Donald Trump has arrived in metro Atlanta to launch a drive to recruit more African-American voters.
Trump is hoping to boost his numbers by unveiling a new initiative called “Black Voices for Trump.” He will discuss the plan at his rally in downtown Atlanta.
His campaign picked Atlanta because of its role as an epicenter of black life and the region’s fast-growing population, according to a senior White House official.
Trump’s visit Friday will be his second stop in Georgia this year.
The president will attend a fundraiser for U.S. Sen. David Perdue and luncheon with his supporters before the black voters program launch and rally.
Trump is scheduled to speak at the event around 2 p.m. Vice President Mike Pence is also expected to address the crowd.
Now, let’s talk about this photo:
Oh this “Blacks For #Trump [1]” rally in #Atlanta [2] is already off to a comedic start! 🤦🏾♂️😩 pic.twitter.com/g0qFZO7QwD [3]
— Isaac Hayes III (@IsaacHayes3) November 8, 2019 [4]
What the heck is wrong with these people?
Apparently this lovely couple drive up from Florida:
Found an interesting couple from Miami. FL heading to the Blacks for Trump rally. @FOX5Atlanta [5] pic.twitter.com/zAKzU1cw60 [6]
— Aungelique Proctor (@aungeliquefox5) November 8, 2019 [7]
Trump will deliver remarks at the World Congress Center in downtown Atlanta in an effort to broaden support among a group he’s proven to be deeply unpopular. Only 8% of African Americans cast their ballot for Trump in 2016 while his approval rating among black voters sits at just 10%, according to a recent survey by Quinnipiac University.
“I think that I’m going to get a tremendous percentage of votes from the African Americans,” Trump told reporters Sunday on the South Lawn of the White House.
Trump boasted that he had “the best unemployment numbers in the history of our country for African Americans.”
He also touted his administration’s efforts on criminal justice.
“Without me, you don’t have criminal justice reform. And that was for African Americans more than anybody else. So I think my standing in the African American community is maybe the best,” he added.
“Black Voices for Trump” will be a “national effort to mobilize and empower black Americans” to help spread the president’s message of “Promises Made, Promises Kept,” according to a statement by Katrina Pierson, a senior campaign adviser who is helping organize the coalition.
While convincing black voters he’s delivered on his promises at the end of his first term, it’ll be a stretch for Trump to deliver one he made in August 2016, when he told a crowd he would get 95% of the African American vote [8] at the end of his first four years.