{UAH} IF YOU HATE TO GET SHOT OR YOUR SON BECOMMING A GANG BANGER YOU KNOW EXACTLY WHO TO VOTE FOR ->And the opposite is very true

Trump sees his chance to win over black men's votes

by Naomi Lim, Political Reporter | 

 

September 12, 2020 06:31 AM

 

African American women have long been lauded as the Democratic Party's backbone, but 2020 Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden and President Trump have their eyes on black men.

Democratic White House hopefuls rely on high African American turnout to translate their aspirations into reality, having not won a general election with a majority white vote since 1964. And both Biden and Trump know it.

After a summer of civil unrest sparked by George Floyd's death in police custody, Biden last month launched his "Shop Talk" series. The events for African American men try to emulate the conversations that used to take place in black barbershops across the country before the coronavirus pandemic. They also highlight the two-term vice president's economic proposals.

Biden's outreach effort was rolled out the day after the Republican National Convention. That gathering showcased prominent African American men voicing their support of Trump, with South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott and retired NFL player Herschel Walker vouching for the president.

Biden's popularity with African American Democrats, particularly black women, earned him the nomination. Yet the 36-year Delaware senator's propensity for faux pas, including his "ain't black" quip to radio host Charlamagne tha God, weaken his standing with the voting bloc, along with his record on issues, such as criminal justice. And he needs as many ballots as possible.

A record 137.5 million people voted in 2016. But African American turnout dropped to 59.6% from a 2012 peak of 66.6%, its first decline in two decades. The number of black voters was 16.4 million as well, a decrease of about 765,000 from when former President Barack Obama was on the ticket eight years ago.

In 2016, Trump outperformed 2012 Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney with African American voters because of black men. And it's a feat he hopes to repeat in the fall, touting his signature criminal justice achievement, the First Step Act.

For George Mason University professor Jeremy Mayer, this cycle is different because it features 2020 Democratic vice presidential nominee Kamala Harris instead of 2016 standard-bearer Hillary Clinton.

"Kamala Harris being picked is historic. And I think that that is going to hurt Trump with the small percent of African Americans who might consider him," he said of the California senator, especially with continued police brutality protests and a groundswell the Black Lives Matter movement supports.

Aware of the electoral threat posed by Harris, who's of Jamaican and Indian descent, the Trump camp has tried to undermine her through her prosecutorial past. Mayer didn't think that strategy would be effective.

"The more successful thing Republicans associated with Trump are doing is getting Kanye West on the ballot," he said of the rapper's protest White House bid. "He's only going to be on the ballot in a couple of states, maybe five, maybe seven, but every single vote that he gets is probably good news for Trump. And he will get some."

Inviting Scott, Walker, and the like to speak at the Republican convention sent a message to suburban white women too, according to Mayer.

"There were a lot of black faces at the Republican National Convention, therefore, Trump cannot be racist," he said of the rationale. "So the Republicans may be doing outreach to blacks. Maybe they'll get some, but what they really are aiming for is to cut their defections in the suburbs among white voters."

Ken Farnaso, a Trump campaign spokesman, insisted the president's support of historically black colleges and universities and school choice programs, among other policies, provided African Americans with reasons to vote for him. Even after the president told veteran journalist Bob Woodward he didn't empathize with race-related demonstrations. He's also stoked anger, fear, and derision at his rallies with his law-and-order rhetoric and embrace of Confederate symbols.

“While President Trump has worked to lift millions of black and brown Americans out of generational poverty, Joe Biden has a storied record of racism and is running on a socialist agenda that would propagate our dependence on government and overturn the economic progress President Trump has made for Americans of all walks of life," Farnaso said.

Democratic strategist Antjuan Seawright agreed African American men would be crucial on Nov. 3. He scoffed, though, at the Trump team's attempts at wooing them.

"Black men have every reason in the world not just to vote against Donald Trump, but they have even more reason to vote for Joe Biden and Kamala Harris," he said.

Seawright added, "There'll never be 100% agreement with any candidate, and we've seen that historically. However, no matter what disagreements we may find ourselves having with anybody on our ticket, I don't think in any way that those disagreements compare to the disagreements that we have with the other side."

EM         -> { Trump for 2020 }

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