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A growing political force to be reckoned with: black Republicans
heraldtribune.com ^ | Dec 01, 2003 | Rod Thomson

Posted on 12/01/2003 8:53:48 AM PST by Not gonna take it anymore


Article published Dec 1, 2003
A growing political force to be reckoned with: black Republicans

The ballroom of the Hyatt in downtown Sarasota was filled to capacity with 200 people at a $75-per-plate dinner. Typical Republican shindig, except for one thing: Most of the attendees were black. The occasion was the first inaugural banquet of the SaraMana Black Republican Club.

There is the sound of distant thunder in the two-party political alignment that is as real in Sarasota as anywhere in the country. Black voters, in small but growing numbers, are beginning to consider the Republican Party.
It sounds laughable at first blush. The Democratic Party has relied on about 90 percent, unquestioning black support for decades. But it is quite real, and could have stunning consequences for the balance of political power in the country.

I wrote about this last year, when a trolley filled with black Republicans rolled through all of the streets of Newtown before the November election to get out the vote for Republicans. It just seemed such a strange picture.
In that election, the black-owned Tempo News in Sarasota endorsed Republican Jeb Bush for governor, as did the black-owned The Weekly Challenger of St. Petersburg and the Broward Times of Fort Lauderdale, the first time the latter ever endorsed a Republican.

A few months later, the SaraMana Black Republican Club was formed and held its first meeting in April 2003 with 16 charter members. Seven months later, it held its first dinner meeting with 200 people enthusiastic about the conservative cause.
The banquet featured speakers, award-winners and a video presentation letting dozens of local blacks explain why they are Republicans.

One black woman who went at the invitation of a friend arrived as a Democrat but left as a Republican, giving a thumbs up to her party change.

"This will mark the beginning of changing the landscape of Sarasota and Manatee," said Johnny Hunter, president of the club and publisher of Tempo News.

Jacksonville state Rep. Jennifer Carroll, the first black Republican elected to the Legislature, gave the keynote speech. She told the group that the NAACP ran ads against her last fall without ever contacting her, simply because she is a Republican and despite the fact that she is a lifetime member of the organization.
But Carroll did not talk about fighting against the NAACP. She talked about taking over the NAACP with conservative blacks, and she was met with cheers. In fact, during a Saturday afternoon featuring one of the biggest football games of the season, the people were cheering her every remark.

And they were tough remarks, such as, "You do not have to be a Democrat. Last time I checked, slavery was over," and, "Liberalism is a cancer on inner city America."
Among the Sarasota African-Americans receiving awards were Ed James, an Eisenhower Republican who received a lifetime achievement award, and Jim Smith, a recent past chairman of the Sarasota County Republican Party. I was in Sarasota for several years before I discovered Smith was black. I simply assumed he was white -- you know, a Republican chieftain.

Perhaps this is just an anomaly in Sarasota? Apparently not. It is national in scope.

A study from the Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies last year found that in the previous two years, black support for Democrats dropped 11 percentage points, resulting in less than two-thirds calling themselves Democrats. Meanwhile, support for Republicans more than doubled among black voters, from 4 percent to 10 percent.
That is still a small percentage, but it does represent a 150 percent increase. Further, the largest Republican support comes from the youngest segment of black voters – the future.

If Sarasota is any indication, this trickle one day could turn into a dam-break.



Rod Thomson can be reached by e-mail at rod@plow.org, or by writing to the Herald-Tribune




TOPICS: Activism/Chapters; Constitution/Conservatism; Politics/Elections; US: Florida
KEYWORDS: black; blackrepublicans; florida; republicans
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To: concerned about politics
They can't make it on their own. They need affermative action...

And then, when we point to people like Rice, Powell, Thomas, etc., they say that they only got where they are because of "ties" to the powerful.

I guess it also depends on what kind of help they get, and who is doing the helping.

-PJ

41 posted on 12/01/2003 9:38:49 AM PST by Political Junkie Too (It's not safe yet to vote Democrat.)
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To: Political Junkie Too
I guess it also depends on what kind of help they get, and who is doing the helping.

Jessie Jackson made it with Democrat aid. Nasty picture, isn't it?

42 posted on 12/01/2003 9:43:56 AM PST by concerned about politics ( "Satire". It's Just "Satire.".......So it is.)
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To: Not gonna take it anymore
With more Black Conservatives maybe we can ditch the ridiculous ponsi sceme called Social Security. Black men lose the most in this system. White women make the most of it.(Check the history of the first recipient).
43 posted on 12/01/2003 9:50:08 AM PST by BabsC
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To: BabsC
With more Black Conservatives maybe we can ditch the ridiculous ponsi sceme called Social Security. Black men lose the most in this system. White women make the most of it.(Check the history of the first recipient).

Last statistic I saw, the average African American male had a life span of 65 years. Those are the folks who pay SS, but never live long enough to collect on it.
The Caucasion male lives longer, and the female lives longer than both.
Dean, a popular Democrat contender, wanted the age of SS entitlement increased even more. For some reason, the majority of blacks still support those who harm them.

44 posted on 12/01/2003 9:55:14 AM PST by concerned about politics ( "Satire". It's Just "Satire.".......So it is.)
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To: mhking
Democrats don't want to help the Black population. They want to control them.
45 posted on 12/01/2003 9:57:56 AM PST by concerned about politics ( "Satire". It's Just "Satire.".......So it is.)
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To: bray
Some of the bravest people in America are Black Republicans.

Do you hear that, Senator Kennedy? Do you hear it, Senator Clinton? It's the sound of freedom. People everywhere, of every nation, long for freedom. Our souls resonate to its song.

It doesn't matter if it's in Iraq, in Afghanistan, or in Sarasota, Dr. King's words ring true: "Free at last, free at last, thank God Almighty, I'm free at last."

46 posted on 12/01/2003 10:03:11 AM PST by Terabitten (Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of All Who Threaten It)
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To: Not gonna take it anymore
Some of the bravest and often most abused conservative republicans are the brave Blacks daring to be Black Conservative Republicans in the open.

God bless them, and may they bring thousands more to the party that freed the slaves and welcomes them unlike the Rat Slave party which tries to extend slavery with its black voters.
47 posted on 12/01/2003 10:06:53 AM PST by Grampa Dave (Sore@US, the Evil Daddy War bucks, has owned the Demonic Rats for decades!)
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To: netmilsmom; mhking
"How about Michael King against Leo Terrell?
I'd be THERE!!!"

If the above happened, I would have to break my habit of not watching these types of shows.
48 posted on 12/01/2003 10:08:09 AM PST by Grampa Dave (Sore@US, the Evil Daddy War bucks, has owned the Demonic Rats for decades!)
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To: Yaelle
My "dream" panelw would be Larry Elder, Thomas Sowell,
Walter Williams, Armstrong Williams, Star Parker, Deroy (can't remember his last name), Ward Connerly, et. al.

Put the "best" liberals up against these folks and the conservatives would win the day.

Truth sets people free!
49 posted on 12/01/2003 10:09:39 AM PST by freedom4me
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To: Not gonna take it anymore
But Carroll did not talk about fighting against the NAACP. She talked about taking over the NAACP with conservative blacks,

If this ever comes to pass, expect to see a sudden change of heart among libs as to the "neutrality" of the NAACP and its tax exempt status.

And they were tough remarks, such as, "You do not have to be a Democrat. Last time I checked, slavery was over," and, "Liberalism is a cancer on inner city America."

Oh how true, and oh how refreshing to hear them from a black female.

50 posted on 12/01/2003 10:10:17 AM PST by workerbee
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To: Not gonna take it anymore
I realize that this will be one of the less meaningful posts on this otherwise very important thread, but Jennifer Carroll is HOT! She is a good-looking, smart, classy mother of three. As far as I am concerned, she is the complete package of what a man should look for in a women. Her husband is a lucky man.

She lost to that criminal Corrine Brown and it absolutely broke my heart.

Here's a pic...

And, here's one in her Navy Uniform...("Nothing sexier than a women you have to salute when you wake up in the morning")

JENNIFER CARROLL ROCKS!

51 posted on 12/01/2003 10:15:45 AM PST by mattdono (Big Arnie: "Crush the democrats, drive them before you, and hear the lamentations of the scumbags.")
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To: mhking
BUMP!
52 posted on 12/01/2003 10:16:27 AM PST by CyberCowboy777 (He wore his gun outside his pants for all the honest world to feel.)
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To: freedom4me
Deroy Murdock. The man is brilliant, period.
53 posted on 12/01/2003 10:16:41 AM PST by mattdono (Big Arnie: "Crush the democrats, drive them before you, and hear the lamentations of the scumbags.")
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To: freedom4me
I have been longing for a program on FOX News that would highlight the growing number of black republicans. I'd like a "Hannity & Colmes" style format - a black liberal and a black conservative.

Would love to see Alan Keyes and Jesse Jackson - Nah, that would be like swatting a piss ant with a sledge hammer.

54 posted on 12/01/2003 10:18:15 AM PST by Holly_P
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To: mhking
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12/1/03 | Diotima


Posted on 12/01/2003 9:11 AM PST by diotima



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55 posted on 12/01/2003 10:19:08 AM PST by Grampa Dave (Sore@US, the Evil Daddy War bucks, has owned the Demonic Rats for decades!)
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To: Not gonna take it anymore
Thank you for a very uplifting article. This shift in thinking is potentially very powerful, especially if it's strongest among young voters. Wonderful news!
56 posted on 12/01/2003 10:26:24 AM PST by Think free or die
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To: Not gonna take it anymore
You mean some black men don't want to be asociated with the party that historically and currently espoused political positions where people are treated differently based upon their skin color? I'm shocked, and I'm shocked that I'm shocked.

The GOP went to war to free enslave blacks... opposed by Democrats. Democrats pass Jim Crow Laws... Democrats have all Three Houses when Japanese internment camps are built (but not German internment camps)... Democrats are the main opposition to the 1964 Civil Rights Act... Democrats promote different treatment today for different races today through Affirmative Action plans... GOP wants one set of rules for all American citizens, period... why on earth is it surprising that blacks would sign on to the GOP's side?!?

57 posted on 12/01/2003 10:32:31 AM PST by Teacher317
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To: concerned about politics
Exactly! The Democrats treat the black population just the same as the Muslims treat women in their countries -- Keeping them blinkered, ignorant and dependent.
58 posted on 12/01/2003 10:58:47 AM PST by WaterDragon (GWB is The MAN!)
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To: Temple Owl
ping
59 posted on 12/01/2003 11:16:21 AM PST by Tribune7 (It's not like he let his secretary drown in his car or something.)
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To: Holly_P
hell yeah man
60 posted on 12/01/2003 11:16:25 AM PST by Joshh86
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