(Fox News) Political commentator Angela Rye declared on CNN that “White folks” should face accountability “for not showing up to save democracy” if they don’t vote for Vice President Kamala Harris next month.
During an interview on “First of All” Saturday, CNN host Victor Blackwell addressed the backlash against former President Barack Obama after he scolded Black men for not being more supportive of Harris’ presidential campaign, in light of polling that shows Black men trending toward former President Trump compared to previous years.
“This is the first time since he was in Pittsburgh and invoked the potential of sexism in his appeal to Black men to support the vice president,” Blackwell began, referencing Obama’s appearance in Arizona a day earlier. “Should there be a course correction because there was so much backlash to that framework? Was it a mistake for the former president to say what he did or to say it publicly…?”
Former President Barack Obama speaks during a campaign event in support of Democratic presidential nominee and U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, U.S., October 10, 2024. (REUTERS/Quinn Glabicki)
Rye quickly turned the conversation away from the former president, shifting the focus to “White folks.”
“You know, I think that it’s wonderful that President Obama is out hitting the trail for democracy, frankly. And what I think is a mistake is to let White folks escape the accountability that they must face for not showing up to save democracy themselves,” she said.
“They want to get mad at presidential candidates, right, when they don’t wear a flag lapel pin or they don’t see you pledging allegiance to the flag,” Rye continued. “That’s what they want to get upset about. Now, the face of patriotism to them looks like trying to tear down the Capitol in a terrorist attack on January 6th, 2021.”
“The responsibility of saving democracy should be on the largest demographic in this country. That is White men and White women. I don’t want to see a women’s march with pussy hats come January if something doesn’t go right. What I want to see is for them to march themselves to the polls…”
She concluded, “We are doing our part. It’s time for White folks to turn their ire and their attention to each other to ensure they also do their part.”
