There was a sustained round of applause when President Joe Biden, during his appearance at Mother Emanuel AME Church in Charleston, S.C., called out Nikki Haley’s refusal to cite slavery as the cause of the Civil War.
“Let me be clear, for those who don’t seem to know: Slavery was the cause of the Civil War,” the president said.
The comment on Haley’s failure to name a pivotal moment in the nation’s history was one of several remarks from the president that resonated back to those dark days. It was clear to most of those in attendance at the church that Biden was there to galvanize a base that had been so crucial in his 2020 victory.
But it was also an opportunity to put his likely opponent, Donald Trump, in the proper context of his lies and falsehoods. “Once again, there are some in this country trying to turn a loss into a lie—a lie which, if allowed to live, will once again bring terrible damage to this country,” Biden said. “This time, the lie is about the 2020 election.”
To underscore this point, Biden leaned on metaphor, suggesting that Trump’s attempt to overturn the 2020 elections was a form of white supremacy, calling it “the old ghost in new garments.” It smacked of a familiar expression during the Civil Rights Movement that many white racists were no longer garbed in sheets but often attired in suits.
Assisting in the rousing of South Carolina voters, who will head to the booths in early February, was Rep. James Clyburn. he did in the last election, he voiced his strong support for Biden. “As I told you four years ago, we know Joe,” Clyburn said on Monday, with the president sitting behind him. “But more importantly, Joe knows us.”
Biden’s speech at Mother Emanuel evoked memories of the 2015 massacre where white supremacist Dylann Roof killed nine parishioners. The church is the oldest of its denomination in the South. Booker T. Washington and Dr. King spoke at the church, among other dignitaries over the years.
The Biden campaign is hoping his visit will improve his numbers, and turn around polls that suggest Trump would defeat him if the election was held today. According to the New York Times and Siena College poll last fall, 22% of Black voters in six battleground states said they would vote for Trump while 71% said Biden would be their choice.
In effect, Trump’s numbers have escalated from 6% of Black voters nationally in 2016 to 8% in 2020.
Countering this concerning forecast, Quentin Fulks, Biden’s principal deputy campaign manager, said, “No president has done more for the Black community than what Joe Biden has done. The problem is just going to be one where we continue to communicate to these voters.”