real estate broker tells a prospective condo buyer, “You’ll be able to see the library.” The broker is referring to the Obama Presidential Center. Real estate brokers say the buzz about the library has grown exponentially since it was announced that Jackson Park would host it. Sale prices have ticked up too, from about $226,000 in July 2016 to $255,000 this month. And it’s not just new condos basking in the Obama library limelight. Realtors say they’re seeing more developers rehabbing existing homes too. Meanwhile, a good chunk of the country would love to see the Obamas back on another piece of real estate. A quaint little place built by slaves conveniently located at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. More here.
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POTUS and FLOTUS 44 Put Down DC Roots
And speaking of Obama real estate, they'll be staying for a while not far from their old digs. Former President Barack Obama and former First Lady Michelle Obama have bought the eight-bedroom, nine-and-half bath home they’ve been renting since January from former President Clinton Press Secretary Joe Lockhart in the Kalorama neighborhood, paying a cool $8.1 million. The Obamas have said they plan to remain in the nation’s capital while their youngest daughter, Sasha, finishes high school at Sidwell Friends, and a spokesman for the former first couple said they decided it made more sense to buy rather than continue to rent. With these DC rent prices -- smart move! More here from the WaPo.
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| The Beat DC Podcast: Valerie Jarrett is Writing a Book!
Former Obama Senior Advisor Valerie Jarrett may not be advising presidents in the Oval Office anymore, but she is still giving counsel. Jarrett took questions from a packed room at a policy breakfast moderated by our Jamal Simmons at The Raben Group in DC on Wednesday, weighing in on topics ranging from gun violence to Ivanka Trump's role, to hate crimes on campus. And she's writing a book! Ms. Jarrett will be our special podcast guest next week. In the meantime here is a clip of their talk.
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Vargas Introduces Deported Veterans Bill Package
On Tuesday, The Beat reported that seven members of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus will be visiting the Deported Veterans Support House in Tijuana, Mexico to meet with deported veterans. To accompany the visit, Congressman Juan Vargas (D-CA) introduced a deported veterans bill package that includes three pieces of legislation to help prevent veterans from being deported, and help deported veterans access medical services. Learn more.
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House Takes Swipe at Tribal Rights ... With No Tribal Leaders Present
Tribes often face enormous obstacles in the nation's capital. In a hearing that flew under the radar last week, "Examining Impacts of Federal Natural Resources Laws Gone Astray," Congressman Raúl Labrador (R-ID), who chaired the panel, quickly left no doubts about his intentions. In his opening statement, he took aim at the Indian Reorganization Act and said it prevents newly recognized tribes from following the land-into-trust process even though restoring tribal homelands was one of the law's primary goals. But tribal leaders, even those with political connections, can't be faulted for missing out. None of them were invited to testify last week by the Republican leaders of the House Committee on Natural Resources. More here.
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Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal (D-WA) was part of the delegation honored by Planned Parenthood on Wednesday. | |  |
HACR's Cid Wilson spending time with family in Florida. He's pictured here with his brother, merengue hip hop artist Magic Juan, and cousin Sam Hale, a stuntman and choreographer. | |
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The Hits Keep Coming for Cruz
Turns out Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX) isn’t the most popular guy at home or in the Senate. First, Vanity Fair publishes a piece on Cruz’s vulnerability for 2018, citing his 38% approval rating at home, and calling his challenger, Congressman Beto O’Rourke (D-TX), “Kennedyesque.” Now, it turns out one of his Senate colleagues wasn’t feeling the holiday cheer about Cruz. Senator Al Franken (D-MN) described Wednesday the reaction he once witnessed from an unnamed Democratic colleague who picked Cruz’s name during the Senate’s Secret Santa name drawing. “I’ve had people pick out Cruz’s name and then drop it on the floor. I’ve actually had that happen,” the Minnesota senator said during a recent town hall meeting. Franken himself has said that no one dislikes Cruz more than that he does, telling Charlie Rose "he's the kind of guy who microwaves fish in the office." Oy. More here.
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Congresswoman Yvette Clarke (D-NY) at the 12th annual Mike Handy Veterans Foundation Memorial Weekend BBQ in NYC. | |  |
Google's Stephanie Valencia was all tuckered out on Tuesday as she had a full day in San Francisco. | |
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David Sutphen Joins 2U
After nearly nine years, David Sutphen is leaving the Brunswick Group. He is joining 2U, an organization which partners with colleges and universities to work on digital education. Sutphen will be their Chief Communications and Engagement Officer. David was previously the SVP of Government Relations for Viacom where he worked closely with DeDe Lea -- one of the few African Americans who manages a global GR shop. Sutphen also spent time managing GR for the Recording Industry Association of America. But the University of Michigan Law School graduate’s launching pad was Capitol Hill. He served as General Counsel for the late Senator Ted Kennedy and prior to that served as Chief of Staff to former Memphis Congressman Harold Ford, Jr. Congrats, David on your next move! More about David here.
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Schumer Names Deputy Director of Hispanic Media
Voto Latino’s Audrey López is returning to Capitol Hill to serve in the office of Senator Chuck Schumer (D-NY) as Deputy Director for Hispanic Media. López, who ran comms for Voto Latino, will work with director Pili Tobar, who's heading for maternity leave today until the end of August. Audrey previously worked for Congressman Luis Gutiérrez (D-IL) as his scheduler and advisor on policy including on Puerto Rico, education, and the Congressional Hispanic Caucus. She is a graduate of the University of Tampa where she got her Bachelor of Science in Criminology with minors in both Law & Justice and Government & World Affairs. She is currently pursuing a Master of Arts in Strategic Communications from American University. Fun fact -- she’s a diehard Yankees fan. Any chance Schumer can hook up his new staffer with some tix?? More about Audrey here.
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Vanita Gupta Begins Tenure as Leadership Conference President and Adds Three New Senior Staff Members
Today, Vanita Gupta, former head of the Civil Rights Division at the Department of Justice, begins her tenure as president and CEO of The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights and The Leadership Conference Education Fund. Gupta announced the addition of three new senior staff members: Kristine Lucius, executive vice president for policy; Seema Nanda, executive vice president and COO; and Ashley Allison, senior advisor (which The Beat previously reported). Gupta said, “This great and diverse coalition represents the hopes and dreams of millions of Americans striving for better lives and serves as an example to the world of the important role that civil society plays in developing democracy. While we have many challenges in the days and years ahead of us, I’m confident that The Leadership Conference will continue the critical work of building an America as good as its ideals.” She succeeds Wade Henderson, who stepped down on May 31 after 21 years of service as president and CEO. More here.
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Tyrone Gayle, Press Secretary for Senator Kamala Harris (D-CA), having some photo shenanigans with his girlfriend at a friend's wedding last weekend. | |  |
Commentator Angela Rye spent time vacationing in Nevis with longtime friends, aka "day ones." | |
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Don’t Come for the NAACP
Melissa Harris-Perry penned a thought-provoking article in the NYT entitled “How to Save the N.A.A.C.P. From Irrelevance.” In it, she offered her own brutally honest take on what she thought the path forward for the organization should be, even not so subtly suggesting it step aside. Not so fast, says Dr. Marcus Bright, a scholar and Executive Director of Education for a Better America. In a piece for HuffPo, Bright writes, “Harris-Perry was engaging in some revisionist storytelling. Unfortunately, a lot of the truth tends to be sacrificed in the media’s search for something new and different to counter tradition. It is great to highlight and spotlight new activists, but there was no need to disrespect and dismiss those who have been on the ground doing the work well before 2014. Contrary to popular belief, the struggle for civil rights did not begin in Ferguson.” The NAACP also weighed in by tweeting noted accomplishments the past year. To read the entire clap back, click here.
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Dems and the Absent Black Voters
After the election, everyone had a theory on how exactly Donald Trump ascended to the highest office of the land. DNC scandal? The third party factor? The Russian interference? But one big contributor was something many feared would happen: a drop-off in African American turnout once Barack Obama was no longer heading the ticket. With 2018 just around the corner, these trends could matter a great deal, particularly in elections where Democrats are more heavily dependent on African American voters. New York Magazine looks at the data and hones in on some elections happening right now where Black voters could make a huge impact (we’re looking at you, Georgia’s 6th). Read more here.
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Laz Alonzo and Hill Harper Join the Lawyers’ Committee to Honor John Lewis
Tonight, civil rights icon Congressman John Lewis (D-GA) heads to NYC. He is being honored by the Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law at the 2017 A. Leon Higginbotham Corporate Leadership Award Dinner Congressman Lewis is the Robert F. Kennedy Justice Prize honoree. Delivering opening remarks from Lawyers’ Committee is their national spokesman Hill Harper. His co-emcee is actor Laz Alonso. The ceremony will feature a keynote speech by the congressman and will also feature an award for Home Depot CEO Craig Menear. More about the event here.
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Senator Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV) listening to AAPI leaders in her district talk about immigration policies. | |  |
TV personality Jeff Johnson with his two sons celebrating the elder of the two getting an award. | |
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DNC Thanks Leah Daughtry
On Wednesday night, DNC Chair Tom Pérez honored Leah Daughtry, the two-time CEO of the DNC convention, for her years of service to the party. Governor Howard Dean made a surprise appearance and shared many stories of the DNC Denver Convention and the early stages of the 50 State Strategy that Daughtry and Dean executed with Cornell Belcher. Spotted at the event: Minyon Moore, Yolanda Caraway, LaToia Jones, DNC Vice Chair Mike Blake, Albert Morales, Alix Dejean, new DNC Director of Leadership Julie Greene, new DNC Director of Meeting and Events Lisa H. Ware, Patrice Taylor, and others. Daughtry has previously served as Chief of Staff of the DNC where she created Faith In Action, the Democratic Party’s outreach to communities of Faith. Daughtry has also served as Resident Fellow at Harvard University’s Institute of Politics, where she focused on the role faith and values have come to play in American politics. A native of Brooklyn, Reverend Daughtry (yep, she’s also a preacher!) has held various senior posts at the Department of Labor and in Congress. More about her here.
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True Story: Journal Publishes ‘Black Lives Matter’ Issue Without Any Black Writers
We really just can’t with this one. The Journal of Political Philosophy has come under fire for its June issue, which dedicates more than 60 pages to a three-author “symposium” on the Black Lives Matter movement, and does not include any actual Black voices. The journal has since apologized for not including the work of black philosophers, but as Inside Higher Ed reports, the incident has drawn attention to the fact that the journal has a poor record of including Black scholars and, prior to the symposium issue, did little to include scholarship on issues of race. More here.
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A Noose Was Left in the Smithsonian's African American Museum
A visitor to the National Museum of African American History and Culture found a noose on the floor of an exhibit today. According to the Smithsonian, U.S. Park Police removed the noose and the “Era of Segregation 1786-1968” exhibit was closed for three hours. It's the second time this week a noose has been discovered on the grounds of a Smithsonian museum. "It's clearly a message to the museum," a Smithsonian spokesperson said. BuzzFeed has more.
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CBCF's Shuanise Washington with husband Donald celebrating their 20th wedding anniversary on Tuesday. | |  |
APALA's Greg Cendana celebrating his birthday in Cuba on Wednesday. | |
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Cummings Set for Rematch with Gowdy
The last time Congressmen Trey Gowdy (R-SC) and Elijah Cummings (D-MD) oversaw a politically explosive investigation, it was Hillary Clinton sitting at the center. Now Donald Trump and the Russians are their focus and the two are set for a rematch. Politico reports that the Gowdy-Cummings relationship, forged over two years as the leaders of the House Select Committee on Benghazi, is as complicated as it will be critical. It's often harder for the executive branch to ignore bipartisan requests, which was a difficult hurdle during the Benghazi probe. The two men have squabbled publicly, but when the cameras are off, both profess respect for each other and an ability to work together, however haltingly. “They do have a good relationship, and I don't think Mr. Gowdy has any doubt that they could work well together in a bipartisan fashion on the Oversight Committee,” said Gowdy spokeswoman Amanda González. Meanwhile, when Cummings was asked about the prospect of Gowdy getting the gavel after Congressman Jason Chaffetz (R-UT) exits, he responded: “Whoever they send, I’m gonna be me.” More here.
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Harsh U.S. Immigration Policies Causing Mental, Social Harm to American Children
In an op-ed for The Hill, Congresswomen Lucille Roybal-Allard (D-CA), Grace Napolitano (D-CA), and Pramila Jayapal (D-WA) wrote that mental health affects all, regardless of gender, culture, and socio-economic status. As May -- National Mental Health Awareness Month -- came to a close, they wanted to bring attention to how our nation’s increasingly harsh immigration policies have harmed the mental and social well-being of millions of American children. "Children of immigrants -- the large majority of whom are U.S. citizens -- are confronted daily with the effects of anti-immigrant policies, such as xenophobic comments shouted in public, bullying on the playground, and having a general feeling that they don’t belong here. All of these lead to chronic, sometimes traumatizing, stress." Read the full op-ed.
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TV One's Roland Martin appeared on Sway in the Morning on Thursday to talk NUL's State of Black America. | |  |
CBC members joined the Black Trade Unionist on Wednesday for their 46th-annual convention. | |
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More ‘Hidden Figures’ Coming Soon
The AP’s Errin Whack recently uncovered some hidden figures. She reports that one of the smallest HBCUs in the country, Dillard University in New Orleans, graduates more physics majors -- and, notably, more female physics majors -- than far larger schools with more resources. With an enrollment of 1,200, Dillard ranks second in the country in Black physics undergrads. The point was punctuated at Dillard’s recent commencement exercises, which featured a keynote address from actress and singer Janelle Monae, one of the stars of Hidden Figures. Nine of the top ten physics departments in the country -- at Black or majority white schools -- producing the most African American undergraduates in physics are at HBCUs, according to the American Institute of Physics. Currently, the top producing school is Morehouse College. More here.
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Report Notes Lack of Diversity in Schools
More than one in three Black students in the South attend a school that is “intensely racially segregated,” where 90 percent of students are racial minorities, a 56 percent rise from 1980, according to a report by UCLA’s Civil Rights Project and Penn State’s University’s Center for Education and Civil Rights. The study also found that the number of Latino students enrolled in public schools in the South has surpassed Black enrollment for the first time ever, and Latinos comprise 27 percent of the overall student body. The report notes that 60 years after Brown v. Board of Education, students face “decreasing exposure to a race other than his or her own.” More here.
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TBT to 24 years ago when Michele Norris said "I do" to MBKA's Broderick Johnson. | |  |
Who's the mustache? That's none other than Congressman Adriano Espaillat (D-NY) with his grandparents as he kicked off his first campaign in NYC. | |
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| FOMO
Thursday, June 8th, 7P: STARZ sponsors the DC premiere of Season 4 of the series Power. Newseum, 555 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW. By invitation only.
Friday, June 9th, 6P: BET Farewell DC party. 1235 W Street, NE. By invitation only.
Monday, June 12th, 6:30P: Author Sheryll Cashin reads from her new book, Loving: Interracial Intimacy in America and the Threat to White Supremacy. Busboys & Poets, 14th & V streets, NW. Click here for more information.
Wednesday, June 14th, 9A: The Raben Group sponsors a policy breakfast with Vanita Gupta, incoming President and CEO of The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights. Click here to RSVP.
Wednesday, June 14th, 5:30P: Celebrate the release of Season Five of Orange is the New Black, and support Lesley López, candidate for the Maryland General Assembly, at Orange is the New Black Trivia Night with host Jillian Rubino. Penn Social, 801 E Street, NW. Click here for more information and to purchase tickets.
Thursday, June 15th, 8A: The Hill sponsors a Latina Leaders Summit. Participants include Congresswoman Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-FL), Linda Sánchez (D-CA), Lucille Roybal-Allard (D-CA), and Jennifer Korn, Sarita Brown, Alejandra Castillo, Nina Vaca, Geisha Williams, and Mónica Gil. Click here to RSVP.
Wednesday, June 21st, 6P: Reception and fundraiser for Kia Hamadanchy for Congress. 408 East Capitol Street, NE, RSVP at: info@KiaForOrangeCounty.com
Wednesday, July 26th - 28th: ColorComm, Women of Color in Communications holds its 2017 conference in Miami, FL, featuring keynote speaker Whoopi Goldberg. Click here to register.
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