Bush to Address NAACP Thursday

The Washington Post's Darryl Fears reports this morning that "After six years in office, President Bush has agreed to address the NAACP at its annual national convention in Washington, the White House announced yesterday. White House spokesman Tony Snow said the president will appear before the nation's oldest and largest civil rights group tomorrow after years of trading rhetorical jabs with its leadership."

So what's the significance of speaking to one of the most respected civil rights organizations in America? Fears puts it into context: "With the appearance, Bush will avoid becoming the first president since Warren G. Harding to snub the predominantly black organization throughout his term...The NAACP, founded in 1909, has had sufficient influence in black America to draw every president after Harding to its conventions, even as the group has been critical of some, including Republicans Richard M. Nixon and Ronald Reagan and Democrats Jimmy Carter and Bill Clinton."

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