The 14 Congressional Black Caucus members who support Sen. Hillary Clinton are standing firm on their commitment as Sen. Barack Obama approaches the number of delegates needed to clinch the Democratic nomination and national discussion continues over her statements on race.
In an interview last week Clinton said, “working, hardworking Americans, white Americans” would support her instead of Sen. Barack Obama, suggesting a racial split among Democratic voters that favored her. She said she was referring to information previously published and the comments were not intended to be divisive.
Rep. Charles Rangel of New York, a longtime Clinton supporter, had sharp criticism over the weekend for Clinton’s remarks, calling the comment “the dumbest thing she could have ever said,” according to an article published in Newsday. Also in that article, he acknowledged that there are certain groups of voters that politicians realize they will not attract.
But still while speaking at a New York fundraiser for the senator, he encouraged support for her, according to an article published in Newsday.
“We have worked with Hillary Clinton, and we need Hillary Clinton now more than ever,” Rangel said.
Rep. Stephanie Tubbs-Jones, an Ohio Democrat and ardent Clinton supporter, said race has always been a subtext in the campaign and that even before Clinton talked about her support from the white, working class, it was discussed in other forums.
“I will continue to support Hillary Clinton until one of the candidates has the requisite number of delegates to secure the nomination or until she tells me she is no longer a candidate,” Tubbs-Jones told BlackAmericaWeb.com, asserting that Clinton’s comments were taken out of context.
“I have known Hillary Clinton for 15 years," she said. "I know where she stands, and I know her sensitivity for issues that relate to the African-American community. I am not going to label her as racist because of a statement that was taken out of context."
But last week, Rep. Donald Payne of New Jersey, a member of the Congressional Black Caucus who had been a Clinton supporter, changed his mind and switched to Obama.
"After careful consideration, I have reached the conclusion that Barack Obama can best bring about the change that our country so desperately wants and needs," Payne told The Star-Ledger. It was "one of the most difficult decisions I have made," Payne said. "I've really been mulling it over for quite a while."
In late February, Georgia Rep. John Lewis announced that he was supporting Obama after being a vocal Clinton supporter, a major body blow to her campaign.
Other CBC members who are superdelegates in support of Clinton include Rep. Alcee Hastings of Florida; Rep. Corrine Brown of Florida; Del. Donna Christensen of the Virgin Islands; Rep. Emanuel Cleaver of Missouri; Rep. Kendrick Meek of Florida; Rep. Maxine Waters of California; Rep. Diane Watson of California; Rep. Edolphus Towns of New York; Rep. Gregory Meeks of New York; Rep. Laura Richardson of California; Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee of Texas and Rep. Yvette Clarke of New York.
Vanderbilt law professor Carol Swain says that Clinton’s comments may give some African-American superdelegates justification for switching their support.
“I would imagine that most African-American superdelegates are eagerly looking for an excuse to jump ship,” Swain told BlackAmericaWeb.com. “Her comments, while possibly true, will make it easier for a superdelegate to justify a switch of allegiance.”
Obama would not be the first Democrat who didn't receive a majority of support from white, blue collar workers, said professor Sonia Jarvis, director of the Center on Equality, Pluralism and Policy at the Baruch College School of Public Affairs in New York.
In 1992, Bill Clinton won receiving 39 percent of the white vote, 83 percent of the black vote, 61 percent of the Hispanic vote and 31 percent of the Asian-American vote, Jarvis said.
In 1996, Bill Clinton increased his percentage of white support to 43, while gaining 84 percent of black vote, 72 percent of the Hispanic vote and 43 percent of the Asian-American vote.
As for Hillary Clinton, her support in the black community has diminished, although she may have increased support in other segments, Jarvis said.
“It should trouble her that her tactics in attracting more white (male) support has been met with a precipitous drop in black support,” Jarvis said. “Sen. Clinton’s support from African-American voters in North Carolina was approximately 6 percent and 8 percent in Indiana. What makes these numbers so surprising is that they are worst than the numbers received by Ronald Reagan and Richard Nixon and represent the loss of over 70 percent support in the black community since Iowa.”
Kathie Stromile Golden, professor of political science at Mississippi Valley State University and executive director of the National Conference of Black Political Scientists, says Clinton’s statements on race just don’t hold true.
“Look at states like Indiana. Obama had to have white support for that race to be so tight,” Golden told BlackAmericaWeb.com. “That argument may work with certain segments, but it has not had as much traction as they thought it would have.”
A Gallup Poll released on April 9 showed that Clinton support was stronger among voters with a high school diploma or less. The same poll showed that voters with college degrees and post graduate degrees supported overwhelmingly supported Obama.
Meanwhile, Bob Herbert, a columnist for The New York Times, blasted Clinton in his recent column for her comments, maintaining that "the Clintons have never understood how to exit the stage gracefully."
"Now the Clintons, in their desperation to find some way — any way — back to the White House, have leapt aboard that sorry train," Herbert wrote last week. "'He can’t win! Don’t you understand? He’s black! He’s black!'"
"The Clintons have been trying to embed that gruesomely destructive message in the brains of white voters and superdelegates for the longest time," he wrote. "It’s a grotesque insult to African-Americans, who have given so much support to both Bill and Hillary over the years."
"The Clintons should be ashamed of themselves," Herbert wrote. "But they long ago proved to the world that they have no shame."
