It is, however, a bad time to be a black Republican, here or anywhere.
Republican National Committee Chairman Ken Mehlman’s outreach to the African-American community on Nov. 7 ended in abject failure.
Despite the hype, a slew of black Republican candidates – Ohio gubernatorial candidate Ken Blackwell, Pennsylvania gubernatorial candidate Lynn Swann, Maryland senatorial candidate Michael Steele, and eight black House candidates – all lost. White Republicans apparently aren’t ready to cross the color line in great numbers, and black voters stuck with the party more aligned with black concerns, not skin color.
Not even playing dirty helped. Steele – who was floated as a possible replacement for Mehlman until the party chose Hispanic Sen. Mel Martinez (R-Fla.) – distributed misleading literature that falsely claimed he received the support of prominent African-American Democrats. Just goes to show a cat of any color can try to put one over on the black vote.