How Should Republicans Woo Minority Voters?

I would have voted for Gov. Bill Clinton, without thinking twice. Hey, that's just what a typical African would do. There is a Democrat bias in African politics. Though I could not vote in the US elections of 1992 and 1996, my guy won, and it felt like I helped to put him in office. Boy, was I excited, seeing with my own two eyes how real democracy works!

Already, I was looking forward to the next presidential election. Well, I still couldn't vote. In fact, it would be February 2002 before I became a US citizen, with the right to vote. By then I had undergone some soul searching about my knee-jerk support for liberal Democrats. I realized that the key reason Africans favor the Democratic Party in the US has to do with their perceived compassion for the poor and oppressed, and for Africa in particular. Up to the time I came to America, it was more likely for a Democratic president to visit Africa than a Republican one.

When it comes to moral standards, family values or social beliefs, however, Africans are actually more like socially conservative Republicans. It dawned on me that if Republicans could find some way to bridge the compassion gap, they could, over time, win a sizable portion of the black vote that Democrats, for the most part, take for granted.

When the 2000 election season came around, I began to hear something very interesting. A Republican candidate named George W. Bush proposed the idea of "compassionate conservatism", and, with those words, he got my attention. When Mr. Bush visited our city in 2000, I ignored the heavy rains and went to the rally at the airport to see this different kind of Republican. As luck or God would have it, I got close enough to shake hands with Mr. Bush, and that made my day. No, it made my week, my month. OK, much longer than that -- I'm still talking and writing about how I shook hands with President Bush!

If Bush had been mocked by elitist liberals for saying Jesus was the most influential philosopher in his life, he was now being spanked for coining the phrase "compassionate conservatism". But this time, the lashes came from the base of the Republican Party.

To me, Mr. Bush came across as having a balanced understanding of what the Man of Galilee was about. It is for good reason that we find it hard to correctly classify Jesus Christ as liberal or conservative. Jesus was neither. He was both. Jesus perfectly mingled care for the downtrodden with high moral standards. And is that not what most churches do? Show compassion without compromising moral values?

In candidate Bush, I had found my "perfect candidate", or, at least I had persuaded myself so, and when I cast my first vote for president in 2004 it was for Republican G.W. Bush. Shortly after the elections, though, I had this gut feeling that it might be a long time before I had an easy choice like that again: a compassionate conservative, a politician who seeks to marry concern for moral standards with care for the battered and bruise of society.

Come to find out, I was only one of thousands of blacks who became Bush Democrats or Bush Independents. For example, as much as 7 percent of delegates at the 2004 Republican Convention were black. That's significant, considering that blacks make up about 12 percent of the nation's population.

In contrast to 2004, this week, at the 2008 Republican Convention, there was a measly 1.5 percent of black delegates. That's 36 blacks out of a total of 2,380 delegates who attended the convention. This low representation marks a 40-year low for the Republicans. In 2004, Bush won 41 percent of Latino votes. Polls currently show McCain has just 31 percent of Latino support.

Have McCain and the Republicans squandered all the gains President Bush made with minority voters?

What should really concern Republicans is that this trend runs counter to that of an America that growing more and more diverse. According to the Census Bureau, minorities will comprise the majority of Americans by the year 2042, just 34 years from now. The Republican Party may well seal its status as a minority party, unless it learns how and works hard to attract more blacks, Latinos and other minorities. And the party has none better to turn to for advice in this regard than President Bush, the father of compassionate conservatism.

But with his job approval rating in the dumps, who wants Mr. Bush around Republican candidates these days?

Just in case my point is not yet clear, let me ask, “What was it that primarily drew blacks and Latinos to Republicans during Bush's campaign for president?” I wager it was the candidate's brilliant mix of compassion and conservative values. His success with minority voters is partly responsible for his two-term presidency.

Some of this dismal showing of Republicans among blacks is certainly due to Barack Obama, who has the overwhelming support of blacks, mainly because he is America's first black presidential nominee of a major political party. But support for Barack does not provide the sole reason why blacks have run from the Republicans in droves. For one, Senator John McCain has not made any consistent efforts to get minority votes. Yes, McCain did address the conventions of the NAACP and the Urban League, but lately he has not focused on blacks. McCain, the man of “town hall meeting” politics has to do more than address blacks at large gatherings of black leaders. He may need to hold town hall meetings with ordinary black folk to discuss their concerns. Or is it already too late?

Any outreach to blacks by Republicans must be more than words. President Bush's compassionate conservatism has not been talk only. Under Mr. Bush, the US has tripled humanitarian and development aid to Africa. He approved a whopping $48 billion to help combat HIV-AIDS. He's done more to fight AIDS than any other US president. In addition to financial aid, President Bush visited Africa, making stops in Ghana and the small country of Liberia, among others.

President Bush has also demonstrated his compassion through the White House office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives, which give greater support to community groups, including equal opportunity for faith-based groups to apply for public funds. By standing with private charities in this way, Mr. Bush has been able to touch the lives of inmates, the homeless, those needing assistance with food and utility bills, and many other people served by faith-based organizations.

Though President Bush's compassion credentials were put to the test by the aftermath of Katrina and the blame game that followed, it is fair to say that this man has done more than the typical Republican president in showing compassion for the poor, needy and hurting.

No, Mr. Bush has not perfectly lived up to the ideal of compassionate conservatism, but he has done more than try. And Republican politicians will be shortsighted to abandon his breakthrough in Republican politics. If Republicans sever ties with Bush's compassionate conservatism, their party will be playing right into all the liberal stereotypes – that Republicans are friends of the insulated rich, but do not care or do not get it, when it comes to the plight of the poor. By being compassionate conservatives, Republicans can debunk all that.

Another positive thing about compassionate conservatism is that the concept can serve as a platform for Republicans to talk about things like immigration and the economy in ways that regular folk can identify with. A compassionate conservative can discuss the economy as it relates to the cries of citizens suffering the effects of high gasoline prices, health care, cost of college, high cost of groceries, people losing their homes, etc.

The switch that many black and Hispanic voters made to Bush and the Republicans is proof that conservatives need not abandon their high moral standards to attract minorities. Most blacks and Latinos are actually conservative when it comes to moral beliefs or social values. (Whisper: many of us are strongly pro-life too!) For the most part, we lead our lives and raise our children by conservative values. What keeps most blacks in the pocket of liberal Democrats is the perceived compassion of the Democratic Party. That's what Mr. Bush figured out, and he used the bridge of mercy to touch the hearts of minority voters. The notion of compassionate conservative remains the Republican Party's best hope for making inroads with blacks, Hispanics, and other voters in the long run. No, the switch won't be a quick one, but it can happen, as President Bush has proven.

Fred Thompson Makes the Best Case for John McCain, But...

After watching former Tennessee Senator Fred Thompson give the keynote address on Tuesday night at the Republican Convention, one comes away wondering where all that fire power was when Mr. Thompson ran in the Republican primary earlier this year. Senator Thompson's speech is the first rousing speech at the Republicans' show to nominate Senator John McCain for president of the United States. Even President Bush's address via satellite was rather flat and lifeless, which is not surprising, judging from the tenuous relations between the President and Senator McCain, dating back to Mr. Bush's campaign's hostile treatment of the senator during the 2000 Republican primary season. John McCain did not really want Mr. Bush on the floor of the convention, and with the satellite deal, the Republican candidate can somewhat dodge the "McCain-Bush twain" mockery from Democratic quarters.

Senator Thompson, the former actor, took the stage and took the delegates for a ride. He gave a narrative of Senator McCain's life that succeeded in painting a much more graphic portrait than even the videos of the McCain's life shown at the convention into its second day. I was simply moved by Mr. Thompson's presentation of the presidential candidate. One might even say, Thompson introduces McCain better than McCain himself is capable of doing. It was an A+ speech that underscored the generational military service of the McCain clan, stretching as back to the 19th century, and as current as deployment in Iraq. Thompson narrated McCain's 5-year torture-laden captivity in Vietnam with the touch of a master story teller, punctuating every little important detail, yet holding the greater theme of service and "Country First" right before the nation's eyes.

Simply put, Senator Thompson's portrait of Senator McCain seemed to have lit the flame of pure patriotism in the hearts of all grateful and proud Americans, especially the delegates assembled at St. Paul.

Yes, Senator Thompson did manage to slip through some red meat for partisan Republicans by taking numerous jabs at the Obama-Biden Democratic ticket. He poked fun at Obama's inexperience and the Democrat's tendency towards higher taxes on businesses, which Thompson humorously pointed out will affect everyday Americans. It was amazing how Mr. Thompson tactfully wove all that together, especially with the added bonus of making it hard to tell if the speaker was reading from a teleprompter. Simply brilliant.

Nevertheless, like the thematic banners and background images displayed at the Republican Convention, Mr. Thompson's speech missed the boat in no small way by sticking almost exclusively to a national security genre. American voters have made it clear in no uncertain terms that this presidential election is not going to be primarily decided on which candidate will do a better job at defending America against terrorists and other enemies. The real bump in the road for the "Country First" security-minded Republican Convention is that we already have a president of McCain's kindred spirit in the White House right now, a president who is as militant about national security as any patriotic American can get. Yet there is no real proof that America is more secure now under President Bush than when he first took office. Except for the vague explanation, "There has not been another attack since 911," there is no solid evidence that our nation's security has improved under G.W. Bush.

So one big question begs to be answered: What will President McCain do to secure America that President Bush has not done, or is not currently doing? And if President McCain will do nearly or exactly the same things that President Bush has done for our national security, then how can Candidate McCain still contend that electing him to succeed Mr. Bush represents bringing change to Washington?

Thus, while it is true that Fred Thompson succeeded in making the best case for McCain as the war hero, who has served this country his entire adult life, it may be the wrong case that Senator Thompson has laid out in such a strong way. It's like going in the wrong direction at a faster speed; you may get there quicker, but you'll soon find out it's not the destination you desired.

Unless the remaining two days of the Republican Convention makes a U-Turn and puts the spotlight on the economy, rather than mention economic issues in passing, like using partisan attack lines about "tax and spend" liberals, the McCain-Palin ticket may be in for an ice-cold shower on November 4th. According to poll after poll, when millions of Americans choose a president on that day, they won't be thinking so much of Osama bin Laden as they will be about runaway foreclosures, unemployment, the rising cost of health care and college, bank closings, less money for the family's groceries, alternative energy that will eventually wean America off of petroleum, and other bread-and-butter matters.

While securing America remains an important agenda for whoever will be elected president, the majority of American voters have made it known that a Democratic administration will do just as good a job defending and protecting this land of liberty as a Republican one will. What Americans doubt is that whether a Republican president will do any better to turn this economy around than the current administration has done. Right now, it seems like Democrats have the edge when it comes to the question of, "Who is more likely to improve the economy for the folk on Main Street?". Until the Republican ticket can make a strong case that McCain-Palin will do a better job at restoring the economy to health, I'm afraid the war-hero path may not lead to Pennsylvania Avenue for the Republicans, not this year.

Senator McCain has admitted that the economy is not his strong suit. The time may be ripe for the senator to change suits. But even if Mr. McCain chooses to remain in his military suit, that should not take away from Mr. Thompson's great speech about his one-time rival for the Republican nomination.