By Raynard
Jackson
Columnist
Once again, Republican presidential candidates are proving
that they are either truly colorblind or just blind to people of
color.
What is it that all these declared Republican presidential
candidates all have in common: Jeb Bush,
Ben Carson, Lindsey Graham, Ted Cruz, Marco Rubio, Carly Fiorina, Mike Huckabee,
George Pataki, Rand Paul, Rick Perry, Rick Santorum, Bobby Jindal and Donald
Trump?
The answer is none of them have any paid Black staffers or
consultants. Let me be perfectly clear
when I say staffers or consultants; I am referring to people who can get
meetings on the calendar with the candidate, call the candidate on his private
cell phone, or get the candidate to show up somewhere.
In other words, staffers or consultants who have power and
influence to make things happen.
How can you run for president of the United States in the
21st century and have absolutely no diversity on your staff?
Lawdy, lawdy, I can hear their responses now. We are focusing on Iowa and New Hampshire;
and then if we become the nominee we will look to hire Blacks they will
say. So, in their minds, a Black staffer
or consultant can only operate in states that have Blacks? Oh really?
To be a Black Republican, we must be able to operate in a
White environment as well as a Black environment simultaneously.
Republicans have absolutely no understanding of this
dynamic. So, if you are dealing with
limited funds and you have to hire staffers or consultants; you are better off
hiring a Black simply because you get a twofer.
You can’t take a White staffer and put him in the Black
community and expect success because this staffer does not have an understanding
of the various nuances within the Black community. Conversely, you can send a Black to deal with
the White community if they have the right skill set.
For example, as a graduate of Oral Roberts University, I have
deep relationships within the White Evangelical community second to none; but I
also have deep personal ties with the heads of almost every major Black
professional organization in the country (journalists, accountants, lawyers,
physicians, M.B.A.s, etc.).
So, just on the fiscal issue alone, there is an immediate
return on investment for having a policy of diversity at the highest levels of a
presidential campaign since you get a twofer by hiring the “right” type of
Black.
The other issue is that of optics. You have yet to see a Black person get off a
plane or out of a car with any of these candidates. The sad part is the candidate nor his staff
is even cognizant of this situation.
The candidate is ultimately to blame for this; but it is also
the fault of their pollsters. I know
most of the Republican pollsters very well, and with the exception of one, they
all tell Republicans to ignore the Black vote.
On several occasions I have nearly come to blows with these
pollsters over this issue. They are
propagating this myth of the Hispanic voter and Republicans are buying into
it. Blacks far outnumber Hispanics in
voting age population (VAP); Blacks vote in far higher numbers than Hispanics;
and Blacks have a far higher turnout percentage than Hispanics.
Isn’t it amazing that some of these candidates are courting
Hispanics in Spanish; but refuse to speak to Blacks in a language that they
understand?
Blacks understand the language of entrepreneurship. Under Obama, Black businesses have been
decimated. Blacks have gone from
receiving 8% of S.B.A. loans under Bush to 1.8% under Obama (their own
numbers).
Blacks understand the language of education. Under Obama, the Historically Black Colleges
and Universities (HBCUs) have been decimated because of the policies coming out
of the Department of Education.
These are two issues that play to the Republican’s strength;
but yet they refuse to go into the Black community with this message. Instead, they foolishly go into the Black
community talking about prison reform issues.
H-E-L-L-O! These are not major
issues within the Black community.
This is a typical case of Republicans trying to do the right
thing; but doing it the wrong way. Too
many Republicans think they and their White staffers know more about the Black
community than a Black person from the community.
Message to Republicans:
you can’t run on a platform to represent all of America when America is
not represented on your campaign staff.
As the old folks used to say, “Your actions speak so loud I
can’t hear a damn thing you are saying.”
Raynard
Jackson & Associates, LLC is an internationally recognized political
consulting, government affairs, and PR firm based in Washington, DC. Jackson is an internationally recognized
radio talk show host and TV commentator.
He has coined the phrase “straticist.”
As a straticist, he has merged strategic planning with public
relations. Visit is website at:
www.raynardjackson.com
