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Black Republicans Are Scarce at the GOP Convention
Published by Pamela Gentry on Wednesday, September 3, 2008 at 5:12 pm.
By Pamela Gentry, Senior Political Producer
(ST.PAUL, MINN) Sept. 3, 2008 – Black Republicans are scarce on the opening day of the Republican National Convention, but those high profile members of the GOP are who in attendance are making the rounds and touting the virtues of the GOP for African Americans
Former Pittsburg Steelers wide-out, Lynn Swann, who ran for governor of Pennsylvania in 2006, told me, more Blacks would be Republican if they compared their conservative values to those of the GOP. He believes they haven’t examined what the party stands for and therefore aren’t giving the Grand Ole Party a chance.
“Who are you, what do believe in and how you act on that belief, if more Black Americans would ask those questions, they would find the answers in the Republican Party,” Swann said.
The convention this year has only 36 African American delegates, about two percent according to a study by the Joint Center for Political and Economic Research. That’s a mere 1.5 percent of the total 2,380 delegates on the convention floor. Here in St. Paul the party is witnessing a significant drop in Black delegates compared to 2004, when 167 of the delegates were African American.
David Bositis, a senior political analyst who keeps an eye on the political trends of African American voters, noted the minority delegate count for both conventions. In contrast, 24 percent of the delegates at the Democratic National Convention were African American, or 1,087 of the more than 4,500 delegates.
Ken Blackwell, former Secretary of State in Ohio, defends his party and his presidential candidate Sen. John McCain’s outreach efforts to Black voters. “My impression and perception is John McCain has gone where others who have headed up the ticket have not,” he said.
Blackwell cited Sen. McCain’s appearance at the Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr., anniversary in Memphis and his speeches before the National Urban League and NAACP conventions as proof he was making an effort to reach out to African Americans. But McCain hasn’t been as available to Black media outlets.
BET News has had a request in for the senator since October 2007, for an interview. His press office has said his scheduled has not permitted time to make it happen. The request is re-introduced once every month or so, and the most recent e-mail response from Charles Adams, who is with the campaign, says; “Pamela, We will definitely keep you guys in the mix. Right now we don’t have any availability in the schedule but will certainly let you know if something opens up. Wish I could give you a better response but that’s where we stand. Thanks”
BET is covering the RNC, while other Black media outlets decided not to because access to top party leaders is limited and interest is slight from the Black community.
Very few African-American voters consider themselves Republican. “This low level of black attachment to the Republican Party is now almost five decades old,” Bositis said.
The Truth,
Let me just point out that I have no problem with someone trying to present information to me, it was claims of me being in denial and thinking of Sarah Palin as my Savior is what I have the problem with. All I’m saying is if you truly don’t care what other posters have to say or about their opinion. Don’t address a post to them and make assumptions.No offense but it doesn’t make much sense.
But you are right their is no need to continue this any further. It’s done.
Typical….needed to have that last word regardless of how meaningless it was. LOL.
That’s funny I thought you said that would be your last post. Right, and I need to have the last word. Please think before you post.
If John Mccain becomes president, I’m packing up my bags and move to the Bahamas. If he take the White House, this is what will happen:
1. Gas, food, and other prices will go UP!
2. More wars!
3. Our jobs will continue to go overseas!
Some of you have to undersyand that MOST Republicans only cater to RICH people and not ALL CLASS OF PEOPLE. If you had watched that dried-up, boring RNC, NONE of the speakers, including Mccain, were talking the important issues (i.e. the economy, enviroment, gas, food, jobs, education, etc.)! OBAMA is for ALL CLASSES OF PEOPLE! I’ve listen to both John Mccain and Barack Obama. Obama HAS a plan, and that is to CHANGE this country around! John Mccain has NO plan because he agree’s with Bush 90% of the time! He is gonna BANKRUPT this country. He is gonna continue on what Bush has left off! As far as Sarah Palin, I don’t know NOTHING about her (and don’t want to know). If you put Mccain in office, GET READY FOR A RUDE AWAKENING because we’re going to hell!
OBAMA/BIDEN-2008!
Candace:
Please continue to educate yourself…but allow some common sense in as well…and some maturity won’t hurt either.
The Truth,
You know what, you said this was a trivial exchange and that you would not post to me anymore and yet you keep posting meaningless comments and then you accuse me of trying to get the last word.? Seriously, It looks like you might need a little common sense and maturity yourself. If you can’t handle someone replying back to you or you just don’t care …than here’s a thought…DON’T POST TO THEM!That would be the smart,mature, common sense thing to do,don’t cha think.
But I agree with you that this argument is going no where because we’re not discussing the issues or the topic of this article so I’ll do what you couldn’t do. This really will be my last post to you and I won’t reply to anymore of your senseless comments unless they discuss the topic at hand. Maybe next time you will take my advice and think before you post.
Randy Shaw of San Francisco ~ A Colleague and Friend of Drevelyn “D” Minor ~~~ Wrote in the ~~~Beyond Chron.org ~~~for more information please visit their web-site.~~~~~~~~~
Wrote: Racial Realities in the United States ~~~~~~~~~~
by Randy Shaw‚ May. 05‚ 2008 ~~~~~~~~~~
Two facts to think about. First, as Frank Rich noted in Sunday’s New York Times, a traditional media obsessed with Democrats’ ability to win “white working class voters” ignores the fact that Republicans have no African-Americans in Congress or the Senate.~~~~~~~~~
And nobody hosting a Sunday political talk show defines the Republican Party’s racial exclusion as a “problem,” or examines what this means for the G.O.P.’s electoral prospects.~~~~~~~~~
Second, since the Civil War ended in 1865, the only African-Americans to win a statewide election are Senator Edward Brooke and Governor Deval Patrick in Massachusetts, Governor Doug Wilder in Virginia, and Senators Carol Moseley-Braun and Barack Obama in Illinois.~~~~~~~~~
Five people in over 140 years. And yet some wonder why a path is not being cleared for Obama to waltz to the White House. ~~~~~~~~~
I agree with Randy’s comments!
Black Republican Questions:
1. Why do Republicans have no African-Americans in Congress or the Senate?
2. Where were the African Americans in the Republican National Convention?
3. Is the Republican Party courting you or including you in their planned town meetings and such to hear your voice? Do black republicans really matter to the GOP?
bet jst wants to start something..yall need to read what would martin say? u would get some real answers to today..bet is jst one sided and is voting for obama jst because the man has away with words..watch what happens when obama gets elected it aint goin to be no glory road thats what im tell’n u..i know that bit has some kind of hind’n agenda watch ull see it straight..u cant compromise u beliefs jst to get votes..cus u kno if he agreed with his christians views none of the supporters for obama would vote for him..if jesus was to run for president he would drop his beliefs then why should he straight up..most of yall are vot’n for him cus he’s goin to give u more money..lol thats funny..
James,
I think Republicans do have some african americans in congress and the senate thought probably not nearly as much as the democrats. One name that comes to mind is Barb Davis White from Minnesota( I don’t know much about her though,she might have just been a nominee). There is probably a few more out there but I doubt that they are well known. I think there was only about 36 black republicans at the RNC this election year. Only about 1.2% which is a big drop compared to the 6.5% that they had in 2004. Democrats on the other hand ,had about 24% of their delegates who were black. This of course is no surprise considering that most blacks are democrat anyways so I’m not sure what that really proves except the already known fact that most black people are democrats. I don’t know to much about town meetings but do you have to be invited to one or do you just show up? Do democrats usually go out of there way to promote town meetings to black people?If you just show up to town meetings, again this only proves what was already know which is that most blacks are democrats so they probably wouldn’t want to go to a republican town meeting. I’m not convinced that african americans really matter to the democratic party either…well the votes do but not really the people. But I do think that if republicans want the black vote as much as the democrats do then they have to try harder to make their party look more attractive to black people with out abandoning what they stand for. I think republicans are probably just to complacent to do that.
Wait a minute ya’ll got it wrong!
They shouldn’t be called republicans.
They should be called
REPUBLIPUNKS or REPUBLICAN’Ts or JOHN MCCAIN’Ts
You Choose!!
B.O. & J.B. 08
(Barack Obama & Joe Biden)
It’s more like DUMOcrats, DEMONcrats, DemocRATS, and Obamanation.
Oh! Yeah! I like that.
But what about:
ConservaSLUGS, CONservatives, CAN’Tservatives, republiBUMS,republican’t are no match for DEMOCANS.
YOUR TURN!!!! frank
To frank:
We can’t be too dum, because we never had a democratic president to take us through what we are going through now. That’s all republicans. I would be ashamed too show my face or consider myself a republican. Two recessions under bush, and i bet as a republican you think that’s no problem. And you wonder why this country is losing it’s respect.
I’m a independent voter and I’m not voting McCain simply because of the sole fact he voted against MLK in 1983. Yes, he apologized in his trip to Memphis, but how come he apologizes well over twenty years? It’s because he’s running for President. It’s also funny that he said learned from his “mistake” in 83′, but voted against the Civil Rights Act in 91′. I can’t trust someone who opposed a holiday honoring a man not only dear to my heart but to many people around the world. One of his excuses was that the government couldn’t afford another holiday. However the government can afford to honor Christopher Columbus, who we all know didn’t truly discover America.
I am appalled at how Sean Hannerty is able to lie about Obama and blame him for the present crisis by lying and saying Franklin Raines is advisor to Obama. John McCain is just an dishonorable for posting a false tv ad saying that and that Raines got $25 million in the dealings. When will someone stand up to their parties and to these “smear” pundits. “if my people who are called by name shall humble themselves and pray and turn from their wicked ways…then I shall hear from heaven and heal their lands.” We need healing and the economy needs healing as well as government but as long as Karl Rove, Hannity, Russ and “Mr. speaker” continues lies and half-truths then we will be faced with much of the same.
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