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Cain’s Assertion That He Could Win Over Black Voters Is Dismissed By Analysts
Washington Post ^ | November 25, 2011 | Vanessa Williams

Posted on 11/25/2011 9:27:38 AM PST by Steelfish

Cain’s Assertion That He Could Win Over Black Voters Is Dismissed By Analysts

Vanessa Williams November 24

Herman Cain’s turn atop the polls in the contest for the Republican presidential nomination captured the attention of journalists and pundits and sparked excitement among grass-roots conservative activists.

But is it really possible that he — a black man who overcame poverty in the segregated South to become a wealthy entrepreneur and front-runner in the GOP race — would be the one to bring African American voters back to their original political home?

Cain seems to think so. In a mailer sent to Iowa voters recently, the candidate says “as a descendent of slaves I can lead the Republican party to victory by garnering a large share of the black vote, something that has not been done since Dwight Eisenhower garnered 41 percent of the black vote in 1956.”

It is a proposition that was quickly dismissed by political scholars and analysts, including some members of Cain’s party. Although he has done better than any other black Republican presidential candidate in terms of attracting support, few believe Cain could snare a sizable number of black voters in a general election, especially against President Obama.

“If he’s talking about 41 percent of black voters in the Republican primary, he might be right,” Michael Dawson, an African American political science professor at the University of Chicago, said with a chuckle. But in a general election against President Obama, who got 95 percent of the black vote in 2008 and remains popular among African Americans, Dawson said Cain “would be lucky to get 10 percent” of the black vote.

Besides being remarkable for its optimistic electoral calculation, Cain’s claim is unusual because he has made no special effort to appeal directly to black voters.

(Excerpt) Read more at washingtonpost.com ...


TOPICS: News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: cain; hermancain
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To: Windflier
I agree. Herman Cain would pull a small but hopefully significant percentage of votes from Obama. But it is naive to believe that he would be able to get more than that. It is not just that Obama is black. It is his party affiliation. I seriously can not think of anything that Obama could do or say that would significantly reduce Obama’s support among black voters. Nothing he has done or said thus far has made more than a tiny dent.
21 posted on 11/25/2011 10:00:57 AM PST by Nevadan
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To: buccaneer81

In 04 John Kerry won Michigan with 2,472,007 votes over Bush with 2,306,331 votes. That isn’t a huge spread that couldn’t be overcome (165,676 votes). Its also important to note that we stomped the democrats hard in 2010 and they didn’t pick up a single seat.

I overlook the 08 election simply because it was such a disgusting mess with the world’s most pathetic GOP candidate, rampant fraud, and a democrat portrayed as the messiah.

Things are very different this time including a severe crackdown on fraud, firm ID requirements, redistricting in GOP favor. Obama can’t afford to lose even one midwest state.


22 posted on 11/25/2011 10:04:22 AM PST by cripplecreek (Stand with courage or shut up and do as you're told.)
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To: cripplecreek
I overlook the 08 election simply because it was such a disgusting mess with the world’s most pathetic GOP candidate, rampant fraud, and a democrat portrayed as the messiah.

Very true. Honest texts 100 years from now will note that 2008 was an election that truly was conducted like a third world regime change.

23 posted on 11/25/2011 10:11:00 AM PST by buccaneer81 (ECOMCON)
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To: Steelfish

Make that “dismissed by the straw hat bosses on the dimoKKKRAT plantation”. Those are the ones making the analysis for the msm. Purely BS.


24 posted on 11/25/2011 10:12:52 AM PST by Parley Baer
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To: Nevadan
I seriously can not think of anything that Obama could do or say that would significantly reduce Obama’s support among black voters. Nothing he has done or said thus far has made more than a tiny dent.

I can think of one: If Larry Sinclair's allegations were proven true beyond a shadow of a doubt. Blacks would abandon Obama in droves, at the very least by sitting out the election.

25 posted on 11/25/2011 10:13:35 AM PST by buccaneer81 (ECOMCON)
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To: buccaneer81

If Herman Cain wants to “pander” to blacks, he has my blessing if he hammers away at reminding them that illegal immigration harms them most of all.


26 posted on 11/25/2011 10:17:08 AM PST by cripplecreek (Stand with courage or shut up and do as you're told.)
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To: cripplecreek

Great point. And tie it in with union support for those illegals.


27 posted on 11/25/2011 10:19:51 AM PST by buccaneer81 (ECOMCON)
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To: Steelfish

Not worth the effort. Most blacks, not all, are utterly brainwahsed if not utterly braindead. Just listen to Sean Hannity’s radio show for 5 minutes if you can...


28 posted on 11/25/2011 10:20:54 AM PST by chris37 (Heartless.)
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To: chris37

This is madness.

Herman Cain would not only garner less of the black vote than the other candidates, he would actually do the impossible task of bringing out more black voters for Obama than McCain did.

People who believe otherwise live in a fantasy world with no sense of the mindset of black voters in america today.

Black voters are just going to line-up to vote out the first African-American Democrat to put in a black Republican? Horsefeathers! Obama owns an approval rating is over 91% even TODAY (http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=obama%20approval%20rating%20blacks&source=newssearch&cd=3&ved=0CDgQqQIwAg&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.washingtonpost.com%2Fblogs%2Fpost-partisan%2Fpost%2Fcain-and-the-black-vote-wishful-thinking%2F2011%2F03%2F04%2FgIQAQQfHlN_blog.html&ei=EtzPTrLEFez22AXxtNG8BQ&usg=AFQjCNFTEUGxoS7qSXJWpe-UZ60Q5oIvlw).

Utterly ridiculous to make this gamble. Bet the nation on a roulette number and you’ll have better odds of being right.


29 posted on 11/25/2011 10:28:14 AM PST by TitansAFC (Cain's answer on how to handle illegals who broke FEDERAL law? Let the states take care of it. Punt!)
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To: buccaneer81
re: I can think of one: If Larry Sinclair's allegations were proven true beyond a shadow of a doubt. Blacks would abandon Obama in droves, at the very least by sitting out the election.

Refresh my memory. What allegations are you referring to?

30 posted on 11/25/2011 10:31:42 AM PST by Nevadan
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To: Nevadan

Obama’s homosexuality.


31 posted on 11/25/2011 10:39:13 AM PST by buccaneer81 (ECOMCON)
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To: TitansAFC
Herman Cain would not only garner less of the black vote than the other candidates, he would actually do the impossible task of bringing out more black voters for Obama than McCain did.

You are out of your mind.

32 posted on 11/25/2011 10:42:45 AM PST by buccaneer81 (ECOMCON)
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To: Cyber Liberty
If Cain

Two big words. :-)

33 posted on 11/25/2011 10:43:25 AM PST by writer33 (Mark Levin Is The Constitutional Engine Of Conservatism)
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To: TitansAFC

Yep, write them off.

They aren’t worth the effort or time, as far as I am concerned the only way to really deal with them is to let Mother Nature and Father Time deal with ‘em.

They are lost and not worth finding.


34 posted on 11/25/2011 10:47:08 AM PST by chris37 (Heartless.)
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To: buccaneer81
I still don't think that would matter. First of all, blacks would have to know about it. The MSM would never say anything about it, and most blacks are not tuning into Fox News. (Not that Fox would say much about it either). Then blacks would have to believe it. Most don't believe any of the negative evidence about Obama now. The race card would be played against any bringing forth the evidence. Then the question would be, would it actually bother them? I really don't think so. Democrats overwhelmingly support homosexual candidates. Why would this be any different?
35 posted on 11/25/2011 10:48:56 AM PST by Nevadan
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To: Steelfish
Basically it all boils down to this:

Cain’s Assertion That He Could Win Over Black Voters Is Dismissed By Analysts

That's the real headline.

36 posted on 11/25/2011 10:51:13 AM PST by Mygirlsmom ("Get ready for an aberration of historic proportions" ...H Cain.."to correct the last one" MGM)
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To: TitansAFC

” People who believe otherwise live in a fantasy world with no sense of the mindset of black voters in america today. “

Gloria Cain is a registered and active Democrat.
If Herman can’t convince her to become a Republican , what shot does he have with millions of strangers ?
Herman himself didn’t see the wisdom of joining the Republican Party until he was 50 and almost out of the business world.
Cain has said he has voted for Democrats in the past and he supported Bill Clinton in 1992.
Cain and the handful of black Republicans are the exception and will never be the rule until blacks themselves
decide the Republican way is the better way.


37 posted on 11/25/2011 10:51:38 AM PST by Wild Irish Rogue
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To: Nevadan
Democrats overwhelmingly support homosexual candidates.

Black culture despises homosexuality. In my state of Ohio, we had a Constitutional Amendment on the ballot to ban gay marriage. It passed with 68% of the vote total and 90% of the black vote.

Oh, did I mention? In that same election, GW Bush got 18% of the black vote. If not for that, it's likely Kerry would have won the presidency. Bush won Ohio by a total of just over 100,000 votes.

38 posted on 11/25/2011 10:57:11 AM PST by buccaneer81 (ECOMCON)
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To: Wild Irish Rogue

I’d just be happy if blacks would notice which political party was the KKK.


39 posted on 11/25/2011 11:00:31 AM PST by Cyber Liberty (Cain = National Sales Tax; Perry = Amnesty for Illegals; Romney = Obamacare forever. Who's left?)
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To: cripplecreek

Agreed.


40 posted on 11/25/2011 11:16:08 AM PST by Bigg Red (Maryland girl on the Cain Train)
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