nside Bright Hope Baptist Church, the luminaries of Philadelphia’s black political world gathered for the funeral of former Representative William H. Gray III in July. Dozens of politicians — city, state and federal — packed the pews as former President Bill Clinton offered a stirring eulogy, quoting Scripture and proudly telling the crowd that he was once described as “the only white man in America who knew all the verses to ‘Lift Every Voice and Sing.’ ” Related As Fund-Raisers in Congress, Women Break the Cash Ceiling (November 30, 2013) Enlarge This Image Jonathan Ernst/Reuters Hillary Rodham Clinton at a Sunday church service in Columbia, S.C., during the 2008 Democratic presidential primary. But it was the presence and behavior of Hillary Rodham Clinton that most intrigued former Gov. Edward G. Rendell: During a quiet moment, Mrs. Clinton leaned over to the governor and pressed him for details about the backgrounds, and the influence, of the assembled black leaders. Since Mrs. Clinton left the secretary of state post in February, she and her husband have sought to soothe and strengthen their relationship with African-Americans, the constituency that was most scarred during her first bid for the presidency. Five years after remarks by Mr. Clinton about Barack Obama deeply strained the Clintons’ bond with African-Americans, the former first family is setting out to ensure that there is no replay of such trouble in 2016. Mrs. Clinton used two of her most high-profile speeches, including one before a black sorority convention, to address minority voting rights — an explosive issue among African-Americans since the Supreme Court struck down part of the Voting Rights Act in June. A month after Mr. Gray’s funeral, Mrs. Clinton and her husband both asked to speak at the service for Bill Lynch, a black political strategist who is credited with the election of David N. Dinkins as mayor of New York, and stayed for well over two hours in a crowd full of well-connected mourners. And there have been constant personal gestures, especially by the former president. “I think that this is an effort to repair whatever damage they felt may have been done in ’08,” said the Rev. Al Sharpton. Mr. and Mrs. Clinton “know that there are some who have lingering questions, if not antipathy, towards them,” Mr. Sharpton said. This task has taken on new urgency given the Democratic Party’s push to the left, away from the centrist politics with which the Clintons are identified. Strong support from black voters could serve as a bulwark for Mrs. Clinton against a liberal primary challenge should she decide to run for president in 2016. It would be difficult for a progressive candidate, such as Senator Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, to rise if the former first lady takes back the black voters she lost to Mr. Obama and retains the blue-collar white voters who flocked to her. Her appearance before the sisters of Delta Sigma Theta in July, which she opened by offering condolences to the family of Trayvon Martin, the 17-year-old who was killed in Florida last year, and her voting rights address to the American Bar Association in August drew significant attention among black leaders. “That speech that she gave regarding voting suppression was very, very significant and meaningful,” said Representative James E. Clyburn, a South Carolina Democrat and the highest-ranking African-American in Congress. Mr. Clyburn, who clashed sharply with Mr. Clinton in 2008, said Mrs. Clinton was “now in a very good place with the African-American community.” Tavis Smiley, a black commentator, argued that this was because “they have now learned the important lesson that there’s a distinction between a coronation and an election.” The Clintons appear to be taking nothing for granted. Mr. Clinton did not just attend the 50th anniversary of the March on Washington on the National Mall in August, but also showed up at Arlington Cemetery in June to honor Medgar Evers on the 50th anniversary of his assassination. In May, Mr. Clinton was the commencement speaker at Howard University in Washington, posing for pictures with all who asked and sitting on stage next to one of the school’s best-known graduates, L. Douglas Wilder, the nation’s first elected black governor from Virginia, a longtime friend and rival of Mr. Clinton’s. In private, Mr. Clinton is frequently in touch with black leaders. Representative Elijah E. Cummings, a Maryland Democrat and the ranking member on the House panel on government oversight, got a handwritten note from the former president over the summer commending him on his leadership on the committee. “He has made an effort to reach out over and over again through the years,” Mr. Cummings said. The congressman recalled Mr. Clinton’s visits to his church in Baltimore and a phone call he got from the former president inquiring about the health of his mother, whose name Mr. Clinton recalled. Such personal touches, for which the Clintons are famous, have never been more important as Mrs. Clinton considers a second presidential bid. Mr. Clinton has a rich, if occasionally fraught, history with African-Americans. He was a New South governor and a progressive on race who would eventually be called “the first black president” by the author Toni Morrison. But he infuriated blacks in 2008 when, after Mr. Obama won a big South Carolina primary victory, he seemed to dismiss the achievement by reminding the press that the Rev. Jesse Jackson had won the state twice and calling Mr. Obama’s antiwar position “the biggest fairy tale I’ve ever seen.” Many African-Americans took Mr. Clinton’s fairy tale comment to mean that Mr. Obama’s candidacy itself was a hopeless fantasy. 1 2 NEXT PAGE » A version of this article appears in print on December 1, 2013, on page A1 of the New York edition with the headline: Eye on ’16, Clintons Rebuild Bond With Blacks. SAVE EMAIL SHARE Limited-Time Only: Subscribe & Save Save 50% on a 26-week Times Subscription. Sale Ends Today. Get Free Email Alerts on These Topics Clinton, Hillary Rodham Clinton, Bill Presidential Election of 2016 United States Politics and Government Ads by Google whats this? Canon Ink & Toner Sale 10% Off All Canon Ink & Toner! Order Now, Free Same Day Shipping. inkcartridges Log In With Facebook Log in to see what your friends are sharing on nytimes. Privacy Policy | What’s This? What’s Popular Now 4 Dead in Metro-North Train Derailment in the Bronx Wage Strikes Planned at Fast-Food Outlets in 100 Cities MOST EMAILEDRECOMMENDED FOR YOU 1. As Fund-Raisers in Congress, Women Break the Cash Ceiling 2. TAKING NOTE Getting Secret Money Out of Campaigns 3. New Rules Would Rein In Nonprofits’ Political Role 4. WASHINGTON MEMO In a Time of Need, the Vice President Plays to His Strengths 5. Clinton Seeks State Dept. Legacy Beyond That of Globe-Trotter 6. Pulling a More Diverse Group of Achievers Into the Advanced Placement Pool 7. BOOKS OF THE TIMES Words of Love, Pain, Protest and Motown 8. EDITORIAL Little Rock Moves On 9. Suit Claims Racial Harassment at Security Firm With New York City Contracts 10. THEATER REVIEW | HOW I LEARNED WHAT I LEARNED A Playwright’s Journey, Mapped From the Inside Log in to discover more articles based on what you‘ve read. What’s This? | Don’t Show
Posted on: Mon, 02 Dec 2013 14:45:24 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015