Blacks and the Economics of Voting
Let me give an example. You have invested in a business project, Obama Inc.
There were 4 classes of investors: class W, which comprised 74% of the total stock; class B, which comprised 13% of the total stock, class H, which comprised 9% of the total stock; and class G, which comprised 4% of the total stock.
How would you respond to the CEO of Obama Inc. if he says the rate of return (ROI) payout would be as follows: those who invested in class W stocks would be paid first, followed by, class G, then class L and the last to be paid back would be class B.
Well, any sane businessman would expect to be paid by order of the largest to the smallest investor. If you were part of the class W stock (74%), you should be paid first and work your way down to the smallest investor. This is normal and logical in the world of business.
Only in politics and with the Black community is this standard not adhered to.
In my above example, the class W stock represents the percentage of white voters from the 2008 presidential election (74% of the total electorate, of which Obama received 43% and McCain received 55%); the class B stock represents the percentage of Black voters from the 2008 presidential election (13% of the total electorate, of which Obama received 95% and McCain received 4%); the class H stock represents the percentage of Hispanic voters from the 2008 presidential election (9% of the total electorate, of which Obama received 67% and McCain received 31%); the class G stock represents the percentage of gay voters from the 2008 presidential election (4% of the total electorate, of which Obama received 70% and McCain received 27%).
Despite receiving 95% of the Black vote (who were the second largest shareholders in Obama Inc.), Obama has made a calculated decision to reward the gay and Hispanic communities ahead of the Black community (the smallest and second smallest shareholders in Obama Inc.). In business, the CEO (Obama) and its board of directors (the Democratic National Committee) would be sued for fraud. But Obama knows that Blacks will only complain and do nothing.
The gay community stopped giving money to Obama and the Democrats because Obama didn’t deliver on any of his campaign promises to them—recognizing gay marriage, repealing “don’t ask, don’t tell,” and giving spousal benefits to gay couples who are federal employees.
The Hispanic community threatened not to vote for Obama or the Democratic Party if they didn’t get amnesty for those in the country illegally and passage of the Dream Act.
But, when asked what he would do specifically for the Black community, Obama said nothing—“he is the president of everyone and a rising tide lifts all boats!”
Despite being the second largest shareholder in Obama Inc., the Black community cannot point to a specific program or policy directed towards them and their issues. How do you justify dividend distributions to other shareholders, but not your second largest?
Privately, the supposed Black leaders like Al Sharpton, Marc Morial (Urban League), Ben Jealous (N.A.A.C.P.) all agree with me; but they don’t have the guts to speak out publically because they still want to get invited to the White House and take pictures with Obama.
It took Obama almost 1 ½ years before he met with the Congressional Black Caucus; and what did they do? They got mad! Obama has yet to meet with any Black businessmen to discuss the disproportionately high unemployment rate within the Black community.
Just like no one fears angering Obama, no one fears angering the Black community. Obama has made a political calculation that there is nothing to lose by ignoring the Black community and everything to gain—including white voters!
Obama believes that if he doesn’t do anything specifically for the Black community that somehow people are going to forget that he is Black.
The number 1 rule of politics is to reward your friends and punish your enemies. I didn’t realize that Blacks were enemies of Obama.
Raynard Jackson is president & CEO of Raynard Jackson & Associates, LLC., a D.C.-public relations/government affairs firm. He is also a contributing editor for ExcellStyle Magazine (www.excellstyle.com) & U.S. Africa Magazine (www.usafricaonline.com).
