Democrats are
relying heavily on black voters to keep them from hemorrhaging House and Senate seats in the midterm elections, and black voters should take this opportunity to seek a fully flushed-out agenda from Washington.
The
New York Times writes:
Without Mr. Obama atop the ticket this year...vulnerable Democrats, mostly in the rural South, face the challenge of reviving the spirit of 2008 for black voters without alienating right-leaning white majorities in their districts. The candidates' ability to walk that line may decide whether Democrats maintain control of the House of Representatives, and could affect several Senate contests and governor's races.
The Democrats confront multiple obstacles, but also enjoy several advantages. Working against them: turnout for midterm elections is often a third lower than in presidential years; some African Americans are disillusioned with the pace of economic recovery; and several Democratic incumbents, including Mr. Kissell, who is white, have angered black constituents by opposing Mr. Obama on major initiatives like the health care law.
In their favor: the Democratic National Committee plans to spend 10 times more than it did in 2006 to get out the black vote; the Tea Party movement and the questioning of Mr. Obama's religion and birthplace are motivating many black voters; and the Democrats are summoning them to defend the first black president from Republican assault.
"It very much is about having the president's back," said Brad Woodhouse, a spokesman for the Democratic National Committee.
Even Obama, despite his ridiculously high approval ratings among African Americans, has seen some slippage. About 95 percent of African Americans supported Obama in 2008. Today, that figure is 88 percent. And that number is undoubtedly driven by the fact that the black unemployment rate, at 16.1 percent, is almost double that of whites.
Until now, Obama has been loathe to lay out an agenda for black America because of the same backlash that Democrats face. However, the president needs to find a way to lay out some specific plans, as well as highlight some of his accomplishments.
Obama's dilemma is the dilemma of
"post-racial" African American politicians. In an effort to appeal to a larger swath of voters of all races, black politicians sometimes feel they can or need to ignore black voters. In Washington, D.C.,
Adrian Fenty, who swept all of the city's election districts just four years ago, lost his re-election bid after African American voters felt that he was ignoring their concerns.
Obama's black support is still high now, but who knows what can happen over the next two years.
Most African Americans understand the state the country was in when Obama took office.
"I think people are beginning to see that all these expectations would not be out of line if the president were a magician," said Rep. James E. Clyburn of South Carolina, who, as majority whip, is the highest ranking African American in the House. "You lay a foundation and you build upon it."
But Obama needs to be more specific about how he plans to help African Americans. As the election approaches, Obama has reached out to black bloggers and black media outlets. This is something that Obama should be doing on a regular basis. That is his opportunity to lay out to black voters how his plans are helping them.
I'm also sure Obama knows that as the first black president, the expectations from African Americans were going to be high. But we have been patient and we still support him in large numbers, while many of the other Americans who voted for him in 2008 have already jumped ship. This is the time for Obama to challenge the idea that there is something wrong with laying out an agenda for African Americans.
It may be too late by the time 2012 rolls around.
Source: Black Voices