Black caucus wants Obama's ear

WASHINGTON

A year ago, members of the Congressional Black Caucus openly wept at Barack Obama's inauguration. Slowly, that euphoria has given way to frustration that his administration has not done more for black America. Questions about how to elect him have been replaced by questions about how to prod him.

For many, it is the surprise of a political lifetime that they find themselves wrestling with such quandaries. Alternately puzzled and disgruntled, caucus members say that key members of the Obama administration have taken them for granted, in the belief that black congressional members have no stomach for a fight with the country's first black president.

"We concluded they were just kind of listening to us and that then they would go back (to their offices) and conclude that we would do nothing," Emanuel Cleaver, D-Mo., the vice chairman of the caucus, said of one dispute. "Because they had concluded there's a black president in the White House and that, to some degree, the Black Caucus, you know, was constrained in expressing its desires. After a while, we said, ‘Hey, we see what's going on and it's nothing.'"

On Thursday, caucus members participated in a rare one-hour policy meeting with Obama at the White House to discuss their concerns, most notably their disappointment over a jobs bill that they regard as largely a package of tax breaks for employers, noticeably bereft of job-training programs, new infrastructure projects and summer employment opportunities for youth. Such issues are vital to the caucus, many of whose members represent districts with high levels of unemployment.

Thirty-five Democrats, mostly members of the caucus -- and including Rep. Mel Watt, who represents North Carolina's 12th District -- voted against the bill as the House approved it last week.

In interviews with aides and members after Thursday's meeting, Obama was described as receptive to their message, even though he did not make any large-scale commitments.

"There was no contention at all," said Rep. Gregory Meeks, D-N.Y. "The president is very clearly focused on jobs and job creation."

A White House official issued a statement that ignored any tensions with caucus members and stressed the administration's goals: "President Obama is working to develop inclusive policies, whether in health care, education or the economy, that will have a broad impact on the American people, and Thursday's meeting with the Congressional Black Caucus was a productive effort toward reaching that goal."

Notwithstanding Thursday's kind words, the caucus's list of complaints with the White House runs from policy to personal. Despite the caucus's entreaties, his administration has not provided targeted help to black communities and other struggling areas suffering from disproportionately high unemployment, members complain. Many caucus members say they feel largely ignored by key White House advisers. Their communication with Obama himself is minimal to nonexistent. Several CBC members and aides talk derisively of an oft-quoted Obama phrase: that a "rising tide" for America will "lift all boats." They see it as rhetoric intended to justify why the administration has not focused on their communities at a time when unemployment among black Americans has climbed to 16.5 percent.

"I can't pass laws that say I'm just helping black folks," Obama told the American Urban Radio Networks. "I'm the president of the United States. What I can do is make sure I'm passing laws that help people, particularly those who are most ­vulnerable."

Many in the 42-member, all-Democrat caucus passionately disagree. Black Americans and Latinos "bear the brunt of this economic recession," said Maxine Waters, D-Calif. "We must not shy away from targeted public policy that seeks to address the specific and unique issues facing minority communities."

Several prominent caucus members have expressed doubts about the interest of administration officials in black American issues, referring to figures including Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner, White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel, and senior adviser David Axelrod. They "haven't had much involvement with minority communities in their careers," said Rep. Donald Payne (N.J.). "They've been in suites and boardrooms."

For older CBC members, many of whom remember receiving calls from inveterate gabber and advice-seeker Bill Clinton during his presidency, Obama's more distant style has involved adjustments. Asked whether he has received a call from the president since his inauguration, Payne looked up at his office ceiling and answered slowly: "I can't remember."

Members point to the CBC's four committee chairmanships and 18 subcommittee chairmanships as proof of its clout in the House. But several members said they have few black American contacts with substantial sway in the White House. Some caucus members talk wistfully of the last Democratic administration, where the late commerce secretary Ron Brown could relay CBC concerns to President Clinton. "We knew Ron had the president's ear, and he had status," Payne said.

White House officials are quick to dispute the notion that there are no black Americans under Obama who have influence. White House Deputy Chief of Staff Mona Sutphen points to Melody Barnes, the head of the White House Domestic Policy Council, and senior White House adviser Valerie Jarrett as black Americans with special access to the president.

Rep. James Clyburn (S.C.), an Obama loyalist whom the White House asked to speak to The Washington Post for this report, said he is "very comfortable" with Jarrett. He voices no complaints about the administration's strategies for dealing with high unemployment among African Americans, noting how the stimulus package has benefited parts of South Carolina.

Caucus members generally take pains to distinguish their misgivings with some of the president's top advisers from their personal commitment to Obama. Cleaver views the prospect of Obama's 2012 re-election campaign as a referendum on America's comfort level with a black American at the helm. "He's got to succeed," Cleaver said, emotion putting a catch in his voice.

But Cleaver, Payne and other caucus members acknowledge the paradox they face. How can you express criticism of the administration without eventually confronting the man at the top?

Some say that any public airing of their disagreements with Obama runs the risk of politically damaging him. "He's ours. He has to be more careful because he is the first black ever to be president," said Rep. Diane Watson, D-Calif. "I want to help him, to protect him."

Obama has a 91 percent approval rating among black Americans, according to the latest Gallup poll. But Clyburn cautions the administration against becoming complacent about that support. "Depressed (black American) voter turnout would be something no White House politico could do anything about in the next election."