Five weeks after inappropriately asking a reporter to set up a meeting with the Congressional Black Caucus, President Trump has arranged his own face-to-face discussion with the group, whose leaders are scheduled to visit the White House on Wednesday.
“This will be a serious meeting, not a photo opportunity,” Richmond said in a statement. He added that the caucus members have heard many concerns from their constituents about the administration and that public opinion is divided over whether the members should meet with the president.
“I decided to accept the president’s meeting request because there is no one around him who can provide the perspective and expertise that the CBC can provide,” he said. “I hope the president leaves the meeting with a better understanding of the challenges African Americans face, and how racism and discrimination in this country helped create those challenges.”
White House press secretary Sean Spicer told reporters at his daily briefing that Trump invited the lawmakers to "continue to have a dialogue -- sitting down with people, talking about the issues, talking about common ground." Spicer pointed to Trump's meeting earlier this month with Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-Md.), who reportedly challenged the president over his "hurtful" and "insulting" language about the black community.
"They found common ground," Spicer said. "The president talked about areas, despite the narratives out there--issues where they both probably share concerns. ... The willingness to sit down and talk -- that's the first step."
During a long and freewheeling news conference last month, Trump had appeared unfamiliar with the CBC when April Ryan, a White House correspondent and Washington bureau chief for American Urban Radio Network, asked whether he would include the group in formulating his urban agenda.
When Ryan attempted to clarify, Trump asked her: “Do you want to set up the meeting? Are they friends of yours?”
“No, no, no, I’m just a reporter,” Ryan replied, shaking her head.
The other lawmakers, all Democrats, who are scheduled to attend are Reps. André Carson (Ind.), Karen Bass (Calif.), Gwen Moore (Wis.), Brenda Lawrence (Mich.) and Anthony G. Brown (Md.).
Correction: An earlier version of this post misspelled Rep. Gwen Moore's last name. It has been corrected.
