2020 Presidential Candidates

Rick wrote:

Blazer Bob wrote: Who's more racist ?

Joe Biden: “I’ve been involved in the African American community my whole life, my first job was as a public defender”

LOL!! The problem is the left can't see the racism in those remarks. African Americans are getting a very clear picture of how these people have used them for decades.

I must not be getting it, can you explain to me how that statement is racist?

Here's the thing I think you might not know about black voters: they are pragmatists through and through. They don't vote for who they think would give them the most of what they'd want, they vote for the least harmful, most electable candidate to remove someone who is overtly and demonstrably worse. Go read black activists, especially women's, writings/blogs/Tweets, and particularly this article. They get that while Sanders' or Warren's policies might benefit them the most, they are realistic that Sanders really doesn't have a chance in hell of winning and Warren is a long shot. Plus, Biden has been involved in, and fought for, the black community his entire career - they respect that authenticity.

Perhaps learning more about Biden's history, you might understand why he'd say that, and why he's consistently had the support of the African American community throughout his career. You have to consider reality from their perspective rather than your own.

‘I know Joe’s heart’: Why black voters are backing Joe Biden
By ERRIN HAINES, AP News | December 1, 2019

People who have known Biden for decades speak to the depth of good will he has among black voters. They talk of Biden as someone who has known and courted black voters for more than a half century. That, they say, could make it difficult for other candidates who hope to persuade some black voters to change their minds.

“He knew our plight, he knew how we felt,” said Richard “Mouse” Smith, who met Biden as a kid in Wilmington, Delaware’s black community where Biden worked as a lifeguard during college.

“He walked through gangs, learned all nicknames, he was part of this community,” said Smith, who remains one of Biden’s oldest and closest friends. “Joe had to be accountable to the black leadership in this city. We made him.”

Biden has credited his early years in Delaware politics as formative, particularly the community known as “The Bucket,” the largely African American, downtrodden northeast Wilmington neighborhood that was home to housing projects, crime, drugs and violence. He returned to the area as a young lawyer during the 1968 Wilmington riots after the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. He represented the community of New Castle as a county councilman, supporting public housing and opposing highway projects he saw as potentially harmful to black neighborhoods.

African Americans Support Biden Over Other Democratic Candidates
Morning Edition, NPR | February 3, 2020

MARTIN: So Joe Biden has the most support from African American voters than any other Democrat in this race, even though there have been several black candidates in the race, including two senators - Kamala Harris, Cory Booker. Can you explain what black voters see in him?

RICHMOND: Well, I think it's his body of work and the fact that they see in him exactly what President Obama saw in him when he decided to canvass the entire Senate - many of senators who are in the race now were there - and he decided to offer the vice presidency to Joe Biden because of his body of work, from his involvement in the civil rights movement, the fact that he left a law firm to join the public defender's office, the fact that he is steady, and he is consistent in who he is, who he says he is.

Why Biden's rivals can't break his lock on black voters
By LAURA BARRÓN-LÓPEZ, Politico | 01/23/2020

GREENVILLE, S.C. — Julius Stephens is 74, black, and calls himself a liberal.

Standing outside Big Rod’s Barber Shop in North Augusta after watching Joe Biden surrogates rally on behalf of the vice president last week, Stephens gushed about a different candidate: Elizabeth Warren. The Army veteran cited her health care plan and said he “like(s) a lot of the things Warren is saying.” He also praised Bernie Sanders’ policies.

But then Stephens added that the country “would never vote for a woman and a liberal that’s been branded a socialist.” So he’s planning to vote for Biden.

:eyeroll: How should I relay that information PonySoldier? Say "we" like I'm black when I'm not? I don't pretend to fully understand the lives of every ethnic and religious group, and gender, in this country, but I at least try to listen, empathize, and not judge. I sure haven't called you a racist even though you are supporting a racist for a president. And for damn sure, I share what I find enlightening so you can read it for yourself. You do realize that Bebe Coker, Jason Johnson, Democratic Rep. Cedric Richmond who made the statements in those articles are black, right?