Milwaukee County Executive Chris Abele is talking very confidently that he is going to crush his opponents in the primary election next week because he claims that he is ahead of state Sen. Chris Larson by 35 to 40 points in the African American community. Although Abele has essentially ignored the black community for the past five years, he is apparently bragging that he will get about 65% to 70% of the African American vote. Even worse, Abele actively worked against the interests of the African American community when he vehemently fought and in some cases vetoed policies, including, for example, the living wage ordinance that would have improved the job prospects and the economic well-being of Milwaukee’s minority communities. Despite his dismal record, he apparently believes he is doing so well in the black community because he is spending a fortune on advertising and is essentially buying the votes.
If you really want to understand how Abele views the black community, all you have to do is go back to the answer he gave in response to County Supervisor Khalif Rainey’s question asking Abele what his budget does for African American Milwaukeeans. Abele’s response spoke volumes about his opinion of his black constituents. He said he improved programming at the House of Corrections and beefed up funding for child support programs, mental health services and social services. Abele was roundly condemned for his insulting remarks and as damage control he signed on to Rainey’s proposed Office of African American Affairs. But as the Shepherd reported in January, Abele missed his end-of-2015 deadline for setting up the office. When his aide introduced it to supervisors last week, they tabled it, saying it didn’t follow their request to place the office under the control of the independently elected county comptroller. Abele, contrary to the board’s resolution, placed the office under his control.
Contrary to what he’s claiming in his slick campaign ads, Chris Abele simply does not care about education, jobs and opportunities that the African American community wants. These are the same things that every other average Milwaukee County individual wants who wasn’t raised with great family wealth.
It’s a sad commentary on our current state of affairs when a politician can take absolutely no interest in the largest minority community in Milwaukee and have never gone door to door in the community to listen and learn, and then at election time can come into the community with his pockets full of money and essentially buy the black community. It’s a disgrace that big money can buy elections.
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