Elijah Cummings: Obama Needs To 'Fight Harder,' African-Americans 'Totally Frustrated'

Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-Md.), responding to the high unemployment rates in the black community, said that African-Americans feel President Barack Obama "needs to fight, and fight harder."

“We are totally frustrated, and people need to know that the president feels their pain,” Cummings, a member of the Congressional Black Caucus, told CNN's Candy Crowley on “State of the Union” Sunday.

“Almost every African-American person I spoke to said he needs to fight, and fight harder,” Cummings said.

Last week, Rep. Maxine Waters (D-Calif.) blasted Obama for ignoring the black community during his bus tour through the midwest.

"We don't know why on this trip that he's in the United States now, he's not in any black community," she said at a jobs forum in Detroit. "We want to give him every opportunity, but our people are hurting. The unemployment is unconscionable. We don't know what the strategy is," she continued. “We’re supportive of the president, but we getting tired, y’all, getting tired."

Last month, Rep. John Conyers (D-Mich.), told members of the House Out of Poverty Caucus that African-Americans were fed up waiting for the president to take forceful action to address the jobs crisis in the black community.

“We want him to know from this day forward that we’ve had it. We want him to come out on our side not to watch and wait… We’re suffering,” Conyers said.

On CNN, Cummings said that he does not believe Obama is taking the African-American vote/community for granted, but he stressed that the president “needs to hear that there are a lot of people suffering. ... He needs to go back to the horse that brought him in.”

WATCH Maxine Waters' comments about President Obama:

Comments

[Ron Bazemore]

09:00 PM on 08/25/2011

I don't blame the CBC to ask for specific help for the black community one bit. I do wonder how the president could do that, without making other racial groups angry. Employment is needed by the masses period, so put it out there and people will work, earn a living, and begin to feel better about themselves.

[ThomasTrom]

12:15 PM on 08/25/2011

Yes, I think Obama has a lot of things on his plate. These aren't easy times. We ca't just say, "Obama needs to do more for blacks". I mean, clearly blacks have it difficult, but lets look at the facts here. He needs to help the poorest. Not blacks. The poorest. Because the poorest are suffering most. If blacks happen to be in this group, then fine. They'll be helped also. Personally, I'd like the setting up of Black Universities. Where every teacher and lecturer, all the staff, are black. All the students are black. And special concessions are given. Work could be provided too, Universities being great places for small business like stationary shops etc. But, in the current climate, I doubt that this could take place.

[ThomasTrom]

03:37 PM on 08/25/2011

I guess I'm saying Obama needs to fight hard for blacks (him being black too and representing us), but also for everyone else.

[Lifeskills]

03:32 PM on 08/24/2011

In Hog Worts you can say, Valdimore, here it seems ppl won't say, Prejudice, Racist, or Discrimination. Which all have more to do with African American employment numbers, than any presidents intervention.
You can't make the prize winning cake if you leave out even one ingredient.
You can't come to the correct mathematical calculation if you leave out even one figure.
And you can't solve the African America job problem by ignoring racism and discrimination. You can't stop Whites from teaching racism, ask hat brother that got beat. You can't make a White person hire you and either can Pres. Obama. Look at the University of Washington, they pride themselves on no more Affirmative act and having no African Americans on their campus.
It's all about keeping African Americans out and down. If a Latino or other ethnic is poor and jobless it's because of where they are located. Whatever, they will hire them before they will you. Pres. Obama is not a King so he can't command that Whites show no prejudice, nor a God, so he can't just change their minds. So, now what do any of you, 'Neo-Politicals' (only interested in politics since, Obama) or those finger pointing black politicians plan to do about the discrimination and racism part of the job getting.

[pblkbrothers]

07:58 PM on 08/24/2011

Reality

[Aesthete]

10:41 AM on 08/25/2011

You're right. Obama is neither a king nor a God. But there is a God to whom we can all pray, reclaiming the faith that sustained our ancestors through a terrible history of man's inhumanity to man.

[moredownhaul]

12:41 PM on 08/24/2011

What exactly did Black people expect from Obama?

[Angry Larry]

10:37 AM on 08/24/2011

I'm getting tired of hearing Black Politicians keep pushing this issue, Yes we have a Black President or some would consider half Black President. We elected a President for all people not just one race to be considered. What are these Black Politicians doing for the Black community besides acting like Obama should be fixing it?

Do these people realize there are poor White, Latino, Asians, who are even in worse conditions? The Black Politicians/Community still feel like Obama owes them something just because he is a Black President.

[FloridaLAW]

11:40 AM on 08/24/2011

First of all, you have a point about Black pols making a racial issue of it. They are representing very hard hit communities and i do believe that they have a responsibility to do all that they can to relieve the suffering in those communities. I just don't think pointing out race is the way to do it because the president will be roundly criticized if he dares do anything that would specifically help Blacks. But isn't it funny that we don't feel the same way about all of the Gay legislation that he's passed or the fact that he has been demanding a immigration reform bill to assist Hispanics? There is a different standard when it comes to Blacks but the way to deal with it is not to publicly criticize this president. Elijah Cummings and other CBC members can express their opinions directly with the WH.

I totally disagree with your statement that White, Latino, Asians are in even worst conditions. As a whole, the Black unemployment rate is twice that of the national average and it is considerably more than the other groups that you mentioned.

[Aesthete]

12:23 PM on 08/24/2011

Actually, it would be unethical for a black (or any other race or ethnicity) to cater to people who look like him or her to the exclusion of all others. I've seen a similar thing demanded of successful blacks in other areas beside the political arena. I know a black landlord who will not rent to blacks because too many of them feel they should not have to pay rent just because he's black like them. They don't respect him as a legitimate business man. If the landlord was white, they'd pay the rent without questioning it.

[jhrochesterny]

08:10 AM on 08/24/2011

We voted for a president. Not a black president, or white or red. He should be helping ALL the people, not wall street, not the banks, not the auto companies as he has done. It should be the PEOPLE first, and quit worrying about what color they are. Racism is so 19th century give it a rest.

[Marcus Brown]

07:43 AM on 08/24/2011

What the CBC should do is introduce their version of job creation legislation and encourage their constituents to make phone calls to GOP and DEMS. The president doesn't make laws, congress does. I do agree that the President needs to visit some urban communities as well. It is his advisers that crafted this bus tour and they need to be called out for not including our communities. These are the same advisers who are so afraid to address race or him being black because main stream America would think that he was showing favoritism to African Americans. Black people should be more angry at Congress!

[pblkbrothers]

08:01 PM on 08/24/2011

"Black people should be more angry at Congress!"

[beachinstead]

04:10 PM on 08/23/2011

so community organizer should work harder he says, he should not have to work harder i thought you socialist dems said he was the one. he said he was going to do something for the as he said "the black folk" during the campaign. the reason he has to work harder he is a Black Elitist. thats who wanted and that is who you get. SORRY!

[Aesthete]

03:12 PM on 08/23/2011

Doesn't anybody understand that the man has to get re-elected first and that you need to have most of the ENTIRE country behind you in order to accomplish that? I'm black but have never voted for ANY candidate for public office based on what he or she was going to "do" for me. As long as they do their best possible jobs as a PUBLIC servants, I'll be just fine, thank you! There is no elected official on the planet that can guarantee the outcome of anyone's life anyhow. Such a person does not exist, never has, and never will. Stop the whining!

[kirok2002]

02:37 PM on 08/23/2011

It is the Black Congressional Caucus's last attempt to try and get the President to play favorites, by playing the race card. They know that Obama is a one pump chump and he'll be out in 2012. So they are appealing to the Presidents race to try to guilt him into showing favor. Fact of the matter is, the Black Caucus has let it's constiuents down.

[psbintl]

11:15 AM on 08/23/2011

To all political leaders out there who are black: I am black and President Obama is not just my President, he is President to all of the American people, so please shut up!!

[UWorlds1]

12:47 PM on 08/23/2011

Any politician should enact policies that help the people that voted them in. That's why politicians campaign-to let people know how they will govern. By your philosophy let's just vote for anybody. Yes he is the President for everybody, but his base voted him in. Without us he would not be President. Everybody knows you fight for the people who voted for you. If not you will not be reelected. Why would you be?

[psbintl]

01:36 PM on 08/23/2011

President Obama's base was NOT just black people! THAT is your misconception!

[tqcobb]

10:58 AM on 08/23/2011

As much as I love the CBC, I have to disagree on this one...POTUS needs to reconnect with the liberal base, which incidently includes many african-americans such as myself

[FloridaLAW]

11:50 AM on 08/24/2011

thank you, I'm shocked that a seasoned legislator like Cummings doesn't understand this. It's not smart to go out talking about race. Talk about unemployment in general and how it's effecting your constituents and demand that the WH work with congress to do something about it. Don't f(*(&king talk about race!

[furion4865]

09:55 AM on 08/23/2011

Wow, I was censored again, glad you guys understand the definition of arbitrary.

[VoteEarlyVoteOften]

09:33 AM on 08/23/2011

Isn't Obama the president of all America? No more red states, no more blue states?

We are all suffering under the Obama economy while he vacates in his $50,000 per week bungalow and leaves us wondering about his latest secret jobs plan Mr. Cummings.

We are all offended as he tours the farm country flapping about American jobs while riding in a million dollar bus that was not made in America Mr. Cummings.


Unemployment is grotesquely highy for all peoples Mr. Cummings

[mustardhead98]

08:42 AM on 08/23/2011

There's a couple of reasons Obama won't fight harder for the black community. The biggest reason is he knows he can count on the majority for votes-so he doesn't need to "woo" them and has, instead, focused on illegal immigrants and wooing the faltering hispanic vote. This should outrage the black community as the last thing the US needs is more illegal immigrants snatching jobs from under anyone's nose and burdening an already bursting at the seems social/healthcare net.

The other reason is, Obama doesn't relate to blacks or the black culture. He is half white, raised by a white mother and then by white grandparents in a white society. He is enamered with the elitist left-not the average person.

[UWorlds1]

12:50 PM on 08/23/2011

Fanned. So agree with you. But you are wrong, he does have to woo us. We really can't get worse than were we are now. With friends like him, who needs enemies.

[FloridaLAW]

03:49 PM on 08/24/2011

84

[FloridaLAW]

11:53 AM on 08/24/2011

he can't do anything that would specifically help blacks and I hope you are intelligent enough to know that. As soon as he even mentions it his presidency would be over. He knows that and he has avoided that trap. I expected that the CBC would be a lot smarter than this.