Fox News host Harris Faulkner grilled Democratic strategist Antjuan Seawright on Wednesday over whether the Democratic Party would shift away from focusing on race as a campaign strategy, highlighting the adverse effects of inflation that are troubling voters.
Since President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris assumed office in January 2021, prices have surged by 20%, with the annual inflation rate hitting a peak of 9% in June 2022. Faulkner pointed out that some black voters were contemplating supporting Trump due to economic concerns, as she questioned Seawright after airing a clip of women explaining to former CNN host Don Lemon why they wouldn’t vote for Harris.
“I want to talk about race, it’s not the baseline that maybe Democrats think it is. Although it could do one thing for you: It could maybe snatch back some of the people who were clearly going to Trump for a different color: Green, for money, because the economy is not treating them well with high prices on everything,” Faulkner told Seawright. “So, the race thing for Democrats, when will you give that up as a talking point and start focusing on what people are really dealing with right now? Doesn’t matter what color you are or what ethnicity you are, it’s the pain at every shelf in America where they shop.”
“Well, I disagree a bit,” Seawright began, before Faulkner interrupted and asked pointedly, “Are things cheaper for you?”
Trump’s support among black voters for the 2024 election appears to be rising compared to the 12% he secured in the 2020 presidential election according to a CNN exit poll. Trump is currently receiving 17% support from black voters in a CBS poll released Sunday, and 26% in a Fox News poll released on August 14.
Seawright responded by citing voter demographics, “34.4 million eligible African-American voters in this election, that is a 7% increase according to Pew Research from 2020. So black folks carry a big stick when it comes to determining the future leaders of our country. So you don’t give that up. Kamala Harris is a qualified person.”
“So why does she need to say her race and their race? Why can’t she meet them where the interests are?” Faulkner questioned. “They’re going to vote in their own interest.”
Black voters outside the Democratic National Convention in Chicago echoed these sentiments, with one saying, “Trump has done a lot for us, more than what the media tried to portray.”
“But Harris, I think she has done that throughout her career. That’s why you see… Republicans in a Zoom, rallying on her behalf,” Seawright claimed. “She just happens to be a woman, she just happens to be black, but I will tell you, and she is the most qualified person to ever run for the office.”
