The GOP's Race Problem, in Numbers

Word is, J.C. Watts gave an impassioned speech at the Southern Republican Leadership Conference yesterday, which might help the GOP regain some balance after the recent controversies involving RNC chairman Michael Steele, Virginia governor Bob McDonnell, and race. But Watts himself is a jarring reminder of just how white the GOP remains. He's the last black Republican congressman, but he retired in 2003. By my count it has been 2,653 days since the GOP had a black member of Congress.