By Antonio D. French
Filed Monday, September 25, 2006 at 12:41 PM
PUB DEF EXCLUSIVE Labels: Exclusive, U.S._Senate_Race
Republican Sen. Jim Talent continues his push to make inroads with black voters. A group of African-American business leaders held a breakfast fundraiser for Talent this morning at the offices of Midwestern Construction Company in old north St. Louis.
The host committee included Midwest owner Charles Kirkwood, entrepreneur Darryl Jones, David Steward of World Wide Technology, Bryan Cave attorney Jerry Hunter, and political consultant Tim Person. The event also featured a special guest, former Congressman J.C. Watts, Jr. from Oklahoma.
Talent told the roomful of nearly 100 black business, civic, and church leaders that too often politicians come to the African-American community and tell them what they are going to do. He said what he tries to do is ask people what they want him to do for them.
"Politicians do that with other communities of interest," said Talent. "I don't go to the farmers and say this is what Jim Talent thinks ought to happen in agriculture."
While Talent made only a couple of indirect mentions of his Democratic challenger, State Auditor Claire McCaskill, his supporters took a more direct approach.
Darryl Jones held up a glossy poster which read: "...Let's See Claire's Report Card", an answer to the NAACP's report card which is often referenced by McCaskill supporters. On that report card, the organization gave Sen. Talent a failing grade. On this report card, paid for by Jones and Kirkwood, McCaskill scored F's in three categories relating to black St. Louis and an F minus in the more general "Fighting for Our Communities" category (click here to see the card).
Familiar faces attending today's event included former school board member and Urban League CEO James Buford, Rev. Sam Jones, NAACP Pres. Harold Crumpton, and former St. Louis Rams star Mike Jones.
Talent and Watts both sat down with PUB DEF for an interview. Click here to see video of our conversation with Talent and click here to see Mr. Watts.
To see more photos from today's event go to www.pubdef.net/photos/talent_fundraiser
UPDATE: The McCaskill campaign calls Jones and Kirkwood's claims "totally unfounded." Adrianne Marsh, the campaign's communications director, sent the following statement to PUB DEF this afternoon:
"When elected as Prosecutor and as Auditor, Claire walked into offices that had little to no diversity and she made unprecedented changes for the better. Additionally, she conducted ground breaking audits that affected African American businesses, including an audit of the Minority Business Enterprise to ensure that diversity within state contracts was a priority.
At a time when the voice of those who have been adversely affected by the policies of the Bush Administration should be heard, Senator Talent wants to prevent thousands from voting by supporting both the state and national Voter I.D. laws aimed at disenfranchising minority, disabled and older voters. Claire has been and always will be a champion for the African American community."
12 Comments:
Talent has gained an impressive group of black businessmen and clergy. The first television commercial that Senator Jim Talent makes with a group of black people performing testamonials about how good he is to them, Claire McCaskill loses.
9/25/2006 2:22 PM
Jim Talent has made a lot of appearances with white businesspeople and white clergy. A lot of white people have given testimonials in Jim Talent's commercials about how good Jim Talent is to them.
Still, even though I'm a white boy, I haven't been persuaded to vote for Jim Talent. Maybe there's something wrong with me.
9/25/2006 4:22 PM
Talent is going to still be senator after November and these guys (white or black) are smart to cozy up to him now.
9/25/2006 5:12 PM
That report card is a joke.
Talent get's an F on it to.
I dont see Talent hepling out the Blask Fire Fighters.
Talent never kept a school open in St. Louis.
As for cycle cell… where’s the clinic in my neighborhood?
Those Black Businessmen dont give a damn about poor folks. They moved out to west county like all the other racist white folkes.
How do I know.. they don't live in my neighbor hood...
9/25/2006 6:54 PM
Claire McCaskill is a joke! As a prosecutor she spent her life putting black men behind bars. And now she's their best friend? She can't point to one single specific thing she's done EVER to help the black community. And THIS is who the Democrats select TWICE for their highest offices??? Shows how much THEY care about black people.
9/25/2006 11:06 PM
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
9/26/2006 8:51 AM
that may have been to long of a link, try this link and click the top link that appears.
http://www.zoominfo.com/Search/Person
Detail.aspx?PersonID=85756082
9/26/2006 8:53 AM
So what? Tim Person is well paid to hold these sort of events. This is as meaningless as an McCaskill event similarly designed to highlight her constituency. The vote is where it counts. Are there any polls that suggests that Talent is going to poll any better than the lows that Republicans generally get? Is Person, Hunter, Steward or Kirkwood going to hand out material door to door in the neighborhood where this event was held or put money into an urban focused get people to the polls? Probably not. Where McCaskill will lose is her inability to turn people out, a function of both her seeming lackadasical campaign and her decision to spend her money (limited) elsewhere.
9/26/2006 10:55 AM
Tim Pearson is a great "boy" for whoever pays him. He is not complete unless he is his fellow boy Freeman Bosley Jr. pulling his chain.
9/26/2006 6:11 PM
Yes, boy is the right word for Pearson and Bosley Jr. They give blacks a bad name. they take money from racist whites to promote agendas they don't even believe in. Can they get black people that they don't have to pay.
Pearson is a "Uncle Tom"
9/26/2006 9:38 PM
Anonymous, please refrain from name-calling. Especially since you aren't even willing to leave your own.
9/26/2006 9:58 PM
To the earlier commenter with the extra long link:
I'm sorry I had to delete your comment, but the link was so long it messed up the page layout. Thanks for posting the shorter link.
For those that missed it, here is the link to a Post-Dispatch story about Luther and Amber Boykins aiding Claire McCaskill in her earlier campaign for governor. I'm not sure what point the poster was trying to make, but there it is.
9/26/2006 10:05 PM
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