Before his fiery speech at a Kamala Harris campaign rally in Pittsburgh, former President Barack Obama made a surprise stop at the campaign field office with a blunt message to Black men: it’s time to get behind Harris.
“It makes me think that you just aren’t feeling the idea of having a woman as president, and you’re coming up with other alternatives and other reasons for them,” he said. “Now, you’re thinking about sitting out or even supporting somebody with a history of denigrating you because you think that’s a side strength because that’s what being a man is? Putting women down? That’s not acceptable.”
Obama’s remarks come as polls show Harris is underperforming with Black voters. An Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research poll in mid-September found that 7 in 10 Black voters have a somewhat or very favorable view of Harris.
Meanwhile, exit polls from 2012 found that 93% of Black voters supported Obama’s reelection bid, down from 2% in 2008.
The Harris-Walz campaign has struggled with attracting male voters. A New York Times/Siena College poll found former President Donald Trump has a 13-point lead over Harris with men nationally. The campaign told ABC News that Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, Harris’s running mate, is making campaign stops to woo over males in swing states.
Obama To Pennsylvania Voters: Trump Cares About His Ego, Money, and Status
Obama’s address to men continued briefly at the rally.
“I’ve noticed this, especially with some men who seem to think Trump’s behavior, the bullying, and the putting people down is a sign of strength. I am here to tell you that is not what real strength is. It never has been. Real strength is about working hard and carrying a heavy load without complaining,” he told the audience.
Aside from touting the economy and the success of the Affordable Care Act to voters on Thursday, Obama asked voters if they wouldn’t put up with his behavior at their home or workplace, why would they elect him as president?
“If your coworkers acted like that, they wouldn’t be your coworkers very long,” said Obama. “If you’re in business and somebody you’re doing business with just outright lies and manipulates you, you stop doing business with them. Even if you had a family member who acted like that, you might still love them, but you’d tell them you got a problem, and you wouldn’t put them in charge of anything.”
He continued, “Yet, when Donald Trump lies, cheats, or shows utter disregard for our constitution when he calls POW ‘losers,’ or fellow citizens ‘vermin,’ people make excuses for it.”