CNN's Van Jones: The GOP's outreach to Black and Latino voters was 'effective'
"This country is not what we thought it was," the commentator said
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}CNN commentator Van Jones credited the Republican Party on Wednesday for its inroads with minority groups in the 2020 election.
After blasting President Trump's "despicable" remarks declaring himself the winner of the presidential election early Wednesday morning, he stressed to the panel that "this country is not what we thought it was."
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{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"I don't care who you are, nobody predicted this outcome," Jones said. "It turns out that the outreach from Republicans to African Americans, Latinos was effective."
"They picked up more African American females, African American males," CNN anchor Anderson Cooper pointed out.
"Yeah," Jones responded. "People said, 'Listen, because Donald Trump says racially inflammatory stuff, he'll never make any inroads.' It turns out that wasn't true."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Last month, the former Obama official acknowledged that President Trump "doesn't get enough credit" for what he has done for the Black community in his first term in office, citing criminal justice reform and opportunity zones as examples.
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"I think it's really unfortunate because Donald Trump, and I get beat up by liberals every time I say it but I keep saying it, he has done good stuff for the Black community," Jones said at the time. "Opportunity Zone stuff, Black college stuff, I worked with him on criminal stuff, I saw Donald Trump have African American people, formally incarcerated, in the White House, embraced them, treated them well. There is a side to Donald Trump that I think he does not get enough credit for.”