Bush Vows to Patch Up His Ties to the NAACP

Declaring it a “tragedy” that the Republican Party has alienated black voters, President Bush ended his five-year boycott of the NAACP convention on Thursday with a pledge to repair his relationship with the country’s oldest civil rights group.

But even as Bush won a rousing ovation for his promise to sign a renewal of civil rights-era voting laws, he received a chillier reception as he laid out his ideas for improving the state of black America.

One of the most boisterous rounds of applause from attendees at the NAACP’s annual meeting came for Bush’s concession that “many African Americans distrust my political party.” The response seemed to catch the president by surprise, and he paused before continuing, sounding rushed at times and ill at ease.

“I consider it a tragedy that the party of Abraham Lincoln let go of its historic ties with the African American community,” he said. “For too long, my party wrote off the African American vote, and many African Americans wrote off the Republican Party. That history has prevented us from working together when we agree on great goals.”

Shortly after Bush’s address, the legislation he pledged to sign cleared Congress. The Senate voted 98-0 to renew the Voting Rights Act; last week, the House passed it 390-33

Bush’s appearance came after a string of five rejected invitations -- the result, in part, of bad blood between the president and Julian Bond, the longtime chairman of the National Assn. for the Advancement of Colored People. But after Bush’s 33-minute address Thursday, NAACP leaders said they would judge him on his actions, not merely his words or attendance at their event.

“The major headlines were good headlines, and at this point, what we need to do is convert headlines from the speech to action and measurable results,” said Bruce S. Gordon, the NAACP’s president, who in recent months has pursued a closer relationship with the White House.

The Rev. Jesse Jackson, harshly critical of Bush’s response following the administration’s slow reaction to Hurricane Katrina last year, said the president’s signature on the Voting Rights Act would be sufficient only if the Justice Department followed up with aggressive enforcement.

Jackson encountered the president backstage after the speech and, in the spirit of Bush’s comments, requested a meeting. He said Bush directed him to political advisor Karl Rove to make the arrangements.

“A meaningful dialogue would leave him better-informed,” Jackson said. “But there is such a fear that there will be areas of disagreement, there has not been meaningful meetings.”

Bush’s appearance comes at a time of particularly strained relations between black leaders and the GOP. Almost a year after Katrina devastated much of black New Orleans, tensions escalated when some House Republicans pushed to eliminate provisions of the Voting Rights Act designed to shield black voters from institutionalized racism in the South.

Bush called the speech a “moment of opportunity.”

“I have come to celebrate the heroism of the civil rights movement, and the accomplishments of the NAACP,” he said. “It’s important to me. It’s important to our nation. I come from a family committed to civil rights.”

Contending that “racism still lingers in America,” Bush seemed to indirectly refute the arguments of some Voting Rights Act critics in the GOP who said the law unfairly targeted the South for scrutiny despite racial progress.

“Slavery was legal for nearly a hundred years, and discrimination legal in many places for nearly a hundred years more,” he said. “Taken together, the record placed a stain on America’s founding, a stain that we have not yet wiped clean.”

Overall, his remarks were greeted with polite applause. But silence filled the vast hall at Washington’s convention center as Bush promoted his administration’s faith-based initiative, which would permit religious social service groups -- many based in black churches -- to receive federal funds. He chastised critics who he said “do not seem to realize that the organizations they are trying to prevent from accessing federal money are the same ones that helped win the struggle of civil rights.”

There was more silence when he said that eliminating inheritance taxes on the wealthy could help African Americans emerge as part of an “investor class.” And a smattering of boos rang out when Bush talked of school vouchers.

On Katrina, Bush said the government had spent billions on reconstruction. And thanks to his burgeoning relationship with NAACP leader Gordon, he said, more help is on the way.

“We’ve got a plan, and we’ve got a commitment,” he said.

The president also promised a domestic campaign to combat HIV/AIDS, which he said affects blacks disproportionately.

But the speech lacked the powerful sweep of Bush’s past addresses on race -- particularly his 2003 speech at Goree Island on Africa’s western coast, where he used biblical references to hail the work of U.S. civil rights leaders and called slavery “one of the greatest crimes of history.”

At the time of that speech, Bush aides were preparing programs designed to woo African Americans, traditionally Democratic voters, to the GOP for the 2004 election and beyond -- backing a ban on same-sex marriage that appealed to socially conservative blacks and funneling more federal dollars to the faith-based initiative.

Nationally, Bush’s share of the black vote grew by only two percentage points, from 9% to 11%, between 2000 and 2004, but exit polls in battleground states where the Bush strategy was put into action showed far more dramatic increases.

The effort has continued, with Republican Party Chairman Ken Mehlman scheduled to deliver what will be his 50th speech to a predominantly black audience.

This year, the GOP boasts black candidates for high office in three states: governor in Ohio and Pennsylvania and U.S. senator in Maryland.

Democrats reacted to the speech by accusing the president of insincerity, charging that his administration has opposed proposals that could aid African Americans, such as raising the minimum wage.

A statement issued by several Democrats, including California Rep. George Miller of Martinez and Rep. Major R. Owens of New York, called Bush’s record “a shameful one that no well-crafted speech could ever obscure.”

Gordon said Bush deserved a grade of “B” for content for at least addressing education, equality and voting rights.

“The fact that he came sends a signal. The fact that he spoke on the issues on our agenda shows potential for an alliance,” Gordon said. “This wasn’t supposed to be a love-fest. The question is: Is this a new day?”