Black Democrats turn their backs on Bloomberg at church before Super Tuesday votes

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Black Democrats turn their backs on Bloomberg at church before Super Tuesday votes

By Joseph Ax and Trevor Hunnicutt

 

Attendees stand and turn their backs on Democratic U.S. presidential candidate Michael Bloomberg as he talks about his plans to help the U.S. black community during a commemoration ceremony for the 55th anniversary of the "Bloody Sunday" march in the Brown Chapel AME Church in Selma, Alabama, U.S., March 1, 2020. REUTERS/Elizabeth Frantz

 

SELMA, Ala. (Reuters) - Joe Biden, fresh off a victory in South Carolina propelled by black voters, on Sunday commemorated a landmark civil rights march in Alabama, where some worshippers at an African-American church turned their backs on his rival Michael Bloomberg.

 

Biden and the others competing for the Democratic nomination to challenge Republican President Donald Trump in November hit the campaign trail before Super Tuesday nominating contests in 14 states including Alabama. Biden, whose win in Saturday's South Carolina primary galvanized his campaign, and the current front-runner, Bernie Sanders, traded jabs on Sunday news shows.

 

Bloomberg, a former New York mayor, received a chilly reception at the historic Brown Chapel AME Church in Selma after pastor Reverend Leodis Strong told the gathering the billionaire businessman initially had turned down the invitation to speak.

 

"I was hurt, I was disappointed," Strong said as Bloomberg looked on stonily. "I think it's important that he came, and it shows a willingness on his part to change."

 

About 10 people stood up and turned their backs on Bloomberg as he spoke about racial inequality. Black voters are a key constituency of the Democratic Party.

 

"I think it’s just an insult for him to come here. It’s the disrespect for the legacy of this place," Lisa Brown, who travelled to Selma from Los Angeles, told Reuters later. She said the idea to protest Bloomberg's remarks had circulated but she stood as an individual, not an organised group.

 

The quiet protest suggests Bloomberg may have an uphill climb with some African-American voters, who have supported Biden in large numbers and carried him to a resounding victory in South Carolina.

 

Biden and Bloomberg are trying to present themselves as the party's best choice to take on Trump, arguing that Sanders is too far to the left to win the general election.

 

A group of parishioners stood and turned their backs on former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg as he spoke during a service at Brown Chapel AME Church in Selma, Alabama on Sunday.

 

At church in Selma, the vice president to the country's first African American president, Barack Obama, was clearly the favourite. Biden was seated in a place of honour with the pastor, facing the pews where Bloomberg sat, and got a glowing introduction from U.S. Representative Terri Sewell, a black Alabama lawmaker who supports him.

 

"Most importantly, he has earned the right to be in this pulpit and to address you now," Sewell said.

 

Democratic contenders Elizabeth Warren and Amy Klobuchar sat on folding chairs at the margins of the church audience. The pastor yelled at Tom Steyer, who dropped out of the race after finishing third in South Carolina, to sit down. "This is a house of God, this is not a political rally," he chided.

 

The candidates were in Selma to mark the 55th anniversary of "Bloody Sunday," when civil rights marchers were beaten by state troopers and local police while crossing a bridge in Selma.

 

Bloomberg skipped the first four state nominating contests including South Carolina but has blanketed the nation with about $500 million in advertising and will be on the ballot for the first time on Tuesday, when the biggest prizes are California and Texas.

 

He has made a concerted effort to reach out to black voters, including apologies for overseeing an increase in the use of a police practice called "stop and frisk" in New York City that disproportionately affected black and other racial minority residents. A federal judge found the practice was an unconstitutional form of racial profiling.

 

A Reuters/Ipsos poll of registered Democrats and independents, conducted Feb. 19-25, showed Bloomberg garnering the support of 20% of black voters, third among the Democratic candidates behind Sanders (26%) and Biden (23%).

 

At least five Super Tuesday states - Alabama, North Carolina, Tennessee, Arkansas and Virginia - have big blocs of African-American voters.

 

'NOT A SOCIALIST'

Biden won overwhelmingly in South Carolina, drawing 48% of the votes cast compared to 20% for Sanders. Edison Research exit polls showed Biden with 61% of African-American support there to Sanders' 17%.

 

The victory led the former vice president to assert himself as a viable moderate alternative to Sanders, an independent U.S. senator from Vermont and self-described democratic socialist.

 

Sanders' calls for a political revolution have rattled a Democratic Party establishment worried he is too far to the left to beat Trump.

 

"I think the Democratic Party is looking for a Democrat - not a socialist, not a former Republican, a Democrat - to be their nominee," Biden told "Fox News Sunday."

 

Biden's reference to a former Republican appears to have been aimed at Bloomberg, who switched parties.

 

Sanders attacked Biden for taking contributions from political organizations called Super PACs and billionaires, courting wealthy donors at what he said was the expense of working-class, middle-class and low-income people.

 

"I don't go to rich people's homes like Joe Biden," Sanders said on CBS's "Face the Nation."

 

Biden lags Sanders in fundraising and organisation in Super Tuesday states and beyond.

 

Sanders planned to campaign on Sunday in heavily Democratic California, where he leads opinion polls.

 

The Sanders campaign announced overnight it had raised $46.5 million from more than 2.2 million donations in February, a huge sum dwarfing what any other Democratic candidate had raised last year in any three-month period.

 

Biden reported his February haul was $18 million. Warren's campaign said she raised more than $29 million last month.

 

Bloomberg, meanwhile, continues to spend. He purchased three minutes of commercial air time during on broadcast networks CBS and NBC on Sunday evening to address the coronavirus outbreak.

 

(Writing by Doina Chiacu; Editing by Will Dunham and Lisa Shumaker)

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2020-03-02

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[lannarebirth]

Along with Buttigieg and Trump, Bloomberg is just someone I could not vote for under any circumstances. That said, he's not stupid and his considerable resources will soon be at Biden's disposal. Interesting factoid. Bloomberg has locked up about 2,500 of the best political operatives and data analysts, with paid contracts through November. It is said to be the best political data clearinghouse in history. Also, I imagine his unholy deal with the DNC will include a large amount of down ballot contributions through one PAC or another

[JimmyTheMook]

Stop and frisk worked in NYC - street crime was out of control at that time.

You have a criminal element that was (is) packing gats - they (still) should be subject to immediate search.

 

[Tug]

I’d vote for him over trump any day he’s trying to do for his country not do his country like trump his stop and frisk worked the people of color know what’s up that beeing said it’s easy to understand how they would feel slighted

[lostlink]

Trump will win in a huge landslide. Fact.

[JimmyTheMook]

8 minutes ago, lostlink said:

Trump will win in a huge landslide. Fact.

 

If the market does not recover and his handling of the current viral issue shows more incompetence then it's very unlikely.

 

[daoyai]

If you don't like him, don't vote for him.  That sort of "demonstration" in church simply displays low character.

[cmarshall]

44 minutes ago, JimmyTheMook said:

Stop and frisk worked in NYC - street crime was out of control at that time.

You have a criminal element that was (is) packing gats - they (still) should be subject to immediate search.

 

Doesn't pass the smell test.  Crime went down in every major US city, but only NYC had such an aggressive stop and frisk.

[JimmyTheMook]

11 minutes ago, cmarshall said:

Doesn't pass the smell test.  Crime went down in every major US city, but only NYC had such an aggressive stop and frisk.

 

Walk through the hood and see how fast u got robbed.

[Tug]

1 hour ago, lostlink said:

Trump will win in a huge landslide. Fact.

Ha ha are you a fortune teller?for all we know that lazy obease man could have a stroke let alone lose an election fact!   Lol

[Orton Rd]

Why do blacks mainly vote democrat? what have that party ever done for black people.

[JimmyTheMook]

14 minutes ago, Orton Rd said:

Why do blacks mainly vote democrat? what have that party ever done for black people.

Welfare and food stamps, Obama actually gave out free cell phones.

 

 

[lannarebirth]

1 hour ago, lostlink said:

Trump will win in a huge landslide. Fact.

 

Possibly, but what does that say about those who would support him?

 

https://www.yahoo.com/news/trump-kisses-flagpole-tells-bizarre-000320505.html

[Orton Rd]

22 minutes ago, lannarebirth said:

 

Possibly, but what does that say about those who would support him?

 

https://www.yahoo.com/news/trump-kisses-flagpole-tells-bizarre-000320505.html

Yahoo has featured daily anti Trump articles ever since he was elected, if he ended poverty and brought about world peace overnight they would still have something negative to say about him

[lannarebirth]

4 minutes ago, Orton Rd said:

Yahoo has featured daily anti Trump articles ever since he was elected, if he ended poverty and brought about world peace overnight they would still have something negative to say about him

Are you saying the article isn't factual? That the photo is fake? I know you folks have to publicly defend your bad choices asaface saving gesture, but when you're all alone in that polling booth are you really going to double down on THAT POS ?

[earlinclaifornia]

1 hour ago, JimmyTheMook said:

Welfare and food stamps, Obama actually gave out free cell phones.

 

 

Stupid to say he gave out cell phones, actually.

[Nyezhov]

1 hour ago, lannarebirth said:

 

Possibly, but what does that say about those who would support him?

 

https://www.yahoo.com/news/trump-kisses-flagpole-tells-bizarre-000320505.html

It says that we understand he is a rich and patriotic dude from NYC that acts and talks like the socio-political tabloid milieau he was nutured in, to wit: blue collar Irish/Italian/Yiddish that basically makes him sound like a Borscht Belt comedian that pokes fun at himself by his bombastic behavior.

 

And understanding him does not change the fact that I would rather see my President kiss the flag than spit on it, or go on apology tours.. 

 

With that in mind tell me what do you have say about me then? 

[lannarebirth]

1 minute ago, Nyezhov said:

It says that we understand he is a rich and patriotic dude from NYC that acts and talks like the socio-political tabloid milieau he was nutured in, to wit: blue collar Irish/Italian/Yiddish that basically makes him sound like a Borscht Belt comedian that pokes fun at himself by his bombastic behavior.

 

And understanding him does not change the fact that I would rather see my President kiss the flag than spit on it, or go on apology tours.. 

 

With that in mind tell me what do you have say about me then? 

I think you've constructed a false rationale to defend someone undeserving of it, but more importantly to defend your own choices.

[Chomper Higgot]

2 hours ago, daoyai said:

If you don't like him, don't vote for him.  That sort of "demonstration" in church simply displays low character.

Yes I agree, politicians in church belong seated quietly with the rest of the congregation.

[Nyezhov]

3 minutes ago, lannarebirth said:

I think you've constructed a false rationale to defend someone undeserving of it, but more importantly to defend your own choices.

I think you have rejected my well supported analysis without contesting the facts to attack someone you irrationally hate in order to defend your own narrow world view.

[lannarebirth]

3 minutes ago, Nyezhov said:

I think you have rejected my well supported analysis without contesting the facts to attack someone you irrationally hate in order to defend your own narrow world view.

 

Actually, my world view is pretty expansive. It reaches far beyond what passes for humor in the Catskill resorts. That is assuming I thought your analytical refence was correct, which I do not. I think instead he appeals to the kernal of hate everyone has in them to a greater or lesser extent. That's not my analysis, that's just my opinion.

[Tug]

9 minutes ago, Nyezhov said:

It says that we understand he is a rich and patriotic dude from NYC that acts and talks like the socio-political tabloid milieau he was nutured in, to wit: blue collar Irish/Italian/Yiddish that basically makes him sound like a Borscht Belt comedian that pokes fun at himself by his bombastic behavior.

 

And understanding him does not change the fact that I would rather see my President kiss the flag than spit on it, or go on apology tours.. 

 

With that in mind tell me what do you have say about me then? 

Oh I don’t know I see him as an entitled spoiled narssist an a list predator a draft dodging gold star family pow insulting inviting foreigners to interfere in our elections someone who has shown time and time again he cannot work within the constitution let alone uphold the oath to protect it I see someone who betrays our allies sometimes onto death someone who cannot heed council nor accept fact someone who has lied over 16,000 times since in office a lazy obese man who delights in ruining lives if they disagree so corrupt he had to pay 2 million dollars for scamming a charity but that’s just me and a lot of others oh I don’t know any president who spit on the flag 

[Nyezhov]

14 minutes ago, lannarebirth said:

I think instead he appeals to the kernal of hate everyone has in them to a greater or lesser extent.

Speak for yourself, I personally have no hate in me. Hate is a buzz kill.

 

13 minutes ago, Tug said:

Oh I don’t know I see him as an entitled spoiled narssist an a list predator

Blabbing the same mantra over and over. And you didnt even answer the question I posed.

 

You left out being a Manchurian Candidate for Putin by the way. Or is that one so...yesterday?

[lannarebirth]

9 minutes ago, Nyezhov said:

Speak for yourself, I personally have no hate in me. Hate is a buzz kill.

 

That's the great service Trump provides. It's hate by proxy.

[Nyezhov]

2 minutes ago, lannarebirth said:

 

That's the great service Trump provides. It's hate by proxy.

Well luckily for me, Im not one of those who hate because supposedly someone else hates.  I dont look for hate, Im too busy. Hate is just a weakness as are all the excuses for it. So enjoy.

[moe666]

2 hours ago, Orton Rd said:

Why do blacks mainly vote democrat? what have that party ever done for black people.

The democrats voted for the voteing rights act and equal rights act. Two little snips that mean a lot to people who had a hard time getting either. Republicans voted aganist both and a group of democrats from the south switched to republican to vote aganist these two important laws. Both of these game changers were passed before cell phones were invented and today poor whites recieve more benefits from the government than blacks

 

[lannarebirth]

2 hours ago, Orton Rd said:

Why do blacks mainly vote democrat? what have that party ever done for black people.

A better question to ask is why do poor White people vote Republican?

[blazes]

The Chapel of Hypocrisy is this called?

 

There's the pastor telling his congregation that it's a House of GOD, not a political rally, while carefully placing all those Democrat dudes and dudesses at a distance from the pulpit commensurate with their position in the polls!!!

 

There's Bloomberg currying favour with the blacks while rejecting his own successful policy on stop-and-frisk, which brought down the crime rate in NYC.  You have to be pathetically needy (even with all those billions) to deny your own past so flagrantly.

 

And then there's old Joe.  It's not so much hypocrisy with OJ as a profound black corruption, and, if he were elected (ha ha, joke), he would be a danger to national security on a grand scale, since he can't distinguish between fact and fiction.........

[IAMHERE]

7 hours ago, lannarebirth said:

 

Possibly, but what does that say about those who would support him?

 

https://www.yahoo.com/news/trump-kisses-flagpole-tells-bizarre-000320505.html

Not sure it says anything about Trump voters other than there are a lot of them. The democrats will do the saying, not the results of the election. I remember 2017 and all the name calling democrats did about and to Trump voters, it won't change.

[Tchooptip]

6 hours ago, Nyezhov said:

It says that we understand he is a rich and patriotic dude from NYC that acts and talks like the socio-political tabloid milieau he was nutured in, to wit: blue collar Irish/Italian/Yiddish that basically makes him sound like a Borscht Belt comedian that pokes fun at himself by his bombastic behavior.

 

And understanding him does not change the fact that I would rather see my President kiss the flag than spit on it, or go on apology tours.. 

 

With that in mind tell me what do you have say about me then? 

A politician who respects the flag of his country does not use it to clown with this flag, but as many people no longer have any idea of what respect means it is normal that they do not not see it that way, that look alike come together.