Black Vote Seen as Last Hope for Democrats to Hold Senate

The New York Times ^ | October 18, 2014 | Sheryl Gay Stolberg

[2ndDivisionVet]

The confidential memo from a former pollster for President Obama contained a blunt warning for Democrats. Written this month with an eye toward Election Day, it predicted “crushing Democratic losses across the country” if the party did not do more to get black voters to the polls.

“African-American surge voters came out in force in 2008 and 2012, but they are not well positioned to do so again in 2014,” Cornell Belcher, the pollster, wrote in the memo, dated Oct. 1. “In fact, over half aren’t even sure when the midterm elections are taking place.”

Mr. Belcher’s assessment points to an urgent imperative for Democrats: To keep Republicans from taking control of the Senate, as many are predicting, they need black voters in at least four key states. Yet the one politician guaranteed to generate enthusiasm among African Americans is the same man many Democratic candidates want to avoid: Mr. Obama.

Now, Democrats are deploying other prominent black elected officials and other surrogates, buttressed by sophisticated voter targeting efforts, to stoke black turnout. At the White House, the president is waging an under-the-radar campaign, recording video advertisements, radio interviews and telephone calls specifically targeting his loyal African-American base.....

[ronnie raygun]

The so called “black surge voters” voted “the color of thier skin not the content of charactor” MLK’s phrase not mine. The new phrase should be “the vote for freesh## surge voters”

[driftless2]

Name me a Dem candidate across the country in the last fifty years for prez, gov., senator, or representative who was worth voting for. I'm sure there's a few, but I can't think of one where I live (Wisconsin). And I voted mostly for Dems until about twenty years ago.

In the last fifty years the Dem Party has lurched leftwards and away from core American principles. I view Republican candidates as the least insane candidates and am usually proven right.

[USS Alaska]

Now, Democrats are deploying other prominent black elected officials and other surrogates, buttressed by sophisticated voter targeting efforts, to stoke black turnout. At the White House, the president is waging an under-the-radar campaign, recording video advertisements, radio interviews and telephone calls specifically targeting his loyal African-American base.....

Why not use the tried and true method?

[Carl Vehse]

In the last fifty years the Dem Party has lurched leftwards and away from core American principles. I view Republican candidates as the least insane candidates and am usually proven right."

In the last fifty years the Demonicrat Party has lurched leftwards into murder-by-abortion, homosexual perversion, racist entitlements, hatred against American principles, and treason. RINOs have moved with them. Many other Republicans have adopted a position of gutless cowardess by not pointing out Demonicrats and RINOs as traitors to the United States.

[Gaffer]

Were one to change the words “African-American” in this article to “White,” it would be soundly condemned as ‘racist’ throughout the collective media.

[Jack Hammer]

Obama has already done plenty to get (savvy) Black voters to the polls.

However, there aren’t very many savvy Black voters, and the rest don’t seem quite as ready to cast votes for the policies of the Democrats and their dullard in the White House.

[CincyRichieRich]

Just like in Cincy they’ll make sure black poll workers can vote 6 times each. It’s fair you know.

[Theodore R.]

I conclude that the Democratic candidate could be Satan himself and it wouldn’t matter. They’d still vote for him.

This has been the case since at least 1960. Nixon courted white "moderates" in the North, didn't quite get enough of them.

[Theodore R.]

A lot of “our little Republican voters” are as confused about policy as their Democrat cousins.

[cripplecreek]

Keeping an eye on the opposition. CREDO SuperPAC video (Michigan). They say people don’t realize there is an election coming up.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NQvJG10Mzqs#t=14

[trebb]

I don't think it'll work.

Hence the efforts to keep stoking the fires in Ferguson in hopes of a retaliation which kills some more of them - nothing like Blacks being roused to decry responses to Black violence to unite them. It feels repugnant to have to say that, but the Left has made it the latest version of Truth.

[broken_arrow1]

Mark my words - The near-term Ferguson Grand Jury’s decision, when the “white” cop gets exonerated,...will be the Democrat’s rallying cry for “get out the Black vote” for the mid-terms!

[MulberryDraw]

Have the Blacks noticed the pictures of illegal immigrants streaming across the southern border? They aren’t Black. Have they noticed any of the myriad articles about how important the Hispanic vote is to the democraps?

[gaijin]

the toxic president can’t campaign effectively, therefore we see the feds trying to Stoke the fires of outrage in Ferguson.

it’s all about the election. Ferguson is a voter drive.

If there’s enough pre election violence to provoke a fresh killing or two the twisted hope is that blacks will show up to vote loyally.

Ferguson’s original spark was spontaneous but everything that has happened since then has been an ntricate political orchestration.

[Popman]

Entering into a post Obama election era should prove to be very interesting indeed...

Obviously minorities saw Obama as the great hope to give them a greater voice...2008 was euphoria for them, 2012 was, Ok everybody gets a second chance...

Since pretty much every economic indicator shows minorities are worst off today than in 2008 the kool-aid they have been drinking must be getting pretty stale...

Democrats slowly are losing the locked in vote of minorities...

I think many will stay home rather than vote GOP...thinking "why vote it really doesn't matter after all"

That's why it so important for the GOP to reach out to the minorities communities with conservative ideas and concepts, not liberal light...

[Macoozie]

TWO cookies for you!

Most telling line from the article.

[cripplecreek]

I never miss an opportunity to point out democrat failures to provide what they’re promising to blacks.

I tell blacks that Eric Holder nor Obama ever intended for George Zimmerman to face civil rights charges but have kept them stirred up over it for more than a year. Now Eric holder is resigning. The democrats are doing the same in Ferguson and stirring outrage for political gain, nothing more.

Those who are still rational after hearing it are open to hearing from Alveda King, CL Bryant, and Elbert Guillory. I point out that conservative and republican blacks are economically far better off.

[Jabba the Nutt]

Well, let’s expect to see more race baiting from the usual suspects, more Trayvon and Gentle Giant tributes, more lies about churches burning and more charges about racism. What the Dem’s never say after 50 years of race-baiting the Black Community, is how they’re going to fix it or how Black lives will improve. This is totally destructive with no upside.

[Norm Lenhart]

the still rational part is the key. But few remain rational. The ones that do are worth the effort to keep speaking with.

My son in law grew up in the Pittsburgh ‘bad side of town’. In our first real political conversation I asked him what he thought about Jessie and Al riding/flying around in luxury and doing hit and run ‘civil rights’ work. I just pretty much said some version of “They got theirs and they left people hang when the cameras left. Ever hear of anyone they ‘helped’ go on to live a better life?’

Stunned him. He’d never even considered it from that perspective before. But he did consider it. I never made a hardcore right winger out of him, but he never looked at ‘black issues’ the same way. And that caused him a lot of grief with the homies.

[Senator_Blutarski]

In light of the Ebola situation: To keep the crowd size down at the polling places let’s have the Republicans vote on Tuesday and the Democrats vote on Wednesday.