My Thoughts on Vice President Joe Biden’s Controversial Comment


In the publishing business, deadlines can become a son of a gun.


Readers of RegalMag.com know that we publish every Friday as a weekly online publication.


Therefore, sometimes the hot button items of the week cannot get published until the following week.


That happened on May 22 after former Vice President Joe Biden told radio personality Charlemagne tha God from “The Breakfast Club” radio show that if Blacks do not vote for him for president in 2020 then they are not Black.


While some people became upset about the comments, I did not.


President Donald Trump is a racist.


And as a Black man, there is nothing that President Trump can do to make me support his bid for reelection in 2020.


Furthermore, I cannot see why any Black person would consider voting for someone as vile as Trump.


However, as a Black man I hate when Black people judge another person’s so-called Blackness by their opinion, likes, dislikes or preferences.


It’s like some Black people think they are the litmus test to Blackness and if a brother or sister fails to get their approval, then they are not Black enough.


Additionally, I hate when I hear Black people say that this or that person is disinvited to the “cookout” as if every Black person wants to hang out with them.


A lot of times I am glad when people do not invite me to an actual cookout because then I do not have to make up an excuse of why I am not hanging out with them.


Therefore, if I hate when my people decide what’s Black and what’s not, or who is Black and who is not, then you know I hate it even more when a White person has the unmitigated gall to determine Blackness.


But in all fairness, Vice President Biden got too comfortable with his Black support and made a bad joke.


Bad jokes aside, I think that this controversy might be the best thing to ever happen to the Biden presidential campaign because now he knows that Black people do not love him as much as he thought they did.


He now knows that he has to earn our love, and people will not simply vote for him because they do not like Trump.


I will vote for him because I dislike Trump.


But I do not speak for all Black people.


And neither does Biden.


Baseball hero Jackie Robinson once said something to the effect of why should Democrats do anything for Black people when they know they will automatically get our vote?


Likewise, Robinson asked why should Republicans do anything for Black people when they know they will not get our vote regardless of what they do?


That reality puts the Black community in a quandary politically because voting for one party automatically takes away our leverage.


Robinson voted Republican often.


However, when President John F. Kennedy started to make a difference in the effort to end segregation in racist towns like Cambridge, Md., even Robinson had to give the young Commander-in-Chief his praise.


While many Americans were enamored with the charm and charisma of President Kennedy, Robinson was not impressed until he saw some actual results.


But for far too long, many Black voters have let charisma like President Bill Clinton playing the saxophone on “The Arsenio Hall Show” lull us into thinking that swagger meant sympathy or support for our issues.


Now Biden knows that being President Barack Obama’s vice president and getting the endorsement of Rep. Jim Clyburn (D-S.C.) does not mean as much as he thought it would.


He has to get off of his behind and get into the Black community to see what his constituents want and need.


Like Charlemagne tha God said, a real apology should be a Black agenda and not a simple statement saying that he is sorry for his words.


The problem with Secretary Hillary Clinton’s campaign is that some said they could not tell the differences between her and Trump.


Many voters simply saw two crooked candidates and decided to stay home.


The historic nature of President Obama’s first campaign led to historic voter turnout in 2008.


Black people showed up in droves to the polls to elect the first Black President of the United States.


That euphoria has faded long ago, and many Black people find themselves still angry at the White political power structure.


Those people want some Black power as Stokely Carmichael once famously said.


With the recent killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis, Black people refuse to let their issues go unheard.


Although he has spoken out against the killing of Floyd, Trump will definitely not speak up for us long term so that gives Biden an opportunity to really do something positive for the Black community.


This also should be a wake up call for the entire Democratic Party.


Yes, many Black people are fed up with Trump.


However, what happens after Trump’s presidency is over?


Being anti-Trump will no longer help the Democrats in the same way it would when running against him.


And believe it or not, a lot of Black people are more conservative than many believe, which might sway some towards the GOP.


Many Black Christians have become disillusioned by the Democratic Party because of the party’s stances on issues like abortion and same sex marriage.


Furthermore, many Black business owners understand and appreciate the concept of fiscal conservatism.


So while I might have missed the deadline on the Biden controversy, the issues affecting the Black community unfortunately have not expired.


Therefore, Biden still has a chance to show Black Americans that he does not take us for granted.

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