Iraq War Vet: Biden's Diversity Comment Shows How Democrats 'Really Feel About Black Americans'
An Iraq War veteran said presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden’s comments Thursday about diversity among racial groups reveals “what he truly thinks about black Americans.”
“He is saying that our community is not as diverse in our thought as other communities and, by the way, this comes just a few months after he said that ‘you ain’t black’ if you don’t vote for him,” Rob Smith told Fox News’ “Fox & Friends” Friday.
The Army veteran and Turning Point USA spokesman was responding to comments Biden made Thursday during an interview with members of the National Association of Black Journalists and National Association of Hispanic Journalists.
Biden had been asked about engaging with Cuba if he wins the November election against President Donald Trump.
“Yes, yes,” he said. “And by the way, what you all know, but most people don’t know, unlike the African-American community, with notable exceptions, the Latino community is an incredibly diverse community with incredibly different attitudes about different things.
“You go to Florida, you find a very different attitude about immigration in certain places than you do when you’re in Arizona, so it’s a very diverse community.”
.@JoeBiden: “Unlike the African-American community, with notable exceptions, the Latino community is an incredibly diverse community” pic.twitter.com/CFO4Q40jEI
— Tom Elliott (@tomselliott) August 6, 2020
Smith said that Biden’s comment was “offensive and gross.”
“This is why black Americans are leaving Democrats behind,” he said.
“We are tired of being manipulated, we are tired of being lied to, and by the way, we are tired of being traded for illegal immigrants,” Smith said.
He pointed to another comment Thursday in which Biden said illegal immigrants should receive the same benefits as American citizens, which Smith said “disproportionately affects the jobs and the skills and the wages of black Americans.”
Addressing Biden, Smith said, “Black Americans do have diversity of thought, we have always had diversity of thought, and you need to stop hanging around these black liberal leftists and the MSNBC types that you’re hanging out with and get into the real world and talk to real African-Americans who have very diverse viewpoints about a lot of different things.”
Biden tweeted a clarification Thursday night, saying, “In no way did I mean to suggest the African American community is a monolith — not by identity, not on issues, not at all.”
“Throughout my career I’ve witnessed the diversity of thought, background, and sentiment within the African American community. It’s this diversity that makes our workplaces, communities, and country a better place,” he tweeted.
Throughout my career I’ve witnessed the diversity of thought, background, and sentiment within the African American community. It’s this diversity that makes our workplaces, communities, and country a better place.
— Joe Biden (@JoeBiden) August 7, 2020
“My commitment to you is this: I will always listen, I will never stop fighting for the African American community and I will never stop fighting for a more equitable future.”
This is not the first time Biden has been criticized for his comments about black Americans.
In a May interview with radio host Charlamagne tha God, Biden told him, “If you have a problem figuring out whether you’re for me or Trump, then you ain’t black.”
That prompted Errol Webber, a black Republican running for Congress in California, to say, “Joe Biden does not get to determine who is black and who isn’t. He is not entitled to the votes of black people and after this racist comment, he should not get any votes from the black community.”
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