Trump’s strategy, though, isn’t necessarily aimed at improving his standing among black voters, but messaging to a broader audience.
“It offers him an opportunity to further expand the idea of Trump other than what’s been homegrown out there in the media — that he’s racist and a misogynist — and begin to broaden that conversation as well,” said Michael Steele, the former chair of the Republican National Committee.
“This is not a panacea. He’s not going to assuage voters turned off by ugly rhetoric, or you’re not going to suddenly find a warm embrace by those voters suspicious of his temperament,” Steele said. “But if you want the job, you have got to show that you get it, that you’re willing and able to make the decisions and the kind of choices that people can trust.”
GOP strategist Austin Barbour said it’s too soon to tell if Trump’s minority outreach is genuine. “Is he going to the Hispanic National Chamber of Commerce and asking for solutions?” Barbour said. “He’s getting crushed with Hispanics, and you cannot win that way. You cannot win a national election with only white voters.”
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