It's Obama Time! Who's Winning With Black Voters Now?

Democratic presidential hopeful Sen. Barack Obama is trimming the lead Sen. Hillary Clinton had enjoyed for the past three months among black voters. A Rasmussen poll completed last week among South Carolina voters shows Obama attracting 51 percent of the black vote, compared with 27 percent for Clinton, reports The Wall Street Journal. The black vote is crucial in states like New Hampshire, where he is besting his opponent for the undecided vote, 40 percent to Clinton's 23 percent, according to The Associated Press.

(See also: Michelle Obama Says Black Voters Will 'Wake Up and Get It' and Is Obama a Muslim? Debunking an Urban Legend)

English-Only Bill Hits House Floor

House Republican leaders are pushing a new legislative bill that would allow employers to enforce English-only employment policies. The bill, dubbed the Common Sense English Act, was introduced in the House on Wednesday and would allow offices and workplaces around the country to require English under any circumstance they prefer, reports CNN.com. The bill comes after the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission sued the Salvation Army over the policy.

(See also: Fired for Not Speaking English? Pelosi Says No Way and National Latino Groups Call Bill 'Immigrant Apartheid')

Oprah Gets Producer's Award, Denzel Up for a Globe

"The Great Debators," which features Denzel Washington and Forrest Whitaker, was nominated for a Golden Globe, according to The Associated Press. The movie tells the story of Prof. Melvin Tolson, a debate-team coach who helped shape a group of students from a small black college into an elite debate team. Oprah Winfrey and other producers received a producer's award for the movie from the Producers Guild of America, reports The Associated Press.

(See also: Can Denzel Washington Save Black College? and Oprah, Barack & Michelle Obama: 'Like a Religious Experience')

More Scrutiny for State-Funded College Loans

Under mounting pressure from Congress, colleges are being forced to reexamine their financial-aid packaging for low-income students. States are focusing to a degree on issues similar to those raised in the national loan scandal of the spring: lax oversight and, in Iowa, whether incentives to colleges led them to steer students to Iowa Student Loan, reports The New York Times. Iowa, Missouri and Pennsylvania are the first to launch such probes. Who will follow?

(See also: Blacks, Latinos Caught in Battle to Cut College Costs and How You Can Get a Debt-Free Education at Princeton or Yale)

What's the Top Issue for Iowa Voters?

Immigration has always been a seemingly distant issue from states such as Iowa--until now. As the number of Latinos in some rural areas of the state is quadrupling the state's historic average, residents are tuning in to immigration debates more keenly. While some who support granting a path to citizenship for the estimated 12 million undocumented immigrants already in this country were leaning toward Democratic presidential candidates, most said they wished their candidate could better explain how to carry out such a path practically and fairly, reports The New York Times. Who will give Iowan voters the answers in time for the primary?

(See also: 'Sanctuary City'? More Immigrants, More Political Lunacy and Immigration Hot Debate Topic: Did GOP Candidates Make Gains With Latinos?)

Are Schools Phasing Out Special Ed to Save Costs?

Some parents of students with special-education needs are furious as they say schools are pushing their children into regular classrooms to save on costs. School districts spend almost twice as much, on average, on a student with a disability as they do on a student without a disability, reports The Wall Street Journal. While studies show that mainstreaming can be beneficial for many students, a pretext for cost-cutting is hurting the very children it is supposed to help. 

(See also: Special-Education Committee Gets Heat from Parents and Offensive Ad Campaign Stigmatizes Kids, Infuriates Parents & Rights Groups)

Immigration Law: Why Everyone's Watching Arizona

A new Arizona law that cracks down on employers who hire undocumented workers has some businesses packing up and moving to Mexico. So how does the new plan work? Under the law, people will be encouraged to contact a county sheriff's or attorney's office to report businesses they suspect of employing an undocumented immigrant. After the sheriff investigates, the county attorney can then seek to suspend and ultimately revoke the business license of an employer who knowingly hires an undocumented immigrant, reports The Wall Street Journal. Employers around the country are watching Arizona, which has some of the harshest immigration-enforcement laws in the nation, to see what kind of fallout will happen and what approach they should take.  

(See also: How Does Your State Measure Up on Immigration?)

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