Radio personality “Charlamagne Tha God” discussed how much more the Trump-Vance campaign resonates with voters than the campaign of Vice President Kamala Harris, right. (Paras Griffin / Getty Images ; Jim Vondruska / Getty Images)
Radio Host Charlamagne Points Out a Critical Difference Between Trump and Harris: ‘Always America First’
By Michael Schwarz October 10, 2024 at 9:37am
Sometimes the truth comes from unlikely sources.
Lenard McKelvey, a prominent black radio host who calls himself “Charlamagne Tha God,” spent the spring and summer of 2020 urging then-candidate Joe Biden to select a black woman as his running mate, so the host bears at least some responsibility for the catastrophe that is Vice President Kamala Harris.
Nonetheless, even Charlamagne can now see that in at least one crucial respect the underwhelming 2024 Democratic presidential ticket of Harris and Gov. Tim Walz of Minnesota lags far behind former President Donald Trump and his running mate, Republican Sen. J.D. Vance of Ohio.
“It’s always America First,” the radio host said in a clip posted to the social media platform X.
Charlamagne made that comment Monday on “The Breakfast Club,” a nationally-syndicated radio show of which he serves as co-host.
By “always America First,” he meant that Trump and Vance talk about things happening in America, and their message resonates.
Meanwhile, Harris and Walz cannot seem to find their footing when it comes to issues important to Americans.
“They messed up in regards to messaging,” Charlamagne said of the Democrats at the beginning of the clip. “You’ll listen to a lot of reporters, and they’ll be talking to Trump or J.D. Vance, and they’ll be talking to them about things that are happening right here in America, because it is an election season right here in America, so there’s so many things that we care about here, so it’s always America First.”
By contrast, the co-host said, questions directed toward Walz have a more “geopolitical” focus.
“And I think a lot of times that makes them sound very out of touch,” Charlamagne added.
A fellow co-host then pointed out that Harris and Walz cannot control the questions they receive. Charlamagne did not disagree, but he also did not let them off the hook.
“When you hear the Vances and the Trumps talking about what’s happening here at home and saying things like ‘America First’ and ‘Make America Great Again,’ that messaging sometimes resonates a lot more,” Charlamagne said.
He then corrected himself.
“Not sometimes. It does resonate a lot more,” he added.
For instance, Charlamagne pointed to the outrage that ensued over the weekend when the Biden-Harris administration, in the wake of Hurricane Helene’s devastation in western North Carolina and elsewhere, announced humanitarian aid for Lebanon.
“They was like, ‘Yo, what about us right here in North Carolina?’ So that ‘America First’ messaging goes much farther, especially during election season,” the co-host said.
NEW: Show host Charlamagne says Trump’s “America First” messaging resonates with voters “a lot” more than the Harris campaign’s messaging.
America First messaging resonates with American voters? Gee, who would have thought?
“Trump and J.D. Vance… they’ll be talking about… pic.twitter.com/VyzkZjz8uV
— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) October 8, 2024
Readers might recall Charlamagne as the radio host to whom, on May 22, 2020, Biden declared, “If you have a problem figuring out whether you’re for me or Trump, then you ain’t black.”
George Floyd, a black man and a career criminal, died in Minneapolis police custody three days later. The ensuing summer of race-baiting among woke activists, accompanied by an orgy of self-flagellation on the part white people who succumbed to (or embraced) the propaganda of collective atonement, effectively blew Biden’s gaffe out of the headlines.
Still, months later Charlamagne had not forgotten. In fact, he placed a demand on Biden, the consequences of which plague us to this day.
“Joe, you got to hurry up and announce your black woman VP, so I can be enthused about voting for her because I will never be enthused about voting for you,” the co-host said on “The Breakfast Club” in July 2020.
In other words, Charlamagne approved of Harris primarily due to her skin color. He still does.
Thus, the fact that even a sympathetic radio host can see the Harris campaign’s problem speaks volumes. Charlamagne admitted that “America First” conveys the right message. Indeed it does.
Michael Schwarz holds a Ph.D. in History and has taught at multiple colleges and universities. He has published one book and numerous essays on Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, and the Early U.S. Republic. He loves dogs, baseball, and freedom. After meandering spiritually through most of early adulthood, he has rediscovered his faith in midlife and is eager to continue learning about it from the great Christian thinkers.
Michael Schwarz holds a Ph.D. in History and has taught at multiple colleges and universities. He has published one book and numerous essays on Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, and the Early U.S. Republic. He loves dogs, baseball, and freedom. After meandering spiritually through most of early adulthood, he has rediscovered his faith in midlife and is eager to continue learning about it from the great Christian thinkers.
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