Congresswoman Barbara Lee, who represents the 9th Congressional District, was announced as the next chair of the Congressional Black Caucus. She replaces outgoing chair Rep. Carolyn Kilpatrick and said, "The 111th Congress will not only present unique and difficult challenges, but also historic opportunities for our caucus... I plan to build upon the great leadership of our former chairs and to meet our caucus challenge of ‘Changing Course, Confronting Crises, and Continuing the Legacy’ of those who paved the way for each of our members to have the honor to serve and fight for equality, justice and peace for our African-American communities and for the entire nation." She also added, "The Congressional Black Caucus has been called 'the conscience of the Congress,' and we're going to continue to be that and to help our Speaker." more ›

Your Black Muslim Bakery update: the business is being liquidated in an involuntary bankruptcy proceeding (they have almost $1 million in debt) after a number of unnamed potential buyers dropped out, and the 19-year-old arrested for shooting journalist Chauncey Bailey now says (video clip) he was beaten and coerced into a false confession to the murder. The Oakland PD homicide officer assigned to the case says that's false and they have a taped confession where alleged shooter Devaundre Broussard calmly and openly discussing the facts of the case. Meanwhile, Rep. Barbara Lee is now saying she regrets having supported Your Black Muslim Bakery in the past. more ›

What a day, what a day, what a day... more ›

-Barbara Lee, Lynn Woolsey and Maxine Waters get standing ovation from Congress for not voting for House resolution against the war. It'll make sense if you read it. more ›

Just a note/warning/reminder/ what have you that tomorrow at twelve will be the "Rally and March to End the War in Iraq." All this in protest of the Surgesclation of which our President, George "I'm a Decider" Bush has set out on. And isn't "I'm a Decider" a Monkees tune? And wasn't it played on the episode where a bunch of gypsys kidnap the gang and make them try to steal the Maltese Vulture? more ›

-Pelosi's in charge. -The Governator gets his inaguaral today too even if he's still laid up. more ›

SFist Jon's having computer woes, so we're covering all the rest of the races here too. more ›

Guess who got endorsed on the cover by last week's winner, the Bay Guardian? Where's the green beads, Chris? Letters about fixie bikes, and Tim Redmond notes that Renee Saucedo shouldn't have endorsed Prop 90 (the overbroad eminent domain one). Dan Noyes, gadfly. Also endorsed by the Guardian: Phil Angelides, Jerry Brown, Leland Yee, Barbara Lee, and Krissy Keefer. And Steven T. Jones had nothing at all to do with their endorsement of Alix Rosenthal. Did he have anything to do with the Alix flyer inserted in the paper? Sonic Reducer brings sexy back. Marke B had a nice time at the Love Parade. L.E. Leone's friend Carrie is moving to New York. And Gavin Newsom's horoscope: He is classically associated with the arts. more ›

A flat fee for BART? -- And speaking of BART, a new BART stop is about to be built, the first one since the SFO extension in 2003. It'll be called the West Dublin/Pleasanton stop and will be built between the ten minute gap in stops between Dublin/Pleasanton and Castro Valley more ›

On the cultcha front, lots going on. Edward Champion scores a sit down with SFist's second-favorite Floridian, Dave Barry, in his latest podcast of The Bat Segundo Show. Lost in Grovont says that tickets are now on sale for Noise Pop 2006, but that details on the shows are sketchy. Leonard McKay files the second installment in his history of San Jose brewing for San Jose Inside, and Alder Yarrow wades into the debate over BYOB corkage policies, and calls bullshit on Pizzeria Delfina's Craig Stoll. more ›

Apparently the "Draft Dellums" posters can come down in our neighborhood now, as we see that Ron Dellums has announced his candidacy to replace Jerry Brown as Mayor of Oakland. Until today it seemed that City Council President Ignacio De La Fuente was a shoe-in for the job, despite the fact that nobody was particularly excited by the idea, aside from Jerry Brown himself (who has endorsed De La Fuente). Dellums, who once sat on the Berkeley City Council and represented Oakland (and nearby locales) in Congress for 28 years until local hero Barbara Lee took over, now seems the immediate front-runner. "If Ron Dellums running for mayor gives you hope, let's get on with it,'' he said today, and quite frankly, after the terrible (but predictable) disappointment of Jerry's eight years as Mayor, we're feeling pretty hopeful in Oakland this afternoon. more ›

It’s the kind of thing that's supposed to be bang-bang: local congressperson gets congress to vote on the naming of local post office after local hero and congress votes yes because nobody really cares what a post office is named. It happens so frequently and so easily that nobody can remember when anybody last raised a stink. So congresswoman Barbara Lee tried to get the Berkeley Post office named after long-time councilwoman, activist, and Berkeley icon Maudelle Shirek, only to see it get denied. The reason? Because that Maudelle? She hates America. more ›

So good luck dealing with any state agencies tomorrow -- they'll be shut down in observance of Cesar Chavez Day (though that could all change if the Governator has his way). So if you just have to find State Comptroller Steve Westly, he'll probably be sipping cocktails at the 19th Green somewhere -- we mean, uh, reflecting upon and honoring the life of one of America's greatest folk heros on what would be his 78th birthday. However, if you really want to pester Barbara Lee, she'll be the Grand Marshall at the Cesar Chavez Day Parade on Sunday. Featuring music by Caminante, Bayonics, Los Mocosos, Jorge Santana and Bandido, as well as food, arts and crafts, it starts at 11:00am at Justin Herman Plaza and will begin down Market to Civic Center Plaza at noon. Feliz Cumpleaños, Cesar! Si se puede! more ›

We asked some of our representatives last week about their feelings about the Terri Schiavo issue and the bill passed by Congress to allow her parents to sue. Guess what? No one got back to us, not even our favorite rep, Barbara Lee. Shame on you, unresponsive representatives. more ›

We're on a lighter posting schedule today in honor of Martin Luther King Jr. -- we hope you have the day off to spend at a number of Bay Area celebrations scheduled for today. (If you don't get the day off, spend all day playing Public Enemy really, really loud). In San Francisco, the MLK parade will begin at 11:30 at the Fourth and King Street when the "Freedom Train" pulls into the Caltrain station, and goes up Third Street, down Market, and ends at Civic Center Plaza. Starting at 12:30, Representative Barbara Lee will speak, and local American Idol finalist LaToya London will perform. Dr. King advocated racial justice, most famously in his I Have A Dream speech in 1963, and was assassinated in Memphis in 1968. Keep the dream alive. more ›