Due to the unprecedented nature of the 2008 election, communities of color are being actively sought after and their role and influence scrutinized by the media and political pundits. In an effort to add depth to the national conversation about the important role these communities are playing and will continue to play in '08 and beyond, the Center for American Progress Action Fund is bringing together noted experts from the Asian American, Latino, Native American, and African American communities to discuss how these communities view this process, how they are working together to advance a common agenda, and about the role voters of color will play in November and beyond.

In a controversial new book on America's debates over national security, Matthew Yglesias, associate editor of The Atlantic Monthly, presents a critical analysis of progressives’ failure to produce a coherent alternative to the conservative approach to foreign policy. Conventional examinations of progressives' political difficulties in dealing with the national security issue focus on a perceived lack of "toughness." Heads in the Sand proposes a different theory: that progressives have had difficulty taking full advantage of the Bush administration's failures because they've largely avoided arguing on the strategic level.

Rand Beers, President of the National Security Network and Kurt Campbell, Chief Executive Officer of the Center for a  New American Security and co-author of Hard Power: The New Politics of National Security, will offer a critical analysis of the book’s argument from their perspectives as the leaders of two institutions working to engage in America’s national security and defense policy debates.

Is the Religious Right dead? Has the left closed the "God gap?” What religious voices are speaking out on political issues—and how effective are they? What role should religion play in politics and presidential campaigns?

In a campaign season where two of the most significant speeches by presidential candidates have been about religion—Republican Mitt Romney speaking about being a Mormon and Democrat Barack Obama speaking about his former pastor—it is important to examine the power and influence of religion in politics.

E.J. Dionne, Amy Sullivan, and Jim Wallis are expert analysts of religion in public life. Each has a new book examining the changing religious and political landscape in our nation today. Their insights, inside stories, and keen analysis offer new and hopeful ways of thinking about religion and public life in the months and years ahead.

Copies of all three books will be available for purchase.

As economic growth in the U.S. slows, our country's global warming gas emissions continue to rise. Meanwhile, consumers are being hit hard by the twin burdens of a sagging housing market and rising energy prices at home and at the gas pump. It's time to invest wisely in protecting family budgets and revitalizing our built environment. With smart policy we can prioritize energy efficiency to ease the woes of consumers, lenders, financial markets, and our environment. Recognizing this opportunity to offer real solutions to pressing problems, Representative Ed Perlmutter (D-CO) plans to introduce legislation giving incentives to lenders and financial institutions to provide lower interest loans and other benefits to consumers who build, buy, or remodel their homes and businesses to improve their energy efficiency. This timely legislation reflects foresight and the considered input of a broad coalition of housing advocates, financial institutions, government leaders, developers, and the environmental community. Please join us to discuss how this critical intersection of policy concerns can respond to the needs of America's communities and help lift our troubled economy to build a more vibrant, energy efficient, and low-carbon future.

Last month, the Department of Homeland Security commemorated its fifth anniversary. Ten months from now, the homeland security apparatus put in place since the attacks of September 11 will undertake its first-ever presidential transition. The chairman of the House of Representatives Committee on Homeland Security, followed by a panel of homeland security analysts, will discuss the evolution of homeland security over the past seven years; existing challenges and capabilities at the federal, state, and local governmental levels and within the private sector; and key issues that will confront the new administration and Congress in 2009.

8:30 a.m.
Remarks by:
Congressman Bennie G. Thompson (D-MS), Chairman, House of Representatives Committee on Homeland Security

9:30 a.m.
Panel Discussion:
Barbara A. Grewe, Senior Policy Advisor, MITRE Corporation and former Senior Counsel for Special Projects, 9/11 Commission
Daniel B. Prieto, Senior Fellow for Homeland Security and Intelligence at IBM’s Global Leadership Initiative

Moderated by:
Philip J. (P.J.) Crowley, Senior Fellow and Director of Homeland Security, Center for American Progress Action Fund and Author of Safe at Home