Politics

Mitt Romney to Address the NAACP Today

Mitt Romney to Address the NAACP

Republican presidential candidate, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney speaks during a campaign at Cornwall Iron Furnace on Saturday, June 16, 2012, in Cornwall, Pa. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

HOUSTON (AP) — Mitt Romney isn’t going to win the black vote. But he’s making a pitch to African-Americans at the NAACP’s annual meeting, giving a major speech that‘s also aimed at showing independent and swing voters that he’s willing to reach out to diverse audiences — and demonstrating that his campaign and the Republican Party he leads are inclusive.

(Related: NAACP Requires Two Forms of ID From Media to See Eric Holder Say Voter ID Laws Are Racist)

Romney’s advisers say he plans to focus, as he usually does, on the economy. The 14.4 percent unemployment rate among blacks is much higher than the 8.2 percent national average. He’s also likely to mention his plan to increase school choice — he’s called education the “civil rights issue of our era.”

It’s a difficult sell — 95 percent of blacks backed President Barack Obama in 2008. But no matter what Romney tells the NAACP on Wednesday, Republicans and Democrats say he‘s making a statement just by speaking to the nation’s oldest civil rights group.

Mitt Romney to Address the NAACP

“The first thing you need to do is show up, so I ultimately think he’s doing the right thing,” said Rep. Tim Scott, R-S.C., one of two black Republicans in Congress. “What he‘s saying to everyone is that he’s (running to become) America’s president and not just those folks he thinks he can get votes from right now. I think that’s a very important statement.”

“You’ve got to get credit for showing up — for being willing to go — no question,” said Karen Finney, a Democratic consultant who worked in the Clinton White House. “It’s more about your actions than it is about what you say.”

Obama spoke to the group during his 2008 campaign, as did his Republican opponent, Sen. John McCain. Obama doesn’t plan to speak this year — instead, Vice President Joe Biden will address the annual convention on Thursday. Obama plans to address the Urban League later this month.

Romney rarely speaks to a predominantly black audience at political events. One exception was a May visit to a charter school in Philadelphia, where he cast fixing the education system as a way to help blacks and other minorities.

In framing education as a civil rights issue, Romney is following in George W. Bush’s footsteps. At a sweeping address to the NAACP in 2000, Bush, then the Republican presidential nominee, said the education system should “leave no child behind” – and he labeled the “soft bigotry of low expectations” as part of the problem facing black students.

Mitt Romney to Address the NAACP

The likely 2012 Republican nominee has a personal history with civil rights issues. Romney’s father, George, spoke out against segregation in the 1960s and as governor of Michigan toured his state’s inner cities as race riots wracked Detroit and other urban areas across the country. He went on to lead the Housing and Urban Development Department, where he pushed for housing reforms to help blacks.

Mitt Romney invoked that legacy during a 2007 interview on NBC’s “Meet the Press”: “My dad’s reputation … and my own has always been one of reaching out to people and not discriminating based upon race or anything else.”

In recent months, Obama has approached race from an intensely personal perspective. After the shooting of unarmed black teen Trayvon Martin in a Florida neighborhood – an act many blacks saw as racially motivated – Obama spoke directly to Martin’s parents from the Rose Garden. “If I had a son, he’d look like Trayvon,” Obama said.

Diminished enthusiasm for the president in the wake of the economic downturn could dampen black turnout. And that could make the difference in Southern states Obama won in 2008, particularly North Carolina and Virginia.

Other factors could keep blacks away from voting booths. Romney’s address to the group comes as Democrats and minority communities are expressing concern over a series of tough voter identification laws in a handful of states. Critics say the laws could make it harder for blacks and Hispanics to vote.

“He’ll be standing in that room asking people for their votes at the same time that Republican legislators are trying to disenfranchise minority communities,” said Finney, the Democratic consultant.

Romney expressed support for such laws during a late April visit to Pennsylvania, which now has one of the toughest voter identification statutes in the nation. “We ought to have voter identification so we know who’s voting and we have a record of that,” Romney said then.

Comments (34)

  • sbenard
    Posted on July 11, 2012 at 1:10pm

    NAACP — National Association for the Advancement of RACIST People!

    Report Post » sbenard  
  • Samwise636
    Posted on July 11, 2012 at 12:26pm

    ‘m listening to clips on Rush right now. Romney just got soundly booed for saying he would repeal Obamacare. From what I’ve heard, he’s not pandering to them, telling them only what they want to hear. He is not holding back on his criticism of Obama either.

    I think it‘s good that he’s doing this. Even if he gets booed and physically thrown out, it will show that he takes no vote for granted. Also, it exposes the true bigotry that exists within the NAACP. Maybe he won’t get any votes from the crowd that he is addressing, but it will open the eyes of some other voters who happen to hear this address.

    What also helps our cause is the fact that Obama continues to take black votes for granted. However, he has lost more black votes than he knows, especially with his assault on traditional family, and religious liberty.

    Report Post » Samwise636  
  • nativetexanne
    Posted on July 11, 2012 at 11:22am

    I wonder if they will have someone playing riffs on a piano after everything he says, like they did for Holder yesterday. Yesterday was more of a tent revival meeting than a speech.

    Report Post »  
  • Dismayed Veteran
    Posted on July 11, 2012 at 11:09am

    The President of the United States has to be the President for all Americans. By being there and in a crowd that is hostile, he is at least showing up. He may not win a lot of votes but he will win some. Obama’s opting out should be insulting to the NAACP members. His actions show him to the an African American instead of an American of african ancestry.

    Report Post » Dismayed Veteran  
    • RajCaj
      Posted on July 11, 2012 at 2:15pm

      Hows this for optics, Obama is sending an old white guy (you know…Biden, the guy who described Obama as a CLEAN black man) to speak to the NAACP instead of going himself.

      But Obama will get a pass for snubbing them…

      Romney points out that under Obama’s admin, the Black community is at over 14% unemployment (nearly 6 % higher than national average), asserts he would do better…and gets Boo’d. Huh?

      Report Post »  
  • kat747
    Posted on July 11, 2012 at 10:37am

    Just tell them that they won’t have to worry about making their mortgage payments, buying gas or buying foot and they will vote for you.
    Barry did that in Chicago and he got elected.

    Report Post »  
  • Individualism
    Posted on July 11, 2012 at 9:51am

    I hope they question the racist hateful past of his mormon faith and see if its within him or not.

    Report Post » Individualism  
    • unrealistic
      Posted on July 11, 2012 at 10:30am

      you mean how they had black members of the priesthood since 1836? or how they have missionaries travel the world to teach the gospel of Jesus Christ? gah, so hateful and racist.

      Report Post »  
    • razvedka
      Posted on July 11, 2012 at 10:49am

      Why he would even bother with such a radical, hate filled group of people is a mystery. He might as well travel to Egyt next to address the MUSLIM BROTHERHOOD. Romney’s problem is not his politics with them as much as it is his skin color.

      Report Post »  
    • jsciai
      Posted on July 11, 2012 at 12:00pm

      igitvidualism
      You mean that the NAACP ask him about how his mormon faith was targeted in Missouri because they were abolitionists? And as a result Gov. Boggs issued an extermination order on the mormons to kill them on sight without provocation? And how they advocated the end of slavery? And how Joseph Smith ran for president of the US on a free the slave platform? Are those the kinds of questions you are referring to? Or are you a member of that religion that took until 2009 to apologize for their SUPPORT of slavery. Or maybe you’re a member of that religion that tortured jews in during the inquisition. Or maybe…. All religions have good and bad histiory. Why? Because it is man that is trying to follow God and man makes mistakes. Sometimes they are stupid mistakes. Kind of like your post!
      Dimwit!

      Report Post » jsciai  
    • gonnaneedabiggerboat
      Posted on July 11, 2012 at 12:22pm

      Oh, you mean the same way the media questioned the racist hateful “religion” of BHO’s pastor and pal Jeremiah Wright? I don’t recall that being done…except by Glenn Beck, of course…but he’s evil because he actually tells the truth and espouses (i’ll give you a moment to look that word up) decency. Got it.

      The mere existence of an organization like the NAACP is living proof of racist double standards. Imagine an Association for the Advancement of White People; or White Entertainment Television; or the Congressional White Caucus; or the Missouri White Expo (yeah, that’s happening in August, the Missouri Black Expo). Oh the humanity of those racist hateful imaginary organizations!!

      Report Post »  
    • Samwise636
      Posted on July 11, 2012 at 12:33pm

      jsciai,
      Nice reply!!

      Report Post » Samwise636  
    • sbenard
      Posted on July 11, 2012 at 1:14pm

      Do you mean that “racist” Mormon Church that has NEVER, since its inception in 1830, had racially segregated congregations, unlike many other Christian Churches did until just a few decades ago?

      Report Post » sbenard  
  • Gonzo
    Posted on July 11, 2012 at 8:44am

    Why do politicians have to bow at the alter of the NAACP? Until Obama agrees to address the national confrence of the Aryan Nation, I say boycott them.

    Report Post » Gonzo  
  • TWO BITS
    Posted on July 11, 2012 at 8:36am

    The NAACP will relish giving Romney the cold shoulder, and no doubt, media wizards are already conjuring up some gaffes from his speech.

    Report Post » TWO BITS  
  • hempstead1944
    Posted on July 11, 2012 at 7:59am

    Foolish. Wonder what brillant campaign aide suggested this one…….

    Report Post »  
  • lgccac
    Posted on July 11, 2012 at 7:45am

    Romney should boycott the racist NAACP. Obama is.

    Report Post »  
    • nzkiwi
      Posted on July 11, 2012 at 8:03am

      Yes, I saw that on Fox. That is astonishing. He is sending Mr Holder in his stead. I doubt that this is a good idea for a number of obvious reasons. That’s to say; not a good idea for the Obama team. I expect that Mr Romney’s supporters are not complaining.

      I wonder how the members of the NAACP really feel about Mr Obama’s conspicuous absence. One might forgive them for feeling that they are being taken for granted.

      Report Post »  
    • Gonzo
      Posted on July 11, 2012 at 8:41am

      Yea but, he’s sending an idiot in his place, they may not notice the difference.

      Report Post » Gonzo  
  • nzkiwi
    Posted on July 11, 2012 at 7:44am

    He is doing exactly the right thing. Members of the NAACP understand the danger of excessive debt and marxist economic philosphy as well as any other group. He has a simple story to tell and the basics are as easy to understand as one’s household budget.

    There are black people who will vote for Mr Obama just because he is black, and there are white people that will not vote for him for the same reason. But in between these idiotic extremes are the majority of Americans who will test his ideas against their own philosophy and vote their conscience.

    That is not to say that he will carry the majority with him – clearly he won’t, but failing to address them is to show a significant sector of the population unforgivable contempt.

    I had my doubts about Mr Romney at the beginning, but I am increasingly coming to respect his abilities. He is not the scintillating speaker that Mr Obama is, but he is beginning to exude an air of unpretentious fiscal competence that is compelling.

    This is, after all, the man who quietly rescued the Olympic Games from financial disaster without landing a gigantic bill on the US taxpayer.

    America needs such a man and, if he selects a running mate that can cover areas where he is less able, I fail to see how he will not win in a landslide.

    Report Post »  
    • PATRIOTMAMA
      Posted on July 11, 2012 at 8:30am

      @NZKIWI

      I totally agree with you. The media would have us believe, Obama Admin as well, that we are a bunch of wacko extremists on either side of this whole deal. The overwhelming majority of Americans are, yes on one side or the other, but way more towards the middle and more than willing to reach legitimate agreements on things that we must just agree to disagree about. The voter ID law opposition is fabricated by the admin and the media to divide the black and hispanic community into defeating these laws so they can open the borders and gin up more “voters.” Most in the black and legal hispanic communities support these laws as much as we do. You have to have an ID to drive, get credit, to apply for welfare, food stamps, unemployment, to be employed. Oh and btw you are required as employers to keep id on all employees for DHS purposes. YOU ALREADY HAVE TO HAVE ID TO DO ANYTHING!!!! Why are they fighting this so hard then. I would be the farm on the fact that even DEMs know this is a complete farse and the only ones saying they don’t like it are the blind obamaites or those that are in on it. NON ISSUE.

      Report Post »  
    • razvedka
      Posted on July 11, 2012 at 10:53am

      Well I guess he must have a lot of time on his hands to visit such a group. You are right about one thing though, they do understand MARXISM because they are MARXISTS.

      Report Post »  
  • SpankDaMonkey
    Posted on July 11, 2012 at 7:43am

    .
    NAACP= N-words Aint Acting like Colored People I wonder if Mitt will have to show ID?

    Report Post » SpankDaMonkey  
  • Master_and_Commander
    Posted on July 11, 2012 at 7:36am

    they’re right, this is a huge step, and I’m glad Romney is finally doing something right. But will it be enough? He’s making too many blunders, from his slow and confusing reaction to the SC ruling on Obamacare to his more recent (I think) blunder of vetting this new guy from Ohio. I just don’t see this turning out well…

    Report Post »  
  • Diane TX
    Posted on July 11, 2012 at 7:34am

    How “racial” is it that anyone would expect that a Black person wouldn’t be an American Citizen? I wouldn’t. I would expect that most Blacks would be American Citizens. All of the slaves, and their children were declared to be American Citizens. Although many Blacks were brought to America as slaves, that was centuries ago. Slavery no longer exists in the USA. The children of today, are not taught the concept of racism. My grandchild (white) doesn’t have any problem with another child being Black. It doesn’t mean a thing to them. My child doesn’t a problem about race. It just doesn’t matter to any of them.

    Report Post »  
    • qpwillie
      Posted on July 11, 2012 at 7:49am

      Many of the blacks who are still trying to be victims of slavery are descendent’s of blacks who owned black slaves.

      Report Post » qpwillie  
    • myway
      Posted on July 11, 2012 at 9:04am

      VICTIMS teach their children they are victims. Is anyone sick of the elite blacks being victims? Ron Emanuel told street gangsters to go into the allies and shoot each other, don’t shoot around our kids. He can’t control his gangsters? Maybe he should have them shoot Republicans or Conservatives. Talk about liberal leadership, they have taught these young boys in most cases they don’t care if they shoot each other. I am pretty sure he is talking to black gangsters. This ABC story is sad, but they can’t stop anything. http://news92fm.com/258875/chicago-mayor-emanuel-chastises-gangs-for-childs-murder/

      Report Post » myway  
  • NeoKong
    Posted on July 11, 2012 at 7:31am

    What’s the point really….?
    No matter how bad things are in the black community they almost always vote for the black candidate and all you have to do is look at the west side of Chicago or Harlem in N.Y. or the people who vote for Maxine Waters or Sheila Jackson Lee.

    Mitt can go and talk jobs, the economy and school vouchers and it will just bounce right off them.

    Report Post » NeoKong  
    • RajCaj
      Posted on July 11, 2012 at 2:27pm

      It’s not about black / white politicians. They wouldn’t vote for Herman Cain or Allan West no sooner than they would vote for Mitt Romney. The real common denominator is progressive ideology. They will vote for the progressive time after time….facts be damned.

      The reason Romney does it anyway is because if he DOESN’T, then the left are free to come to what ever conclusion they see most fitting to reason WHY Romney decided not to speak in front of (like it or not) self appointed representatives for the wants & needs of Black Americans.

      Just as Romney not commenting on Rush’s “Slut” comment means he by default agrees……a no show at NAACP is tantamount to not caring about the plight or support of Black Americans.

      Report Post »  
  • kcares
    Posted on July 11, 2012 at 7:23am

    What a waste! Where is the WAAWP?

    Report Post » kcares  
    • Master_and_Commander
      Posted on July 11, 2012 at 7:41am

      Oh shut up, go do something useful with your time instead of blabbing off B.S. opinions like this

      Report Post »  
  • historyguy48
    Posted on July 11, 2012 at 7:11am

    Comrade this should go well. I am certain that the North American Association of Communist Peoples will hear and respond favorably to his message! Huh?

    Report Post » historyguy48  
  • Fubared
    Posted on July 11, 2012 at 7:09am

    And a KKK luncheon on Friday? F all that crap and tell them so. So sick of racial demands.

    Report Post »  

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