Who is David Lammy? You are not obliged to know. But you should take notice...because he is an independent black Labor MP from Tottenham, one of the most ethnically diverse constituencies not only in Great Britain, but in all of Europe. The Guardian (or it's Sunday equivalent, The Observer) gave his visibility a boost by referring to him as the "black Blair," even though he shies away from the term. No one, thank God, has called Barack Obama the "black Bill Clinton." But Lammy comes close, and he comes close in a review in that same Guardian of Obama's best-selling The Audacity of Hope: Thoughts on Reclaiming the American Dream. At the same time, Obama could not have been unaware of Clinton's possession of "hope" as a theme. Bill Clinton, that is. Hillary certainly doesn't evoke hope. She's simply too dreary. Lammy has stood out in Britain as a smart and capable Atlanticist, and currently serves as Minister for Culture. He has an LLM from Harvard; he knows America, loves America, and sees the futures of this country and his own as inextricably bound. It is for this reason that he can write so authoritatively (and interestingly) about American politics. He, like his elder Obama, has started his political path by being an advocate for the neediest and most neglected members of society. So these two young parliamentarians may actually be paired. Doubtless, Obama's future is more unlimited than Lammy's. But sensible liberalism has a stake in both.