It's Not The Mascots?

Now some fresh pickings from the Political Grapevine:

‘Black Tyrants’?

Veteran singer Harry Belafonte, who once compared Colin Powell to an obedient slave, now says African-American officials in the Bush administration are "black tyrants" even though he seemed to question whether they make any real contribution, saying, "Hitler had a lot of Jews high up in the hierarchy of the Third Reich. Color does not necessarily denote quality, content or value."

Belafonte, in Atlanta over the weekend to push for an extension on the Voting Rights Act of 1965, added, "[If] a black is a tyrant, he is first and foremost a tyrant, then he is incidentally black. Bush is a tyrant and if he gathers around him black tyrants, they all have to be treated as they are being treated."

Refresher Course Required?

Many Americans could apparently use a refresher course when it comes to how their government works. In a new poll, commissioned by the American Bar Association, almost half could not identify the three branches of government, which are of course, the executive, legislative and judicial branches.

Some 22 percent said the three branches were Republican, Democrat and Independent. Another 16 percent identified the branches as local, state and federal. And while small numbers of people said the judicial branch is responsible for either declaring war or raising taxes, just under half correctly said the courts determine how existing law applies to a case.

It's Not The Mascots?

The president of Florida State University, whose Seminoles mascot, along with at least 17 other school mascots, has been banned from postseason tournaments by the NCAA for being "hostile or abusive,” says it's not the mascots that are offensive to Native Americans, it's the decision to ban them.

President TK Wetherell says he's "stunned by the complete lack of appreciation for cultural diversity shown by the [NCAA]," vowing to fight the ban in court. What's more, a member of the Seminole tribe of Florida — which recently passed a resolution supporting the Seminoles mascot – says, "We are repeating history. Non-Indians are telling Indians what is good for them."

‘He Acted Like It Was A Party’?

Cindy Sheehan — the mother of a soldier killed in Iraq last year who's now camped outside President Bush's Crawford ranch demanding to see him — said yesterday on CNN that a private meeting with President Bush last year was offensive, insisting, "He acted like it was a party ... he came in very jovial, like we should be happy that ... our son died for [the President's] misguided policies."

But just after that 2004 meeting, she gave a very different account, telling her local paper, the Vacaville Reporter, "I now know [the president is] sincere about wanting freedom for the Iraqis. I know he's sorry and feels some pain for our loss. And I know he's a man of faith." She added that President Bush "gave us ... the gift of happiness, of being together."

— FOX News' Michael Levine contributed to this report