Moseley-Braun...

[redeye]

...frankly, I know about her less than I do about any other Democratic contender. Can you guys tell me a few things about her, her history, her stances on issues, and so on?

[Ellen Forradalom]

1. Former senator from Illinois

Leapt from the Illinois Legislature to Senator in 1993--a remarkable achievement. Made some clumsy political errors in office (the most memorable being visiting Nigeria's military dictators at a time when they were hanging activists) and got a lot of bad PR out of the financial misdeeds of her campaign manager/erstwhile fiance, Kfume (?) Matthews. But I believe she got treated more harshly by the press and the voters than she deserved. I'm glad she's back.


Bios: http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,80087,00.html
http://www.thehistorymakers.com/biography/biography.asp?bioindex=17&category=politicalMakers

On the issues: http://www.issues2000.org/Senate/Carol_Moseley-Braun.htm

[slappypan]

2. I believe she started out as a protege of Harold Washington

She won the Illinois Dem Senate primary in 1992 in a shocking upset when Illinois women rebelled after the Clarence Thomas confirmation debacle and kicked out incumbent Senator Alan Dixon. A truly great moment in politics. She coined the very useful phrase "borrow-and-waste Republican."