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Opinion Michael Steele: What Republicans need to do about all ‘the KKK stuff’

Columnist|
November 22, 2016 at 10:15 a.m. EST
Michael Steele, former chairman of the Republican National Committee, talks with Jonathan Capehart during taping of the “Cape Up” podcast. (Carol Alderman/The Washington Post)

The post-election conversation with Michael Steele was so good that I divided it in two. Last week, you heard the former chairman of the Republican National Committee declare that President-elect Donald Trump “is not a Republican. He’s a pragmatic populist.” We’ll see if Trump governs as hopefully as Steele’s description makes it seem. The incoming president’s appointments so far leave a lot to be desired.

Watch: D.C. restaurant apologizes after hosting alt-right group

But how did we get here in the first place? How was it possible for the least experienced and most unpopular candidate for president in history to win? In this part-two episode of “Cape Up,” Steele zeroes in on the electorate.

LISTEN HERE

For more conversations like this, subscribe to “Cape UP” on iTunes or Stitcher.

“In essence, what Donald Trump did was he reawakened the Reagan Democrats,” Steele said of white voters. And their economic pain combined with the billionaire builder’s ability to make them feel like “he’s just like me,” as Steele quoted one memorable focus group participant, overrode whatever concerns they might have had about his temperament or moral standing.

[Why is Steve Bannon given a pass when Jeremiah Wright was kicked to the curb for less?]

But Steele’s most searing observation was about the African American vote and its relationship with Hillary Clinton.

Steele: Bill Clinton was what for black folks?
Capehart: First black president.
Steele: And Hillary was?
Capehart: His wife.
Steele: But she wasn’t the first black first lady. … There’s no connection to her. Black folks have not had a connection to her. They’ve not had a real substantive feel for her. Hillary’s there, I’m not saying that there’s no respect and none of that, but Hillary never animated the black community the way her husband did. … There was never that kind of “We got her back.” Now, Bill Clinton, something happened to him, black folks would rally around, right now, would rally to his side because of that connection that they have to him.

Of course, that personal connection also applies more deeply to President Obama, the actual first black president of the United States.

[Michael Steele: Donald Trump is “the freeest president we’ve had in a generation"]

Steele gets into why African American millennials did not emulate the support of their elders for Hillary Clinton. He talks about what to do about “all of this misogynist, racist, … xenophobic, KKK stuff” given credence by Trump’s candidacy and victory. And listen to the podcast to hear Steele’s response when I asked him what job he was getting in the new administration.

“Cape Up” is Jonathan’s weekly podcast talking to key figures behind the news and our culture. Subscribe on iTunes, Stitcher or wherever else you listen to podcasts.