The White House said Wednesday that President Donald Trump has declined an invitation to speak at the NAACP’s annual convention next week in Baltimore, leading the nation’s oldest civil rights organization to question the president’s commitment to his African American constituents.
“During his campaign, President Trump asked us ‘what do you have to lose?'” NAACP Board Chairman Leon Russell said. “We get the message loud and clear. The president’s decision today underscores the harsh fact: we have lost – we’ve lost the will of the current administration to listen to issues facing the black community.”
White House spokeswoman Sarah Huckabee Sanders made the announcement to reporters that the president declined the NAACP’s invitation to speak at its 108th annual convention. Trump also did not speak to the NAACP convention last year, citing scheduling conflicts with the Republican National Convention.
The NAACP found out from reporters that Sanders had announced that Trump would not attend.
Sanders said while the president had declined the invitation, “certainly the invitation for dialogue with that group would happily take place and we’d certainly like to continue to do that.”
Russell called Trump’s decision a “historic departure from past presidents’ engagements with the association,” saying former Presidents Barack Obama, George W. Bush, Bill Clinton and Ronald Reagan all addressed the NAACP.
“When President Trump is ready to listen to us and the people we serve, we will be here,” Russell said. “Until then, the NAACP will continue to strive for an America free from racism and continue to speak truth to power.”
Trump was the first GOP presidential nominee in years not to address the NAACP last year. Republican nominees John McCain in 2008 and Mitt Romney in 2012 both addressed the NAACP convention before losing to Obama in the general elections.
(AP)
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4 Responses
Gigantic mistake by Trump. Most left-wing groups are refusing to talk to him, arguing he is a usurper to be ignored and resisted. It took great courage for the NAACP to invite him. He should remember that the percentage of blacks who are social conservatives is quite high, and if Black conservatives all votes Republican it would make a serious dent in the 90% of the Black vote the Democrats depend on getting.
Trump’s idea of consulting with the Black community are with fellow clowns like a certain boxing promoter with whom he staged fights in Atlantic City and several Afro-American “pastors” who run around in white and purple suits, big fake diamond rings and preaching a “wealth gospel” (i.e. send me money and good things will happen)….If this sounds “racist” it may well be but he has carefully avoiding any open meetings with elected black officials other than one aborted meeting with the Congressional Black Caucus and Cong. Elijah Cummings. His WH “show and tell” meetings always seem to have several Black “business leaders” that no one has ever heard of before the meeting.
After being stubbed by the Black Caucus after inviting them to the White House, why on earth would President Trump want to even go near the NAACP, which represents probably majority leftist views.Does he need the leftist disrespect,heckling and violence?Heck NO!
If you are President, the tumult comes with the turf. Trump operates in a world where he can only tolerate adulation and pathetically pauses during his speeches to beg the audience for approval though his lines…”you like that, Huhhh???” He cannot tolerate dissent or disagreement, especially when c’v the blame lies at his own feet. He would literally shove his kids under the bus (and back it up as necessary) to deflect blame from himself.