What Does Trump Do For African-Americans? Congressional Black Caucus Demands Change

cbc — President Donald Trump and Vice President Mike Pence attend a meeting with the Congressional Black Caucus Executive Committee at the White House in Washington, D.C., March 22, 2017. The Congressional Black Caucus reportedly laid out a list of demands of the president's administration to make good on campaign promises aimed at African-Americans. REUTERS

President Donald Trump met with members of the Congressional Black Caucus (CBC) Wednesday, more than two month after the bloc of African-American elected officials sent him a letter with a list of demands they wanted addressed shortly after his inauguration. Vice President Mike Pence was also there for the meeting, which at least one CBC member reportedly seemed to describe as being somewhat encouraging.

At the White House. Cedric Richmond of Congressional Black Caucus on meeting Trump: "He listened."
— David Smith (@SmithInAmerica) March 22, 2017

However, the overall tenor of the meeting may have been a bit more tense, according to White House correspondent April Ryan, who tweeted that multiple CBC members arrived to the White House equipped with books entitled, "We Have a Lot To Lose." The books' title was an obvious nod to then-candidate Trump's rhetorical campaign appeal to black people during a Michigan rally in August, asking "What the hell do you have to lose" by casting ballots for him.

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Chair @RepRichmond to President @RealDonaldTrump: We have #AlotToLose. Here’s the book we gave to @POTUS. https://t.co/IYTfV0i8T2 pic.twitter.com/vaLguwvogp
— The Black Caucus (@TheBlackCaucus) March 22, 2017

Other topics of discussion included CBC members pushing back against the president and Pence on working toward a solution to address "a pathway out of poverty," investing in infrastructure in urban environments, policy on crime and the immigration travel ban that targets multiple Muslim-majority countries.

! @RepGwenMoore tells President that the poor are being criminalized and we need to give folks a pathway out of poverty. #ALotToLose
— The Black Caucus (@TheBlackCaucus) March 22, 2017

! @RepLawrence tells the President about the importance of investing in infrastructure, especially after Flint. #ALotToLose
— The Black Caucus (@TheBlackCaucus) March 22, 2017

! @RepKarenBass tells the President that the US isn't being smart on crime and re-entry. #ALotToLose
— The Black Caucus (@TheBlackCaucus) March 22, 2017

! @RepAndreCarson tells President that he is Muslim & Muslims shouldn't be treated differently and #MuslimBan is not who we are. #ALotToLose
— The Black Caucus (@TheBlackCaucus) March 22, 2017

As the meeting got underway, Trump told the CBC members that he was "deeply honored" to welcome them to the White House and promised an increasing number of meetings moving forward.

"Throughout my campaign, I pledged to focus on improving conditions for African American citizens," trump said Wednesday. "This means more to me than anybody would understand or know. Every American child has a right to grow up in a safe community, to attend great schools, to graduate with access to high-paying jobs."

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The CBC sent Trump a letter the day before he was inaugurated addressing his campaign promises to black America and laying out several points it said the president must make a priority.

"If you are serious about addressing issues in the African-American community, you would be wise to tap into the decades of expertise held by Members of our Caucus," the letter, signed by the chair of the CBC, Rep. Cedric L. Richmond (D-La.), said in part.