Gwen Ifill book on politics and race includes Alabama Rep. Artur Davis
Thursday, January 22, 2009
MARY ORNDORFF

WASHINGTON - A new book about politics and race includes a chapter on Rep. Artur Davis in which he bluntly lays out his strategy for running for governor of Alabama in 2010 and how it is similar to President Barack Obama's campaign.

"It's going to require me going into communities that have not typically had black politicians on the ballot," Davis told author Gwen Ifill. "It's going to require me going into places all around the state and saying, `Look, I'm not that different from you.'"

The book, released Tuesday, is "The Breakthrough: Politics and Race in the Age of Obama." Its title ignited a controversy during the presidential campaign because Ifill, a PBS journalist and moderator of "Washington Week," was a moderator of the vice presidential debate, and critics questioned whether her forthcoming book signaled a bias toward the Democratic ticket.