WASHINGTON (NNPA)�The Bush White House is trying to inflame White
voters by reminding them of the potential power of Black representatives
if Democrats win control of the House, a Democratic spokeswoman says.
Jennifer Palmieri, spokeswoman for the Democratic National Committee
(DNC), says White House Political Director Kenneth Mehlman appeared to
use a quotation by Rep. Charles Rangel (D-N.Y.) in a PowerPoint
presentation to West Coast Republicans in order to send a subtle racial
message.
In the quote, Rep. Rangel was referring to the Florida voting debacle
in Election 2000. The presentation noted, "Rep. Charles Rangel
(D-Harlem) drew cheers when he hailed Clinton as �the last elected
president of the U.S.� and said, �It is our job to say we�re not getting
over Florida.� "
If Democrats win control of the House, Rep. Rangel would become chair
of the Ways and Means Committee, which makes powerful financial
decisions.
"We find it suspicious that they chose to close their presentation
with what they view to be an inflammatory quote from an African-American
member of Congress who will become a major player in the House if it�s
Democratic," Ms. Palmieri says. "It belies a larger insensitivity to the
African-American community."
Ironically, the PowerPoint presentation on election strategy, given
several weeks ago by the White House Office of Strategic Initiatives,
lays out plans by the Republican Party to "improve" the president�s
outreach among Blacks and "grow" his outreach among women and Hispanic
voters in order to help win the election.
A Republican spokesman scoffed at Ms. Palmieri�s assertion, but gave
no reason for the use of the quote.
"That sounds pretty far-fetched that the Democratic National
Committee would be engaged in that kind of divisive speculation. That�s
kind of a heavy accusation to make," says Kevin Sheridan, a spokesman
for the Republican National Committee (RNC). "That he can�t use a quote
from a high-ranking member of Congress without the Democratic Party
charging racial insensitivity is just totally, totally inappropriate. �
That is a totally, really a bombastic charge to be making."
A White House spokeswoman was concise when asked why the quotation
was used.
"It�s clear from Congressman Rangel�s statement that the Democrats
will work hard in the next presidential election and you can be sure we
will work harder," says Mercedes M. Viana.
The document also includes anticipated Democratic strategies as the
two parties struggle to gain power in the House and Senate. The Senate
has a 50-49 Democratic majority with one independent. The House has a
222-211 Republican majority with two independents.
"Control of Congress will turn on [a] handful of races decided by
local issues, candidate quality, money raised, campaign performance,
etc.," the GOP document explains. The "Republican Strategy" must be to
"Mobilize GOP base, reach out to Hispanics, Unions, [and] African
Americans."
The reputation of the Bush administration, even with his 87 percent
approval rating, has been poor among Black civil rights organizations.
At a strategy meeting, held in May, Black activists said they would be
reviving issues that were eclipsed by the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.
They include election reforms in the wake of the 2000 fiasco and new
legislation on racial profiling, hate crimes, economic justice,
education and other civil rights and criminal justice issues.
Pres. Bush apparently is seeking to counter this strategy. He
recently announced an initiative to increase homeownership among Blacks
and other racial minorities. Also, Angela Sailor, associate director of
the White House Office of Public Liaison, is organizing conference calls
between the Black press and other media and top White House officials in
an effort to spread their message.
Among women�s groups, Republicans face strong opposition from
pro-choice advocates.
The Republican document projects that $125.5 million will be spent by
Democratic opponents such as the NAACP, Planned Parenthood and the
AFL-CIO, based on the amounts the groups spent in Election 2000. It also
projects that Democrats will support Bush on the war against terrorism,
but question his domestic agenda.
Other than a political need for a Republican Congress, Pres. Bush has
much more at stake if the Black vote continues its growth pattern. In an
analysis by David A. Bositis, senior research associate for the Joint
Center For Political and Economic Studies, the increase in Black voters
from the 1996 presidential election and the 2000 election amounted to at
least one million. Nine of 10 Black voters supported Democrat Al Gore in
2000.
Republicans think they may pick up Senate seats in Minnesota, South
Dakota, Missouri, Iowa and Georgia. They feel Democrats have a chance to
pick up seats in Maine, North Carolina, Tennessee, Colorado, Oregon and
Texas, where former Dallas Mayor Ron Kirk is in a heated race against
Republican Attorney General John Cornyn. Both parties are battling for
the Texas seat that will be left open by the retirement of Republican
Phil Gramm.
�Hazel Trice Edney