Obama suggests Trump's 'stereotypical macho style' appealed to some young Black voters

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Former President Obama said President Trump’s “stereotypical macho style” was to blame for his increase in Black male voters this election cycle.

Trump’s share of the Black electorate grew from 6 percent in 2016 to 8 percent in 2020. He did better with Black men than Black women -- 12 percent of Black men voted Trump, and only 6 percent of Black women.

“I think men generally are more susceptible to public figures who act tough, try to project a stereotypical macho style,” Obama told Peter Hamby, host of Snapchat’s “Good Luck America,” according to Axios. “I don't think Black men are immune to that any more than White or Hispanic men are.

Trump’s support among Latino voters grew to 35 percent, up from 28 percent in 2016.

TRUMP'S SUPPORT FROM BLACK, HISPANIC VOTERS GROWS IN 2016 

Overall, women supported the Democratic ticket in the presidential election over men by 9 points -- 55 percent to 46 percent, according to The Associated Press’ Votecast. But Republican women made big gains in Congress. Of the 12 seats Republicans seized from Democrats this year, nine were flipped by women. A record 17 new Republican women will take the House this year. 

Still, Obama’s theory that men of color might be attracted to Trump’s masculinity is not new. The Los Angeles Times recently published an op-ed entitled “A ‘man’s man’: Why some Black men are drawn to Trump’s toxic masculinity.” The New York Times published another one: “The Macho Appeal of Donald Trump.”

“While it is not inherently bad for Trump, and other men, to espouse confidence and strength, these traits can quickly devolve into toxic masculinity — suppressing emotions, flaunting a tough exterior and seeing violence as an indicator of power,” the LA Times’ op-ed reasoned. “Trump’s form of masculinity appeals to a small minority of Black men who think such masculinity is their best way of making their own way in the world.”

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Obama gave the three-part Snapchat interview as part of a tour to promote his new book, “A Promised Land.” More segments of the interview will air Thursday and Friday.