bobbyw24
03-11-2010, 05:47 AM
Members of the Congressional Black Caucus are headed to the White House for a meeting on jobs Thursday, and they’ll have a few words to say about how President Barack Obama is doing his.
The 43-member caucus is fighting through one of the most difficult periods in its 39-year history, and some members and aides said they’re getting far too little support from the nation’s first black president — a man they once believed would be their strongest champion.
House Judiciary Committee Chairman John Conyers (D-Mich.) told POLITICO that White House officials are “not listening” to black lawmakers.
Rep. Alcee Hastings (D-Fla.) said “there’s not enough attention to poor people.”
And Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr. (D-Ill.) said: “While I respect President Obama, delivering victories for his political future should be the least of our worries on Capitol Hill.”
Aides to CBC members said tensions between black lawmakers and the White House have risen in recent months as the caucus has tried to address the extraordinarily high unemployment rate among African-Americans, while navigating a succession of ethical issues — including the ethics committee ruling that cost CBC member Charles Rangel (D-N.Y.) his chairmanship of the Ways and Means Committee last week.
Privately, lawmakers and aides rattle off a series of grievances with the White House — and particularly with chief of staff Rahm Emanuel and senior aide Valerie Jarrett.
A CBC aide said that Jarrett has canceled lunch plans with the caucus eight times and that her office is slow to return calls and pays more attention to longtime supporters than to senior CBC members.
http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0310/34239.html
The 43-member caucus is fighting through one of the most difficult periods in its 39-year history, and some members and aides said they’re getting far too little support from the nation’s first black president — a man they once believed would be their strongest champion.
House Judiciary Committee Chairman John Conyers (D-Mich.) told POLITICO that White House officials are “not listening” to black lawmakers.
Rep. Alcee Hastings (D-Fla.) said “there’s not enough attention to poor people.”
And Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr. (D-Ill.) said: “While I respect President Obama, delivering victories for his political future should be the least of our worries on Capitol Hill.”
Aides to CBC members said tensions between black lawmakers and the White House have risen in recent months as the caucus has tried to address the extraordinarily high unemployment rate among African-Americans, while navigating a succession of ethical issues — including the ethics committee ruling that cost CBC member Charles Rangel (D-N.Y.) his chairmanship of the Ways and Means Committee last week.
Privately, lawmakers and aides rattle off a series of grievances with the White House — and particularly with chief of staff Rahm Emanuel and senior aide Valerie Jarrett.
A CBC aide said that Jarrett has canceled lunch plans with the caucus eight times and that her office is slow to return calls and pays more attention to longtime supporters than to senior CBC members.
http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0310/34239.html