President Obama’s presidency did a lot to diminish racial bias simply
because he was a black president who – in the opinion of many,
including me – did a good job. As a role model, he was exceptional. But
all the factors that made him a great role model are the same factors
that prevented him from doing much for the African-American community.
It would have looked like favoritism if he had focused too much in that
area. The resistance from the right would have been ferocious. And it
would have ruined Obama’s brand. People loved Obama in part because he didn’t focus on his race. The country needed that.
Now
we have President Trump. You might not realize it yet, but this is an
extraordinary opportunity for the African-American community to make
some gains. In the standard 2D view of the world, Trump is a typical
Republican who you expect to do little or nothing for minority
interests. But in the 3D world of persuasion, the door of opportunity
for African-Americans just swung wide open. If that is still invisible
to you, let me draw a picture.
President Obama didn’t need to
deliver any special improvements to the African-American community. His
existence was the change. But Trump is in a deep “Hitler hole” that his
opponents dug for him. He needs a way out.
And that opens the door.
If
the African-American community has a specific set of proposals that
Trump can sell to Republicans, this is the time to do it. He needs the
black community more than they need him. That’s the perfect negotiating
situation.
The African-American community is mostly aligned with
the anti-Trumpers of every type. Their interests are getting lost in
the noise. What they need is a simple, bold plan that they can sell to
the President, and he can sell to the country. Remember, President Trump
needs the help. This is the perfect time to negotiate.
I’ll give
you an example of what such a plan might look like, just for discussion
purposes. This is only an example so you can see what sort of scope I’m
talking about.
Suppose some organized group of African-Americans
puts together a slavery reparations plan that focuses on free college
education as the compensation. The plan would call for universal free
college (to get all the liberals onboard) but specify that any such plan
has to be phased in over a decade for practical reasons. And that means
someone has to go first. Why not start with African-Americans who are
also below a certain economic level?
Republicans like the idea of
free college too. They just don’t know how the country could pay for it.
I think technology will eventually solve the college expense problem by
making online schooling more effective. But instead of waiting until
something changes, it would be useful to have a phased plan to get us
moving in the right direction. You have to start small, and one way to
do that is by starting with college-bound African-Americans.
Keep
in mind that we have to start with one group or another. I can’t
imagine turning a switch and making college free for everyone at the
same time. And if someone has to go first, there is no real way to avoid
discrimination. If you limit free college to the poor, the middle-class
gets screwed, and so forth.
I think Trump could argue that
offering free college to the demographic group with the most social
friction is also the best path for long-term economic prosperity. In
simple terms, helping one white male make 20% more income might be less
valuable to society than putting one black male into the productive
workforce. Republicans need to hear an economic argument, and I think
there is one in this case.
This hypothetical plan of offering free
college for African-Americans would work best if paired with student
loan relief of some kind that applies to everyone. That would take some
of the sting out of the “fairness” critics. And it also needs to be
wrapped in a larger plan to get to free college for all, eventually.
President
Obama would have had zero chance of selling a plan like the one I just
described. It would have looked super-racist coming from a black
president. But if Trump tries to sell this sort of plan, it would solve
his biggest brand problem because it wouldn’t look Hitlerish in the
least.
The big obstacle with this idea, as you will eagerly tell
me, is that even Trump can’t sell the idea of free college for
African-Americans. Someone needs to pay for it, and Republicans don’t
like that part. But remember, you didn’t think Trump could sell himself
into the presidency either. My advice to African-American voters is to
challenge the president with a specific plan. See what he can do.
You might be surprised.
African-Americans
have negotiating leverage right now because President Trump needs a
win. Bring him a constructive plan and see what happens.
