A potentially all-white debate stage in December is catastrophic."
WASHINGTON D.C. (Texas Insider Report) After Sen. Kamala Harris decision drop out of the race earlier this week Democrats absence of any candidate of color in the top tier has quickly become a point of consternation for party leaders especially as polls continue to indicate an increasing level of support by African American & Latino Voters for President Donald Trump.
Where did the diversity go?
And have some of the Democrats biggest constituencies crucial to the partys hopes of defeating President Trump begun moving to the Republican side of the ballot because of Donald Trumps strong economic performance lifting all boats?
Remember all the Democrat chatter about having the most diverse" primary field in history?
With the remaining African-American candidate Sen. Cory Booker so far failing to meet the Democrats December debate stage thresholds the result of Harris decision could even leave that stage as an all-white affair.
And worse yet the Democrat horse race seems to be becoming increasingly fluid at a crucial state for the party. A new Hill-HarrisX Poll shows one of the latest entrants former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg capturing the support of 6 of Democrat Primary Voters while in the same poll Sen. Harris hit a new low of just 2 nationally.
Bloomberg however still trails the partys current front-runners by significantly margins. Former Vice President Joe Biden Sens. Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders and South Bend Indiana Mayor Pete Buttigieg have vied for control of the top tier of the Democratic field for months.
Talking about the current state of the Democrat race following Harris departure Sen. Booker told MSNBC its a damn shame" there will potentially be no ethnic minority standing on stage in December.
And other media outlets are picking up on the situation as well.
The LA Times recently quoted one Democratic activist as saying an all-white stage is the result of racism and sexism in the primary:
No matter your candidate you have to recognize that going from the most diverse field ever in January to a potentially all-white debate stage in December is catastrophic" said Leah Greenberg co-founder of Indivisible a Democratic activist group.
The implicit racism and sexism of electability is deeply damaging to democracy" Greenberg said.
The field being narrowed under new and previously untried methods including the measurements of polling and fundraising two typically solid gauges on how strong a candidate could be in the general election leaves Democrats in quite a predicament.
From the beginning Joe Biden has been holding the most electable" prize but recently he began sharing it with Elizabeth Warren. And now Pete Buttigieg is surging in the electable" category.
Does that mean being electable" means being white? Some activists are implying that:
The Democratic field became much less diverse today after the only black woman in the presidential race dropped out" said Aimee Allison the founder of She the People an advocacy group that promotes women of color in politics.
Kamalas presence in the race helped blaze a trail for the next generation of women of color. She ran a competitive campaign that has forced us to rethink what it means to be electable."
Party insiders are asking Does that mean that as a minority shes not electable or as Allison is saying Harris was indeed electable but didnt make the cut for other reasons?
During the 2008 election then-Senator Barack Obama broke down all kinds of barriers and ran a successful primary and general election to become the nations first African-American President.
His success largely attributed to his ability to connect with voters overcame any hesitation about his skin color causing him issues in the general election.
Over the next few weeks however the debate over debate diversity will be well-debated by the commentators and candidates alike.
