Despite the
calculated outreach efforts by the Bush Administration, spearheaded by Ken
Mehlman, the former head of the Republican National Committee, to turn the
Black vote, exit polling from the 2006 election showed that close to 90 percent
of Black voters stayed firmly with Democratic Party candidates.
And, although the
GOP fielded what they thought were several attractive Black candidates for
state-wide races around the country -- former Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver
Lynn Swann ran for governor in Pennsylvania, Maryland lieutenant governor
Michael Steele contended for that state's vacated Senate seat, and Ohio's
Secretary of State, and longtime party activist, Kenneth Blackwell was that
state's GOP gubernatorial candidate -- the Party failed to win any of those
contests. (Swann received 13 percent of the Black vote; Steele received 25
percent; and Ohio's Blackwell received only 20 percent of the Black vote.)
Once again the GOP
failed to gain traction within the Black community.
"The Black vote
played a critical role in the outcome of a number of closely contested
elections, especially for the U.S. Senate," David A. Bositis pointed out
in a report titled "Blacks and the 2006 Midterm Elections." Bositis,
a Senior Research Associate at the Joint Center for Political and Economic
Studies, noted that while national turnout of Black voters was "up
slightly" from the 2002 midterm elections, "it was strategically
effective in several places, although not enough in others."
According to
Bositis, "Black voters were important in electing a Democratic governor
(Ohio) and reelecting three Democratic governors (Michigan, Pennsylvania and
Tennessee) and two Democratic senators (Florida and Michigan) . . . More
important . . . Black voters were critical in electing four new U.S. Democratic
Senators in Missouri, Virginia, Ohio and Pennsylvania . . ."
Despite these
failures, the battle for Black votes will continue; the chief battleground over
the next decade will be the Black churches.
GOP tries to
build a Black
conservative infrastructure
Regardless of how
many supportive columns Black conservatives Walter Williams, Thomas Sowell,
Star Parker, John McWhorter, LaShawn Barber and Larry Elder write; how much
money talk show host and syndicated columnist Armstrong Williams gathered up
from the Bush administration for touting its policies; multiple appearances by
Black conservative "spokespersons" on conservative radio and cable
television's talk shows; large amounts of right wing foundation money poured
into creating and sustaining Black conservative organizations; invitations
extended to conservative Black clergy to White House gatherings; and
Mehlman-authored apologies for the party's racist policies -- including Nixon's
Southern Strategy and the infamous Willie Horton advertisement-- the Republican
Party continues to be unable to win significant numbers of Black votes.
2006 was earmarked
by Republican leaders as a pivotal year for turning the Black vote back to its
Republican Party roots; building on the 2004 election when socially
conservative Black voters in Ohio and Florida helped put George W. Bush over
the top. While Bush received slightly more Black votes than he did in 2000 (up 2
points to 11 percent), in Florida, support among Blacks rose six percentage
points to 13 percent, and in Ohio, the president may have snared as much as 16
percent of the Black vote.
For close to two
decades, while conservative foundations have been spending a substantial amount
of dough creating and sponsoring a host of Black organizations, and
conservative media outlets have given over significant amounts of space and
airtime to conservative Black pundits, at the same time Republican Party
leaders have been forecasting a shift in voting patterns in the Black
community.
Gridlock for
Black conservative
organizations?
One prominent Black
conservative organization is Project 21, an initiative of the Washington,
DC-based National Center for Public Policy Research (NCPPR). Project 21 was set
up in 1992 "to promote the views of African-Americans whose
entrepreneurial spirit, dedication to family and commitment to individual
responsibility has not traditionally been echoed by the nation's civil rights
establishment," according to its website.
A recent survey for
CNN -- conducted by Opinion Research Corp. -- of 328 Blacks and 703 whites
found that 84 percent of Blacks and 66 percent of whites considered racism a
"very serious" or "somewhat serious" problem, and 51
percent of Blacks and 26 percent of whites claim to have "been a victim of
discrimination." Percentages were lower when people were asked if they
knew anyone who was "racially biased," with only 31 percent of Blacks
and 21 percent of whites saying they did. Only 12 percent of Blacks and 13
percent of whites surveyed further admitted to being racially-biased
themselves.
"I think all of
this had a predetermined outcome, needing only anecdotal comments to lend a
veneer of credibility," said Project 21 Chairman Mychal Massie in a press
release issued December 14. "The CNN report serves only one purpose, and
that is to convince the public at large - specifically white people - that they
are evil racists. It is a vulgar exercise to try to find racism in the fiber of
every white."
"Racism is
based on ignorance. Hard work, perseverance and accomplishments on the part of
individuals can evaporate racial bias," Project 21 Fellow Deneen Moore
pointed out.
There are a host of
Black conservative organizations committed to moving Blacks into the Republican
Party:
The Alliance of
Black Republicans chaired by
Kim M. Hoppe, aims "to increase participation of the Black American
community in the Republican Party."
The National
Black Republican Association
defines its mission as being "a resource for the Black community on
Republican ideals and [to] promote the traditional values of the Black
community which are the core values of the Republican Party: strong families,
faith in God, personal responsibility, quality education, and equal
opportunities for all."
The United Black
Republican Coalition,
chaired by Alfonzo A. Maxwell, aims "to increase the number of Blacks
voting Republican by generating and supporting candidates across the nation who
are committed to making a positive difference in African American
Communities."
Republicans for
Black Empowerment lists
"three broad goals": "foster fresh political dialogue in the
Black community"; "develop Black Republican leadership;" and
"improve the lives of Americans."
African American
Republican Leadership Council says
its mission "is to break the liberal democrat stranglehold over Black
America," and it calls itself "the only national campaign to raise
and increase African American support for common sense Reaganite Republican
public policies and candidates from a nominal 14 to a strategic target of 25
percent."
Black America's
Political Action Committee describes
itself as an "unaffiliated non-partisan Political Action Committee"
whose "candidates are committed to supporting our common sense approach to
public policy and politics: promoting Social Security reform, improving public
education, expanding economic opportunities to historically disadvantaged
sectors in America, vigorously promoting equality for all Americans, protecting
the sanctity of human life and restoring moral values and the importance of
family in our communities."
GOP takes battle for votes to Black churches
After the election,
Virginia's Bishop Gerald O. Glenn, the pastor of the 2,500-member New
Deliverance Evangelistic Church, was unapologetic about his support of
incumbent Senator George Allen. He told his mostly Democratic Party-supporting
congregation that he was proud to have supported the Allen -- who lost a close
race to Democrat James Webb -- despite Allen's checkered past around issues of
race; an issue that was magnified by the Senator's "macaca" remark
during the campaign.
"Political
pundits and, of course, Black Democrats would say Glenn's endorsement of Allen
was simple opportunism," reporters Scott Bass, Amy Biegelsen and Chris
Dovi recently wrote in an issue of Richmond, Virginia's Style Weekly dated
November 29 -- December 6. "Glenn clearly thought Allen would win, and
therefore decided to jump into the fray and position himself and his cause at
the forefront of Allen's image makeover. State Sen. Benjamin J. Lambert III,
one of Richmond's highest-ranking Black Democrats, said he did the same in the
name of funding for Black colleges."
"There is some
opportunism going on," the Rev. Dwight C. Jones, pastor of First Baptist
Church South Richmond, and a Democrat in the House of Delegates, told Style.
"I think that they thought [Allen] was going to pull it out and be able to
get the spoils from it -- and it was mistake."
Pastor Glenn is one
of a number of Black pastors who have changed party allegiances over the past
few years.
These days, Bishop
Harry R. Jackson Jr., of New Hope Christian Church in Maryland and president of
the High Impact Leadership Coalition, is probably the most visible ally of the
Christian Right. People for the American Way's Right Wing Watch pointed
out that "Since joining forces with the far Right -- including membership
in the influential Arlington Group -- Jackson has been a frequent spokesman for
right-wing causes. He spoke at the 'Justice Sunday: Stopping the Filibuster
Against People of Faith' religious rally in support of Bush's extreme judicial
nominees" and 'Justice Sunday II', as well as at the Family Research
Council's "Values Voter Summit" this past September.
Jackson was a
featured speaker at the summer 2005's "Justice Sunday II -- God Save the
United States and This Honorable Court!" Sponsored by the Family Research
Council and Focus on the Family, and simulcast nationally, Jackson, who supported
George W. Bush in his re-election bid in 2004, told the crowd: "I believe
that what God is doing today is calling the Black church to team with the white
evangelical church and the Catholic Church and people of moral conscience, and
in this season we need to begin to tell both [political] parties, 'Listen, it's
our way or the highway.'"
After the 2006
election, during which he endorsed Maryland's Michael Steele and Ohio's Ken
Blackwell, Jackson remained enthusiastic about the possibilities of the white
Christian evangelical/ Black religious alliance. In a two-part column -- posted
at TownHall.com November 20 and 27 -- titled "Black Power: The New
Conservative Stronghold" Jackson maintained that the coming two years
before the 2008 presidential election offers a great opportunity for "wise
conservatives to build bridges with the leaders of the 'new Black
church'":
These church leaders are classical social conservatives.
They believe that government programs alone cannot stop crime, poverty, or poor
schools. The new Black church is not waiting for a handout. They are promoting
immediate change through wiser, biblically-informed choices and personal
accountability.
They are using a new brand of Black power to transform
the nation. These men and women all believe that they can change America
because of their faith in personal transformation (through religious
conversion) and community transformation (through education and economic
development). White conservatives, especially evangelical Christians, must
learn new methods to advance their agenda; if they are going to protect America
against a liberal deluge of poor policies and laws. The chief instrument in
their tool kit will be bridge building and coalition formation.
Jackson, the author
of "The Warriors Heart: Rules of Engagement for the Spiritual War
Zone," cited three emerging church leaders -- Dr. Floyd Flake of New York,
Pastor James Meeks of Chicago, and Bishop Eddie Long of Atlanta -- all of whom
have churches with 14,000 members or more and "represent a 'civil rights'
revolution that is very compatible with the tenants of the conservative
movement."
Jackson argued that
while "These kinds of churches can change the landscape of American
politics and help both parties come back to the moral center," they are
"not alone in the positive contribution they are making to the
nation." One thing they have in common wrote Jackson is that "they
have rejected the rhetoric of Jessie Jackson and Al Sharpton, but they do not
yet feel welcomed into the conservative movement's ranks.
"The images
which David Kuo sets forth in "Tempting Faith" articulate their
fears. Despite all the nay-sayers, bold Black, entrepreneurial leaders are
willing to give new coalitions a try."
In a follow-up
column titled "Why the Liberal Media Will Lose in '08" (December 11),
Jackson suggested that "The national message of the liberals was simply
that the current administration could not be trusted to protect them internally
or domestically." Liberals also used an old strategy where they
"attempt to tell a minority or special interest group that they cannot
make it on their own."
Liberals
"suggest that a larger more powerful group is out to get them . . . [and
they] imply that people have to stay with 'their group.'" No matter have
far they could have gone individually. It is implied that they will never
outgrow identification with their group. This liberal approach can dreg up
xenophobic fears and create an 'us-versus-them' mentality that is not easy to
shake."
As the 110th Congress
gets underway, due to the Democratic Party's victory, members of the
Congressional Black Caucus -- Democrats all -- have become chairman of several
significant committees; others have taken the reigns of a number of
congressional subcommittees.
This new alignment
presents members of the Congressional Black Caucus with a historic opportunity
to raise issues of major import to underserved communities. If they are
successful, it could again thwart the GOP's goal of bringing black voters to
the fold.
Bill Berkowitz is a longtime observer of the
conservative movement. His
WorkingForChange column Conservative Watch documents the strategies,
players, institutions, victories and defeats of the American Right.