Former Biden Campaign Official ‘Furious’ Black Democrats Being Ignored

Democrats continuing to call for President Joe Biden to step down is frustrating a former campaign official who feels it runs contrary to the opinions of Black voters in the party.

Black Americans are a key voting bloc for Biden and in the wake of his disastrous debate performance, the president spoke with the Congressional Black Caucus (CBC) to drum up support. While a plurality of Black voters think Biden should be replaced, support is significantly higher for him to become the nominee among Black people than in other racial demographics. Black members of Congress haven’t joined the chorus of people calling for Biden to leave the race.

Ashley Allison, national coalitions director for the Biden-Harris 2020 campaign, acknowledged that Biden doesn’t make her “super excited,” but called for the party to follow Black voters’ lead regarding the president remaining the nominee.

“I’m a little annoyed and I’m furious because I talk to Black people who have saved this country over and over, who helped elect Joe Biden, who saved the Democratic Party timeless, timeless, times again and Black people are saying, ‘let it go folks,’ Allison said on CNN. “And yet again, when you look at the people who have called for him to step down, they are not the backbone of the Democratic Party and that, to me, is frustrating.”

Philippe Reines, former adviser to Hillary Clinton, praised Allison’s comments, saying there aren’t enough people making the same remark.

A New York Times/Siena College poll released on July 2 found 47 percent of Black registered voters think there should be a different Democratic nominee. Compared to 60 percent of white voters and 69 percent of Hispanic voters, Democrats‘ effort to oust Biden has significantly less support from Black voters.

The CBC has remained loyal to Biden and Representative Emanuel Cleaver, former caucus chair, told The Wall Street Journal there’s “widespread if not complete support” for Biden.

“In fact, I don’t know anybody in CBC who is wanting to kick Biden to the curb,” Cleaver said, adding that Biden is still viewed as a “friend of African Americans.”

Cedric Richmond, Black co-chair of Biden’s reelection campaign, told Politico that he thought it was “interesting” that no Black member of Congress called for Biden to step down. He warned white lawmakers who break with Biden that they risk “alienating some of their base.”

Representative Steve Horsford, CBC chair, told CNN on Monday that he believes a lot of the criticism against Biden is rooted in ageism, while defending Biden’s legislative record.

“Clearly, this president is fit to serve. He has been fighting for the American people. I know more than 14 million Americans have already voted for him, including those in my state of Nevada. We need to honor and respect the will of the voters who have selected him as our Democratic nominee,” Horsford told CNN.

Newsweek reached out to Horsford via email but did not receive a response in time for publication.

Biden’s support among Black voters has decreased from the last two election cycles and only 38 percent of Black people say Biden’s policies have helped Black Americans, according to a June Ipsos poll.

Theodore R. Johnson, senior adviser at New America, a public policy think tank, told Capital B News that Black voters still support Biden. However, they may be questioning if Biden can win reelection.

Representative Cori Bush of Missouri, a CBC member, said she was listening to her constituents and told Politico that her office is getting calls encouraging her to ask Biden to step down. However, she partially blamed the backlash against Biden on “right wing influencers.”

Former Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi encouraged people to reserve judgment until after Thursday night’s news conference, and Allison applauded Biden’s performance. As a Black woman, she said, she refuses to live “under Donald Trump‘s reign again.”

“I refuse to risk our democracy and Joe Biden is the person right now who is able to defeat him,” Allison told CNN.