Obama has ‘genuine love for black community,’ senior adviser says

[alp227]

Source: washington post

Senior White House adviser Valerie Jarrett said Saturday that President Obama has “genuine love for the black community,” and that she is not frustrated by the expectations some African Americans have for the first black president.

Obama’s relationship with African Americans came up during a wide-ranging interview session with a group of journalists at the National Association of Black Journalists’ convention in New Orleans.

Asked whether it sometimes felt as though there was nothing Obama could do to please some blacks, Jarrett responded: “I don’t at all feel like there’s no pleasing black folks.”

One journalist asked if there weren’t times when Obama just wanted to be “unabashedly black,” and not so careful in calibrating his racial identity.

Read more: http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/obama-to-court-hispanic-supporters-at-naleo-conference-in-orlando/2012/06/22/gJQAeZuByV_story.html

[gregoire]

1. And the rest of us...

know what is up is up.

[Drunken Irishman]

5. Tell me...what is 'up'?

[Deep13]

9. Hmm, not sure I understand...

Could you be a little more vague, please.

[Enrique]

14. Barack Obama doesn't care about white people!

[Odin2005]

16. Obvious Troll Is Obvious.

[Ivywoods55]

2. It is not so much...

anymore that Blacks love the President, it is just that we know and understand that the alternative would be much worse. He has really loss most of our love, we just vote Democratic because Republicans are a bunch of racist arse wipes. If there had been a viable, honest, decent, and truthful unracist Republican, any number of us would be jumping ship. Romney is none of he above, and neither was any of the other white men who ran this time, except John Huntsman, and the Republicans threw him off their ship early. He would have probably gotten a number of Black votes. This President has NO love or respect for the Black community, and for ANY white person to say that he has given us "handouts" would be a bold faced lie. He has given us no more, and probably less than other communities. He has given us NOTHING!

[DonCoquixote]

3. All he can do is focus on the law and the economy

And the GOP is making damned sure he cannot get what we want on the economy. We are all in the same boat regardless, because the GOP sees all of us as food or tools. Can you give an example of something he should have done for Blacks?

[caine1969]

7. Speak for yourself

I'm a 43 old black male. As for your commits about blacks not loving the president. Don't put me and millions of other black men and women in your group. He has lost your love? He probably never had it to begin with. "He has no love for the black community". He has over 80% approval with the black community and its not because he is black. If that was the case, then these two black men who were elected in 2010, Republican Allan West, U.S, congressman from Florida and Republican Tim Scott, U.S. congressman from South Carolina. Their approval ratings among the black community doesn't even come close to president Obama's ratings. The majority of black men and women can see for themselves who is fighting for them. President Obama has not been perfect, because he's human and humans tend to make mistakes. But he has learned from them and is becoming a better president for the black community as well as all Americans. Here are some things he has done for the black community.

http://www.whitehouse.gov/sites/default/files/docs/african_american_community_record.pdf

[JustAnotherGen]

11. I would not have jumped shipped

Insert Democratic Socialist Candidate and I might . . .the Republicans have earned my hate. They earned it. They made it. They crafted this 39 year old black American woman's hate in 1994 - when they blamed every single societal I'll on me.


You can push this meme all you want - but the statistics and polls say differently.

[caine1969]

4. Speak for yourself

Why don't these black journalist understand that he is acting how he always acted. No one who has know him over the years have come out to say that he acts differently around blacks, whites, or any other race. I love the way he acts and I hope he doesn't change.

[OKNancy]

6. +1

good first post, glad you decided to do it!!

[Judi Lynn]

8. Welcome to D.U. Good to see your comments. n'/t

[Smilo]

18. Nicely said. n/t

[Deep13]

10. I'm sure that TV and radio wingnuts will say this proves his racism.

Not that it matters. They have been accusing him of a radical, racist agenda since he ran with no evidence at all.

[BumRushDaShow]

12. This brief article confirmed some things

But she offered: “There is a coarseness to the dialogue, generally.” That extends beyond the president, Jarrett said. Just look at the comments section of articles online, she noted.

I.e., interesting to see that she admits that she is one of the ones checking out all the RW foaming-at-the-mouth racist garbage that gets spewed in an article's comments section (I figured some of the more "junior" staff were doing that but since she is, I just can't help but continue to feel a heavy heart for them ).

[bupkus]

13. The fact that Jarrett even had to come out with this

Says far more than anything in the article.

And reading comments online? Is this White House still making that mistake? Unbelievable. Do you think Bush or the current crop of Republican criminals give a shit about online comments? They do what they like then they tell their lackeys what to print. Until the Democrats can get control of the news media and the news cycle nothing will change. When will this White House and the Democratic Party realize that social networking doesn't negate mass media and/or FOX news?

We need the Fairness Doctrine reinstated and media market rules strictly enforced.

[Enrique]

15. the "unabashedly black" question bothers me

and I liked Jarrett's answer, and I wonder if there was the same irritation in her answer that I feel. He is black, and that's the way this black man acts. I hear it from white people and black people, supporters and detractors, comments about how Obama is supposed to behave because he's black. Aren't we over that?

[Smilo]

17. Jarrett - come on please

you are buying in to the GOPT's game of separating people by color - why not say something like he has "a genuine love of people - ALL people, especially ALL AMERICANS."

The POTUS has a difficult enough path to walk, without drawing out differences and giving the GOPT more fodder to twist and use against him - I know you're heart is in the right place Valerie - but please don't play their games.

[rury]

19. Smilo, Valerie was not "playing games"

she was asked a question about the president's racial identity and responded accordingly.