Donald Trump thanks 'the African-American community' for not coming out to vote for Hillary Clinton


President-elect Donald Trump took his Thank You victory tour to Hershey, Pennsylvania, on Thursday night, regaling the crowd with a 20-minute play-by-play of his Election Night victory, boasting about how he won the GOP "bride that got away" — Pennsylvania hadn't voted for a Republican presidential candidate since 1988 — and thanking black voters for staying home on Election Day.
Trump began by claiming he "did great with the African-American community," and crediting his "famous" pitch to black voters: "What the hell do you have to lose?" Black voters were "smart, and they picked up on it like you wouldn't believe, and you know what else?" Trump asked. "They didn't come out to vote for Hillary, they didn't come out. And that was the big thing, so thank you to the African-American community."
Black voters in Pennsylvania (and elsewhere) in fact "voted overwhelmingly for Clinton," says Albert Hunt at BloombergView, but Trump was right about the second part: African-American voters "were only 10 percent of the electorate, down from 13 percent last time. If black voters had made up 12 percent of the Pennsylvania electorate, she probably would have won the state."
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.
-
'We need solutions that prioritize both safety and sustainability'
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
-
Book reviews: 'Moral Ambition: Stop Wasting Your Talent and Start Making a Difference' and 'Is a River Alive?'
Feature A rallying cry for 'moral ambition' and the interwoven relationship between humans and rivers
-
'King of the Hill' actor shot dead outside home
speed read Jonathan Joss was fatally shot by a neighbor who was 'yelling violent homophobic slurs,' says his husband
-
Depleted FEMA struggling as hurricane season begins
speed read FEMA has lost a third of its workforce amid DOGE cuts enforced by President Donald Trump
-
White House tackles fake citations in MAHA report
speed read A federal government public health report spearheaded by Robert F. Kennedy Jr. was rife with false citations
-
Judge blocks push to bar Harvard foreign students
speed read Judge Allison Burroughs sided with Harvard against the Trump administration's attempt to block the admittance of international students
-
Trump's trade war whipsawed by court rulings
Speed Read A series of court rulings over Trump's tariffs renders the future of US trade policy uncertain
-
Elon Musk departs Trump administration
speed read The former DOGE head says he is ending his government work to spend more time on his companies
-
Trump taps ex-personal lawyer for appeals court
speed read The president has nominated Emil Bove, his former criminal defense lawyer, to be a federal judge
-
US trade court nullifies Trump's biggest tariffs
speed read The US Court of International Trade says Trump exceeded his authority in imposing global tariffs
-
Trump pauses all new foreign student visas
speed read The State Department has stopped scheduling interviews with those seeking student visas in preparation for scrutiny of applicants' social media