Farai Chideya

Mitt Romney's win in the New Hampshire primary, Newt Gingrich's ad campaign attacking Romney's past in private equity, a new book about Michelle Obama's role as first lady were — for better or worse — the stories that dominated the headlines for the last week. The Takeaway has assembled a panel of analysts to rundown, dissect, and wrap-up all the major stories of the week.

This week North Korean dictator Kim Jong-il died, a Pentagon investigation into airstrikes that killed 26 Pakistani soldiers heightened tensions between the U.S. and Pakistan, Countrywide was ordered to pay $355 million for discriminating against black and Latino borrowers, and a terrorism scandal in Iraq's second-highest office broke. 

This week brought the end of the Iraq War and a Russia in turmoil after recent disputed elections. Also, the final GOP debate before the Iowa caucus was last night on Fox News. Joining The Takeaway for a look at this week's big stories are Jeff Yang, writer of the Tao Jones column for The Wall Street Journal and bloger for WNYC's It's a Free Country, and Farai Chideya, journalist and blogger at Farai.com.

Is America ready for the first black Republican president? That's a question being asked following the surge in popularity of GOP candidate Herman Cain. A new NBC/Wall Street Journal poll has Cain beating Mitt Romney with 27 percent to Romney's 21 in the Republican primary. Cain refuses to believe he is the latest GOP "flavor of the week" and has not shied away from talking about race during the campaign.

President Obama's approval ratings are at an all-time low. August's Gallup poll numbers showed that 41 percent of American adults approve of the way Obama is currently handling his job. Some of the largest declines in approval come from African-American voters — a group that formerly voted for Obama.

Now that the election is over, Joe Klein, TIME political columnist, Andrea Bernstein, WNYC reporter and director of the Transportation Nation blog, and Farai Chideya, host of Pop + Politics reflect on their political road trips around the country.

Joe Klein, political columnist for TIME Magazine, Transportation Nation's Andrea Bernstein, and Pop + Politics host Farai Chideya, reflect on their individual road trips around the US, talking to politicians and voters about the upcoming election season

Traveling through America, I cannot help but look at America in military metaphors, as a soldier who has served a tour of duty and cannot help but wonder if rotations to the field wi...

WNYC partner Pop + Politics just returned from a road trip to Florida, where host Farai Chideya interviewed retired Lieutenant Colonel Allen West, a Tea Party Republican who is challenging Rep. Ron Klein (D-FL) for Florida's 22nd Congressional seat in Broward and Palm Beach counties.

WNYC partner Pop + Politics just got back from a road trip to Florida, where host Farai Chideya met up with Rep. Kendrick Meek. He's gunning for the open Senate seat in Florida, in the three-way race with Republican Marco Rubio and Florida Governor Charlie Crist, who's running as an Independent. Meek currently represents Florida's 17th District, which includes North Miami and Miami Beach. When P+P caught up with him, he'd just returned from a fundraising event with former President Bill Clinton, one of his long-time supporters.

Our political coverage of the midterms turns to Florida. The Sunshine State has been in the international limelight for weeks, following Pastor Terry Jones’ threats to publicly burn Korans. With the bonfire cancelled and the 9/11 anniversary past, we talk this morning about a state full of voters whose opinions range the gamut on the Koran burning issue and the three-way race for U.S. Senate that’s been heating up for months. 

WNYC partner Pop + Politics is on the road this week in Florida, where an interesting gubernatorial contest is shaping up. Florida's current governor, Charlie Crist, is running for reelection, but not as a Republican. Pop + Politics' Farai Chideya spoke with Crist on Tuesday.

When you see a favorite local retailer close down, you often wonder what might have happened if you'd stepped in to help drive business. A group of retailers in Harlem are trying a new way to stay afloat in the face of the bad economy. In the latest episode of "The Value," Farai Chideya reports on an initiative called The Power of One.

For our series, "The Value," Takeaway correspondent Farai Chideya traveled to the Bay Area for a lesson on how to live on the  cheap in one of the country's most costly neighborhoods. A family in Saulsalito, California manages to cut costs by living on their boat. By avoiding expenses like the cost of a car and gas, the family is able to sail around the world and return home with adventurous stories to tell.

In our regular series The Value, Takeaway correspondent Farai Chideya brings us the story of a woman in Miami who found the value of home in an unlikely place.

In our regular series, "The Value: What Matters to Us Most," correspondent Farai Chideya interviews a father of three in Newark, NJ, who is a repeat felon trying to stay straight.