Next "Watts" could be from Jersey
While I disagree with much of JC's philosophy and positions, I have to give him credit for beginning to build bridges with HBCUs. A couple of years ago he hosted a HBCU presidential conference in which he wanted to open a dialogue with them to address their needs, in particuliar in the areas of technology and capital improvements. The HBCU presidents were mostly polite, shocked and suspicious of this new GOP outreach effort. Nevertheless, the effort was "real" as Watt does have some concern for the progess of all people.
Furthermore, we need to stop calling all black Republicans uncle toms, as clearly the user of the label is simplistic and wrong. Black Republicans come in several ideological stances from staunch conservatives like Alan Keyes, to business Republicans like Tony Brown to religious Republicans like ole' Daddy King (Martin Luther's father) to liberal Republicans like Colin Powell. Clearly, Watts falls somewhere to the right of Colin Powell but far left of Keyes.
My only major beef with Watts was when he gave a GOP response to a Democratic initiative and he called the Dems "poverty pimps." That statement had racial undertones and he was widely critized for it. He later appologized for those comments and will have to live with those improper remarks.
LaMont
On the New Jersey front, there is Reverend named Buster Soaries who is a prominent Republican running in a very "toss-up" district in central Jersey. He has a large African American congregation and indeed has a chance to beat a vulnerable candidate in Rush Holt. Buster is clearly a social liberal Republican, much closer to Colin Powell than a staunch conservative. I think he represents the GOP's best chance of gaining an African American into congress.
While I disagree with much of JC's philosophy and positions, I have to give him credit for beginning to build bridges with HBCUs. A couple of years ago he hosted a HBCU presidential conference in which he wanted to open a dialogue with them to address their needs, in particuliar in the areas of technology and capital improvements. The HBCU presidents were mostly polite, shocked and suspicious of this new GOP outreach effort. Nevertheless, the effort was "real" as Watt does have some concern for the progess of all people.
Furthermore, we need to stop calling all black Republicans uncle toms, as clearly the user of the label is simplistic and wrong. Black Republicans come in several ideological stances from staunch conservatives like Alan Keyes, to business Republicans like Tony Brown to religious Republicans like ole' Daddy King (Martin Luther's father) to liberal Republicans like Colin Powell. Clearly, Watts falls somewhere to the right of Colin Powell but far left of Keyes.
My only major beef with Watts was when he gave a GOP response to a Democratic initiative and he called the Dems "poverty pimps." That statement had racial undertones and he was widely critized for it. He later appologized for those comments and will have to live with those improper remarks.
LaMont
On the New Jersey front, there is Reverend named Buster Soaries who is a prominent Republican running in a very "toss-up" district in central Jersey. He has a large African American congregation and indeed has a chance to beat a vulnerable candidate in Rush Holt. Buster is clearly a social liberal Republican, much closer to Colin Powell than a staunch conservative. I think he represents the GOP's best chance of gaining an African American into congress.