Bush and Party Chief Court Black Voters at 2 Forums --Don't Liberals?

NYT ^ | 7/15/05 | ANNE E. KORNBLUT

[Tumbleweed_Connection]

In a coordinated effort to reach black voters, President Bush heralded higher test scores among minorities on Thursday while his party's chairman, in an even more explicit overture, apologized for past Republican efforts to exploit racial friction.

Mr. Bush spoke to business leaders at the Indiana Black Expo here, after declining an invitation to appear at the national convention of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People for the fifth consecutive year because of what White House officials said was a scheduling conflict.

"We're making big differences in the lives of African-Americans," the president told leaders at the expo.

But Ken Mehlman, chairman of the Republican National Committee, spoke at the N.A.A.C.P.'s convention in Milwaukee. In his most extensive comments yet on the subject of race, Mr. Mehlman apologized for the so-called Southern strategy that his party employed nearly a half-century ago, when Republicans used the hostility of the civil rights era to pit Southern conservatives against blacks.

"Some Republicans gave up on winning the African-American vote, looking the other way or trying to benefit politically from racial polarization," he said. "I am here today as the Republican chairman to tell you we were wrong."

Mr. Mehlman, who has been energetically courting black voters since taking over as chairman of the party earlier this year, also argued that blacks should demand more from politicians and not automatically deliver their votes to the Democrats...

[Tumbleweed_Connection]

How many black churches did F'ing et al stalk?

[T Lady]

This is the sort of thing that makes the Slimes and the Democrats very nervous. That's why they're attempting to gin up the Karl Rove nonsense to throw people off.

[opinionator]

Yeah? How bout that Emancipation Proclamation? We can't get no props for dat?

Peace, out!

[Thombo2]

Sounds like GW realy sucked up to the crowd.Hope he gets a few votes out of it.

[Thombo2]

Correction,it appears Mehlman made the statements i was refering to.Had to get that off my chest.Just sick and tired of appologizing.

[lets be fair]

Better get use to it-we'll be appologizing for the rest of our lives. My dad tried telling me about this but I only realized how right he was when I got into the 'real' world.

[commonasdirt]

Saw the speech on TV. I thought it was not bad at all. The applause, while there, did not seem thunderous or even real loud.

[T Lady]

Well, at least he came out of there alive anyway. As for the applause, they probably couldn't wait until he left for Julian Bond or some other fossil to make fun of the speech to get a few cheap laughs.