Economics

Rick Perry Assails Republicans' Lack of 'Moral Legitimacy' on African-Americans

In his first major economic policy speech, the former Texas governor and Republican presidential candidate said it's time for black families to hold Democrats accountable for economic stagnation.

Former Texas Governor and Republican presidential candidate Rick Perry addresses the National Press Club Luncheon July 2, 2015 in Washington, DC. Perry began his speech about how African-Americans should support him and the GOP by recounting the racially-motivated 1916 lynching of Jesse Washington in Waco, Texas, and how far Texas and the nation had come since that time.
Photographer: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

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By Ben Brody

July 2, 2015 at 8:02 PM UTC

This article is for subscribers only.

Republican presidential candidate Rick Perry accused his party of trading its "moral legitimacy" for political pragmatism in abandoning the cause of African-Americans and, along with it, the black vote.

"We found that we did need it to win," the former Texas governor said. "But when we gave up trying to win the support of African-Americans we lost our moral legitimacy as the party of Lincoln, the party of equal opportunity for all."