Radio host Charlamagne tha God called out MSNBC for accusing him of spreading "MAGA messaging" when discussing the border crisis, arguing angry voters have confronted him on the issue because the surge has greatly impacted "everyday" Americans across the political aisle.
Charlamagne spoke with "Fox & Friends" co-host Brian Kilmeade Wednesday about why he disagrees with the far-left outlet as Biden struggles to garner Black voter support ahead of November.
"There was some backlash earlier this year when I got asked a simple question, do I think that the border is going to be an issue in November? This was in January," Charlamagne told Brian Kilmeade. "I said, yeah… the reason I feel like it's going to be an issue [is] because [for] the first time in my life, people that I know are having conversations with me about what's going on at the border, whether it's… somebody I know who works at a parking garage in New York coming to me in tears talking about… the crime that is in his neighborhood because the gangs that are coming over or… talking to activists in Chicago who are just upset because they feel like… these people are coming over and getting more access to resources than people who've been living on the South Side… homeless… are getting. That's just me listening to people."
"So when I get asked that question and I say yes, all of a sudden I'm on… MSNBC with the headline, ‘Charlamagne tha God is spreading MAGA messaging.’ I'm like, these people aren't MAGA," he continued. "This is just a regular, everyday, working-class person who's coming to me because they know I got a microphone, and they're complaining."
MSNBC published an article earlier this year titled "Meek Mill, Charlamagne Tha God helping to push MAGA messaging," which criticized the pair and the "right-wing media" for utilizing prominent figures in the Black community to spur debate.
‘THE VIEW’ DEMANDS CHARLAMAGNE THA GOD ENDORSE PRESIDENT BIDEN: ‘HELP HIM OUT!’
"There is a troubling trend of conservatives leaning on Black media figures and media outlets that target Black audiences, particularly tabloids and rappers, to spread their viewpoint," The ReidOut Blog writer Ja'han Jones wrote. "Successive elections have shown conservatives to be out of touch with most Black voters. Pew Research projects that this November, there will be more than 34 million eligible Black voters, and a whopping 92% of Black voters favored Biden in 2020."
Meanwhile, recent polls have indicated Biden has lost support in the Black community – a key voting bloc needed for his success in November – as his campaign introduces a new Black voter initiative in response to the slip.
The Biden-Harris campaign on Wednesday announced an eight-figure spending blitz to drive engagement with Black student organizations, community groups and faith centers nationally and in battleground states as the president seeks to rally support for his reelection. Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris then headed to Philadelphia Wednesday afternoon for the first official "Black Voters for Biden-Harris" event.
"Today’s launch of the Black Voters for Biden-Harris coalition is yet another example of our campaign working diligently to earn every single vote. This coalition and the newly announced summer outreach and engagement programming serve as the next phase of our campaign’s ongoing historic investments in outreach to the backbone of the Biden-Harris coalition – Black voters," said Quentin Fulks, the Biden-Harris campaign's principal deputy campaign manager.
Philadelphia resident Jahmiel Jackson, a registered Democrat, told "Fox & Friends First" Wednesday that key issues like the economy will drive voters to support other candidates when they cast their ballots.
"When I see what's happening at the border, when I see so many issues pertinent to me, such as maybe school loans such as the economy about to graduate, looking for a job, and so many of my friends are there going into being store clerks, they're going into being baristas. The economy isn't just in a place where we can just sit still and just vote for Democrats, or we're Black anymore," he told co-host Carley Shimkus. "I think he has a lot to answer for, and six months is just not going to cut it."
A recent Fox News Poll found Biden with 72% support among Black voters, up from 66% in February, but lagging his 79% before the 2020 election. The November 2020 Fox News Voter Analysis found 91% of Black voters sided with Biden.
A New York Times/Siena poll of six battleground states found 76% of Black voters rate the economy today as "fair" or "poor," while only 22% said it was "excellent" or "good." The poll found that Black Americans, like other Americans, rank the economy as their No. 1 issue.
"When I see Trump speak, there's so many instances of where, yes, he might go after Biden for Biden unjustly going after him politically with the government and the legal system. However, he doesn't go after all Democrats and everyone who supports Biden," Jackson said. "I think he really is trying to… unify the country… whereas with Biden and other Democrats, they're going after anyone who is Republican, who is MAGA, who wants to see… more resources used for actual American citizens, including Black Americans."
Fox News' Chris Pandolfo contributed to this report.
