Obama to focus civil rights message on voting

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Barack Obama is using another civil rights forum to issue an election-year warning against erosion of the Voting Rights Act, the landmark 1965 law that helped pave Obama’s path in politics.

On Friday, Obama will address Al Sharpton’s National Action Network conference in New York. The White House says the president will take issue with Republican measures in some states that make it more difficult for Americans to vote.