Congressional Black Caucus supposed to decline Trump meeting

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The Congressional Black Caucus is required to reject a party invitation to meet up with with President Mr . trump, based on four sources close to the group.

The Trump administration, sources said, has done not advance the CBC’s priorities because group’s executive board first met with Trump in March. And members are engaged the ask a caucus-wide meeting would total nothing but a photograph op that the president would use to bolster his standing among African-Americans.

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“No one would like to be considered a co-star on the reality show,” said one senior Democratic aide.

Lawmakers inside the 49-member group each received a party’s invitation a couple weeks ago from Omarosa Manigault, the-reality-TV-star-turned-White-House-aide who has pitched herself as an unofficial liaison on the CBC.

“As requested by the president, we’d like to plan a follow-up legitimate your whole membership in the Congressional Black Caucus to talk about issues pertinent towards your members,” Manigault wrote inside the invitation, obtained by POLITICO.

But multiple CBC members said these were turned off that she signed the invitation as “the Honorable Omarosa Manigault,” saying she hasn’t earned that title nor has she helped increase your profile of CBC issues while in the White House as promised.

CBC Chairman Cedric Richmond (D-La.) isn’t required to make the announcement until right after the group discusses the invitation during its weekly meeting Wednesday. Kamara Jones, a spokeswoman for that CBC, declined to touch upon the record.

But sources towards the group say to remain told the caucus-wide choosing the president is "from the table."

There both are logistical and political hurdles for the entire caucus choosing Trump.

With nearly 50 members, assembling even the vast majority of caucus for any meeting might be difficult. “How do you get 30-plus members in a room which has a meeting and produce it meaningful?” said one source familiar with the caucus’ deliberations.

But individuals the caucus may also be worried about the optics associated with a meeting. Throughout their meeting with Trump in March, persons in the leadership attempt to avoid picking a picture with Trump for fear it becomes accustomed to help it become appear like that they thrown their support behind the president.

If almost all the caucus were to look at the White House, for most to huddle with Trump in the Oval Office for just a group photo could possibly be tougher in order to avoid. “The entire caucus goes down there, it’s form of harder to control,” the foundation accustomed to your situation said.

Aside in the optics, Trump has done little, contrary, to deal with many of the policies vital that you the caucus, members say.

CBC sources said caucus members were miffed that this Trump budget proposal didn’t include additional funding for historically black schools following the president produced a big show of selecting leaders from those schools while in the Oval Office in February.

Trump further angered the CBC while he issued your firm stand out accompanying the stopgap funding bill during the early May questioning the constitutionality of federal funding for historically black colleges.

“For a president who pledged to get to out over African-Americans as well as other minorities, this statement is stunningly careless and divisive,” Richmond and Rep. John Conyers (D-Mich.), ranking member to the House Judiciary Committee, said from a joint statement right at that moment.

Sources repeat the president also hasn’t made any efforts to advance CBC priorities on criminal justice reform or voting rights, two problems that are also crucial to the group, and the White House hasn’t even responded to policy requests from members considering that the March meeting.