John McCain and black voters

The Takeaway

This segment originally aired on "The Takeaway" on July 16, 2008.

Republican presidential hopeful John McCain is courting two important voting blocs — blacks and Hispanics. However, he trails his challenger, Barack Obama, in winning over these groups. What is McCain saying to capture their attention?

"The Takeaway’s" John Hockenberry and Adaora Udoji talkt o Clarence Page, columnist for the "Chicago Tribune."

The numbers don’t lie — black voters in key swing states overwhelmingly support Barack Obama. Page says McCain doesn’t expect to make a big dip with black voters, "… he’ll be lucky to get the regular 10 percent that Republican candidates usually get from black voters. He wants to reach moderate swing voters overall, who might be inclined toward voting for him, but be concerned that he might be as polarizing as President Bush turned out to be among black voters."

"The Takeaway" is PRI’s new national morning news program, delivering the news and analysis you need to catch up, start your day, and prepare for what’s ahead. The show is a co-production of WNYC and PRI, in editorial collaboration with the BBC, The New York Times Radio, and WGBH.

More at thetakeaway.org

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