As Donald Trump continues to struggle in attracting African-American and Hispanic voters, Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus contended Sunday morning that the GOP’s post-2012 election “autopsy” report was meant for the “long term, not the short term.”
The so-called Growth and Opportunity Report stressed, among other things, the importance for GOP outreach to minority communities and a change in rhetoric when discussing issues such as immigration reform.
Speaking on CBS’ “Face the Nation,” Priebus said Trump deserves credit for visiting inner cities and speaking about school choice and economic growth. Despite Trump’s outreach efforts, though, recent polls have shown that he would attract significantly fewer Hispanics and African-Americans in the general election than Mitt Romney did in 2012. Priebus accused Democats of failing to “follow up” on these issues with black and Hispanic communities after they are elected.
“We’ve put money in Hispanic and black engagement for four straight years like no party in modern history has ever done,” Priebus said, adding he is confident that Trump will do better with African-American voters in particular. “What this prescription is—it’s a prescription for the long term, not the short term.”
—Andrew Desiderio