By Alex B. Leeman
As his inauguration approaches, President-elect George W. Bush took advantage of Martin Luther King Jr. Day, to reach out to minority voters.
Black voters in particular have been a tough crowd for Bush, favoring his opponent, Al Gore, by a 9-1 margin in the November election. Bush said gaining the support of minorities is a priority.
Taylor Payne, 22, a sophomore from Virginia Beach, Va., said he thinks Gore fared better than Bush among blacks because he was more focused on helping them move forward.
Payne, who is black, said he”s worried about how Bush will support minority issues.
“There”s going to be changes,” Payne said. “Probably changes that African Americans won”t be too proud of.”
However, other black students at BYU disagree with Payne.
Marcus Whalen, 19, a freshman from Waldorf, Md., isn”t worried about Bush.
“He”ll be as good as any other president,” Whalen said.
Andre Bennin, 19, a freshman from Alexandria, Va., majoring in zoology, agrees.
“He was good enough to get elected,” said Bennin, who believes Bush just needs to show minorities he has their interests in mind.
Most black students don”t think Bush will do them any harm. They attribute Gore”s large margin of victory to the fact that many blacks tend to be Democrats.
Heather Collins, a senior from Champaign, Ill., said she thinks Bush is probably just a victim of the media.
“I think it”s just media hype,” Collins said. “I don”t see him having a problem with minorities.”
Speaking at a predominately black elementary school in Houston, Bush recently discussed his education reform plans and called for unity.
The engagement was the latest effort by Bush to improve his image among minorities.
Bush will be inaugurated the 43rd president of the United States on Jan. 20.
