Obama Addresses Black Men In Pa. Speech, Demands Them To ‘Drop’ Their Excuses And Vote For Kamala

OAN Staff Brooke Mallory
4:28 PM – Friday, October 10, 2024

In order to send a message to one particular demographic—Black men—former President Barack Obama flew to Pittsburgh on Thursday and urged Black male voters to choose Vice President Kamala Harris at the ballot box in November.

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Just before he spoke with a gathering of campaign volunteers and officials at a field office, Obama claimed that the choice voters have between the vice president and her Republican opponent, former President Donald Trump, “isn’t a close call.”

His message was directed towards Black male voters whom he believes have not fully embraced Harris yet, as polling shows that Harris support among Black male voters is much lower than anticipated and much lower than it was for Obama himself when he was running for office.

While citing “reports I’m getting from campaigns and communities,” Obama called out what he referred to as a “dangerous” trend among the demographic, as more Black men are turning to endorse and vote for Donald Trump than the former president seemingly expected.

“You’re coming up with all kinds of reasons and excuses,” Obama said in a stern tone, as if he were roleplaying as a disappointed father. “I’ve got a problem with that.”

“Part of it makes me think that, well, you just aren’t feeling the idea of having a woman as president, and you’re coming up with other alternatives and other reasons for that,” Obama continued. He also noted that the “women in our lives have been getting our backs this entire time.”

“When we get in trouble and the system isn’t working for us, they’re the ones out there marching and protesting.”

The former president’s remarks were reportedly meant to address discreet concerns raised by Harris, such as the fact that, according to a poll conducted last month by The New York Times, The Philadelphia Inquirer, and Siena College, her support among Black voters is still much less than what President Biden received when he won the state in 2020. Obama, in the opinion of Ms. Harris’s advisors and a plethora of Democratic strategists, has the ability to increase Black voter turnout, as the “community currently respects him much more than Harris,” according to an insider who reached out to the press.

“He’s got, obviously, tremendous appeal to Black voters,” said James Carville, a Democrat strategist. “He has tremendous appeal to suburban whites, which is another big part of the coalition. And he drives Trump nuts!” He added.

In fact, “more than 90 percent of Democrats and many independents view him favorably, according to an August survey by The Economist and YouGov—well above other Democrats, including Mr. Biden, Bill Clinton, and Hillary Clinton,” The New York Times reported.

This is also the exact reason why many Republicans were skeptical about Joe Biden’s supposed 81 million votes received in the 2020 election, which broke records and beat out Obama, who has always had much higher favorability in polls than Biden has.

Meanwhile, Obama continued to utilize a good chunk of his speech to condemn Trump and label him as a liar, the Democrat playbook.

“Donald Trump, at a rally, just started making up stories about the Biden administration withholding aid from Republican areas and siphoning off aid to give to undocumented immigrants,” he said. “Just made the stuff up,” Obama said.

“The idea of intentionally trying to deceive people in their most desperate and vulnerable moments,” he added, “and my question is: When did that become OK?”

“And by the way, I’m sorry, gentlemen, I’ve noticed this, especially with some men who seem to think Trump’s behavior of bullying and putting people down is a sign of strength,” Obama said. “And I am here to tell you that is not what real strength is. It never has been.”

“Real strength is about working hard and carrying a heavy load without complaining,” he continued, his voice rising into a shout. “Real strength is about taking responsibility for your actions and telling the truth even when it’s inconvenient. Real strength is about helping people who need it and standing up for those who can’t always stand up for themselves. That is what we should want for our daughters and for our sons, and that is what I want to see in a president of the United States of America.”

Meanwhile, social media users, and especially Black men, responded to Obama’s attempts to get them on board the Harris-Walz train. Many of them highlighted how much better the economy was while Trump was in office previously, in addition to how much cheaper grocery store items were and the fact that Trump was not meddling in foreign wars by utilizing U.S. tax dollars like the Biden-Harris administration. They also mentioned that other world leaders seemed to respect and fear Trump much more than both Biden and Harris.