by Calvin Woodward CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — President Barack Obama goes before the Democratic National Convention and the nation on Thursday for a capstone speech designed not just to persuade undecided voters to swing his way in a tight election but to put fire in the belly of his supporters. FIRED UP--President Barack Obama waves to supporters as he arrives at the Charlotte/Douglas International Airport for the Democratic National Convention in Charlotte, N.C., Wednesday, Sept. 5, 2012. (AP Photo/Chuck Burton) Obama senior adviser David Plouffe promised the president would give voters "a very clear sense of where he thinks the country needs to go economically, the path we need to take." But he also cautioned that no one should expect Obama to slingshot out of his convention with a huge boost in polls that have long signaled a close race.
For the Week of September 5-11 September 5 1859—The first novel written by a Black woman is published in the United States. The woman was Harriet Wilson and the novel was entitled “Our Nig: Or Sketches from the Life of a Free Black.” The novel was lost for years until reprinted with a critical essay by Black scholar Henry Louis Gates in 1982. The novel, which may have been a bit autobiographical, centers on the life of “Frada”—a Black indentured servant who was physically and emotionally abused by her owners. THADDEUS STEVENS
by Ben FellerAP White House Correspondent WASHINGTON (AP)—People remember the hope and the history. For him or against him, they picture candidate Barack Obama as the one who stood on stage in a football stadium in Denver and accepted the Democratic presidential nomination by declaring “It’s time for us to change America.” Forgotten, it seems, is what Obama said when he actually won. TIME TO CHANGE AMERICA—In this Aug. 28, 2008 photo Democratic presidential nominee, Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., left, his wife, Michelle, right, are joined by daughters Malia and Sasha, after his nomination acceptance speech at the Democratic National Convention in Denver. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall, File)
by Ben Feller WASHINGTON (AP)—President Barack Obama said Mitt Romney has locked himself into “extreme positions” on economic and social issues and would surely impose them if elected, trying to discredit his Republican rival at the biggest political moment of his life. EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW—President Barack Obama speaks during an interview with Ben Feller, of The Associated Press at the White House, Aug. 23, in Washington. His comments come ahead of the GOP convention opening on Aug. 27, in Tampa, Fla. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster) In an interview with The Associated Press, Obama said Romney lacks serious ideas, refuses to “own up” to the responsibilities of what it takes to be president, and deals in factually dishonest arguments that could soon haunt him in face-to-face debates.
by Samantha Critchel NEW YORK (AP)—They’ve been on a whirlwind tour since the Olympics—from “Late Night With David Letterman” to the Empire State Building and the New York Stock Exchange—but gold-medal gymnasts Gabby Douglas and Jordyn Wieber have one more stop to make before they can truly take a breath: the White House. GABBY DOUGLAS President Barack Obama made the invitation in a phone call. “We’ll definitely take him up on it,” Douglas said.
For the Week of August 29-September 4 August 29 1920—Jazz legend Charlie “Yardbird” Parker was born on this day in Kansas City, Mo. The saxophonist and composer was one of the leading and most influential figures of the Jazz Age.
by Charles Gans NEW YORK (AP)—Former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright is ready, if invited, to sit down at the drums next month when she will be honored for her “jazz diplomacy” at a gala concert at the Kennedy Center. Last year, she met trumpeter Chris Botti at a White House dinner for Chinese President Hu Jintao. A few weeks later, Botti invited her on stage at the end of his Valentine’s Day concert at the Kennedy Center to play the drums during his rendition of Puccini’s “Nessun Dorma,” and cellphone videos popped up on YouTube. BRINGING PEOPLE TOGETHER—Former U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, center, poses for a photo with Herbie Hancock, far left, and New World School of the Arts students at Miami Dade College in Miami, Fla. (AP Photo/The Monk Institute, Phil Roche) “I had a fabulous time and it was so much fun,” said Albright, who had never had any drum lessons. “They gave me the drumsticks and the nickname ‘Sticks.’
by Lucas L. Johnson II NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP)—Stephon Tull was looking through dusty old boxes in his father’s attic in Chattanooga a few months ago when he stumbled onto something startling: an audio reel labeled, “Dr. King interview, Dec. 21, 1960.” AT THE PULPIT—In this 1960 photo, Martin Luther King Jr. speaks in Atlanta. A 1960 recording of an interview with King never before heard in public is up for sale. The tape was recorded by a Chattanooga man hoping to write a book and captures King talking about his trip to Africa, and his certainty that the child he and Coretta Scott King were expecting would be a boy. (AP File Photo) He wasn’t sure what he had until he borrowed a friend’s reel-to-reel player and listened to the recording of his father interviewing Martin Luther King Jr. for a book project that never came to fruition. In clear audio, King discusses the importance of the civil rights movement, his definition of nonviolence and how a recent trip of his to Africa informed his views. Tull said the recording had been in the attic for years, and he wasn’t sure who other than his father may have heard it.
MIAMI (AP) — Isaac became a hurricane Tuesday that could flood the coasts of four states with storm surge and heavy rains on its way to New Orleans, where residents hunkered down behind levees fortified after Katrina struck seven years ago this week. EVACUATIONS BEGIN--Jaden Fabian, 1, cries as she is loaded into a car seat as her family evacuates their home in advance of Tropical Storm Isaac, which is expected to make landfall in the region as a hurricane this evening in Plaquemines Parish, La., Aug. 28. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert) Shelters were open for those who chose to stay or missed the chance to get away before the outer bands of the large storm blow ashore ahead of a forecast landfall in southeast Louisiana on Tuesday night or early Wednesday. However, with the exception of some low-lying areas, officials had not ordered mass evacuations.
