Black Bloggers Gain Influence In Washington.DC

Well it looks like black bloggers are gaining  opportunities for conversations at the highest levels of government in Washington, D.C. 

OK, let me re-state in a different way: "Black bloggers who conditionally or unconditionally support the Obama administration are gaining DNC and White House conversation."

First there was the meeting of black bloggers with DNC Chairman Kaine (which I attended), then there was there was a  "black online summit" at the White House Monday as part of an outreach to African American journalists and bloggers before the midterm elections. 

According to reports from the Maynard Institute, even President Obama stopped by a "black online summit" at the White House Monday as part of an outreach to African American journalists and bloggers before the midterm elections, an effort that includes the Democratic National Committee spending what it calls an unprecedented $3 million to reach the most loyal part of Obama's base, African American voters.

"I thought the meeting was great in that it showed that President Obama and his administration are taking black new media and our growing influence seriously," David A. Wilson, managing editor of theGrio.com, told Journal-isms via e-mail.

"They outlined how the administration's policies have had a positive effect on the African-American community and they invited us to make suggestions on how they could work better with us and provide us with more access to the White House.

However, Leutisha Stills, who blogs at Jack & Jill Politics, cautioned, "The summit was a good one and very comprehensive, but we made it known that if we really have 'influence,' we are going to test drive it and see how many more invites we get from the White House."

The Columbus Day session lasted from 9:15 a.m. until 1:30 p.m., with senior adviser Valerie Jarrett present along with specialists from various parts of the administration, including the first lady's office. Among the 20 African Americans working on the Web were representatives of theRoot.com, Black Entertainment Television, Essence, Jack & Jill Politics, City Limits, Concrete Loop, AOL Black Voices, Black America Web and even the gossipy MediaTakeOut.

Monday's session is to be followed Friday by a presidential meeting with 10 members of the Trotter Group of African American columnists. Moreover, six or seven African American bloggers were credentialed for Obama's rally in Philadelphia last Sunday, although invitations were extended to about 20.

AAP says:  I was one of the 20 African American bloggers who was extended an invitation to be  credentialed for Obama's rally in Philadelphia last Sunday, unfortunately because of schedule conflicts, I was not able to attend the President's rally. 

The DNC and White House outreach effort with African American bloggers are noteworthy. The folks at Jack and Jill Politics in partnership with Kevin S. Lewis , director, African American media for the White House is awesome. The work of senior DNC staffers, including Clyde E. Williams, Political Director for the DNC, along with Derrick L. Plummer, Regional Press Secretary,  and Jamiah Adams, New Media Constituency Manager at the DNC is equally as noteworthy. I can only wonder out loud if this effort is to just gain black blogger support for the mid-terms only? I understand this is a political town.

Is the White House and the DNC reading the content of black blogger concerns regarding our economy and the need for the Obama administration to aggressively enforce of Federal contracting requirements, while establishing new programs in the Department of Commerce, and labor to address the need for job training and small business/micro business "grants" not loans, for low-income urban dwellers?

I hope the DNC and The White House will continue to expand the working group to other progressive African American bloggers, such as  Afro-Netizen, Black Commentator, Black Agenda Report, Field Negro, Faye Anderson, Oliver Willis, Prometheus 6, Republic of T, Skeptical Brotha, and so many others, who may have other observations and thoughts regarding what the administration can do to "really" address issues like jobs, the economy, health care, education, community capacity-building, and investment in our communities. I'm hopeful that the DNC and the White House is not, what some may consider the pimping the growing influence of black bloggers Only smart work and full engagement on the part of all parties, and time will tell... 

As a black Independent voter and blogger, I remain cautiously hopeful.

Cross posted on African American Pundit

NEGRO: Obama “light-skinned” and has “no Negro dialect" that's why he is President.

Special Post: So is Harry Reid a color aroused bigot? Did he say "code words" which we would expect out of Republicans, skinheads, and birthers? Is he bringing up memories of Jim Crow and slavery? Why is he using the word ""Negro" ? Why is the word negro becoming in vogue by whites, and the Obama administration. Read more HERE 

No Harry Reid didn't say, Obama “light-skinned” and has “no Negro dialect" that's why he could be President. 

Damn, did the Senate President just call the President of the United States, a light skinned house negro, who knows how to talk with whites? Did the president of the United States, just say, "that's OK Boss." ?

Now we have a former black man, who some blacks consider the next generation  "uncle tom,"  in the name of Al Sharpton - who is now standing with Reid. I guess "The magical negro" is the operative word in 2010.

 

Damon Winter/The New York Times

The NY Times, Washington Post, Politico, Huffington Post, Chicago Sun Times are reporting that Senator Harry Reid of Nevada, the majority leader, apologized on Saturday for saying that he believed Barack Obama could become the country’s first black president because he was “light-skinned” and had the advantage of carrying “no Negro dialect, unless he wanted to have one.”  More HERE

Get this, as reported by the NY Times, the apology was prompted by the release of a new book on the 2008 presidential campaign, which reported that Mr. Reid privately urged Mr. Obama to seek the presidency more than three years ago despite his limited experience and the historical obstacles to making a successful bid for the White House.

Harry Reid response: 

I deeply regret using such a poor choice of words,” Mr. Reid said in a statement. “I sincerely apologize for offending any and all Americans, especially African Americans for my improper comments.”

The remarks from Mr. Reid were the latest in a long-running series of statements that several political figures have made about Mr. Obama, which have underscored the uneasy evolution of race and politics in the United States. Mr. Reid telephoned Mr. Obama on Saturday to apologize.

AAPP:  "That apology is not accepted, not by this African American Political Pundit (AAPP). You should resign Senator Reid. What are you saying, black folks that are dark skin should not be President?  Black Folks who have dark skin should pass the harry reid "bag test?" 

And what is this word "Negro" and "Negro dialect."

Question No. 9 on this year's census form asks about race, with one of the answers listed as "black, African-Am. or Negro."

Read more: HERE

But, President Barack Obama has accepted Harry Reid's comments saying:

“I accepted Harry’s apology without question because I’ve known him for years, I’ve seen the passionate leadership he’s shown on issues of social justice and I know what’s in his heart,” Mr. Obama said in a statement released by the White House. “As far as I am concerned, the book is closed.”

AAPP: "Ouch! Mr. President, with all due respect,  “As far as I am concerned, the book is not closed for the African American community.” - “You have accepted Harry’s apology without question because you have known him for years." Well Mr. President, you have known a bigot for years. This man, Harry Reid needs to resign." He is part of a culture in America that should be alarming to all reasonable people in America. I urge you to watch this video and then ask the qurestion, does Mr. Reid add fuel to the fire of these bigots: 

NOTE: Harry Reid's comments about Barack Obama are contained in a passage of the book “Game Change,” by political journalists John Heilemann and Mark Halperin, which is set to be released by Harper on Monday.

You can contact AAPP via email at: africanamericanpoliticalpundit@gmail.com