Putting this up, just for the record. In a normal election year…
We are moments away from the Presidential Candidates Forum at the 110th #NAACPConvention. Watch live at https://t.co/HXjaoHjGIg beginning at 9:30AM ET. pic.twitter.com/O8khp69qNs
— NAACP (@NAACP) July 24, 2019
Washington was fixated on Robert Mueller's testimony today, but the Democrats running for president apparently weren't. They spent the day at an NAACP forum pressing a different case, calling President Trump a bigot who unduly harms black communities. https://t.co/o8CS2Lraa9
— The New York Times (@nytimes) July 24, 2019
Good for the candidates, I say. They proved themselves perfectly capable of talking about the necessity of impeaching the Oval Office Occupant from the convention floor — and a lot of people had planned for this meeting months in advance of the DC show-trial.
… One by one, at the national convention of the N.A.A.C.P., the nation’s largest and oldest civil rights organization, the Democratic candidates chose not to discuss Mr. Mueller’s testimony in detail and instead outlined their respective plans to uplift black people.
When they did mention Mr. Trump, it was often in the context of his remarks about racial minorities, and his tendency to evoke stereotypes steeped in racist history to degrade his political opponents…
The forum was hosted by April Ryan, the longtime journalist who has been a target of Mr. Trump’s administration. Ms. Ryan, the Washington bureau chief for American Urban Radio Networks and a CNN analyst, repeatedly pushed candidates on several issues that are particularly important to black communities, including voting rights, criminal justice, reparations and closing the racial wealth gap.
Though the N.A.A.C.P. has undergone a major revamp since its glory days of the 1960s, when the organization was on the forefront of civil rights advancements, it remains a hub of reliable Democratic support — particularly from older and more religious black voters.
Historically the candidate who has earned the plurality of black votes — particularly in the South — has gone on to be the party’s nominee. And as some attendees noted, the sheer number of top-tier candidates who attended the forum, in addition to recent events like the Black Economic Alliance Forum in South Carolina and the She the People Presidential Forum in Texas, makes clear how serious the candidates are about addressing black voters directly…
Senator Harris takes the stage at the #NAACPConvention. Lots of energy in the room for her!
But I think Biden still had the most universal, sustained applause in this room. pic.twitter.com/loVAMDsDDU
— Bhavik Lathia (@bhaviklathia) July 24, 2019
#NAACPConvention .@ewarren opens remarks by citing @NAACP's vote yesterday to call for the impeachment of the president.
— NAACP (@NAACP) July 24, 2019
"We have to make it clear. No one is above the law. The responsibility of congress of the United States when the president breaks the law, is to bring impeachment charges against that president." – @ewarren #NAACPConvention #WhenWeFightWeWin pic.twitter.com/8do6x5OmcQ
— Derrick Johnson (@DerrickNAACP) July 24, 2019
Warren/Sanders answers on gentrification were perfect studies in their differences.
Warren: “I have a plan to build 3.2 million housing units.”
Sanders: “We’re going to tell the developers you just can’t come in and build expensive condos and drive working class people out."
— Dave Weigel (@daveweigel) July 24, 2019
Election 2020 Open Thread: Wednesday Was Also the NAACP ConventionPost + Comments (153)