Burgess Owens: “there was a historic leadership summit held yesterday. Today is May 15. Yesterday, on May 14, there was a historic…”

“there was a historic leadership summit held yesterday. Today is May 15. Yesterday, on May 14, there was a historic African American leadership conference held here in Washington. I want to salute the sponsors. It turns out that most of the sponsors, practically all the sponsors, are Republican. Every year the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation sponsors a legislative weekend where people in the African American community, certainly leaders from all over the Nation, assemble here in Washington; but they are nonpartisan. Republicans come, corporate heads, the labor people. It is wide open as a nonpartisan event. Everybody discusses common problems. It is very interesting that this African American leadership conference, which is very new, I suppose I want to say at the outset, is certainly welcome. The attention African Americans are getting from Republicans is welcome. We have no problem with that. The myths that arise as a result of past Republican Party behavior, we would like to see put to rest. There is a myth that Republicans do not care at all for the concerns of the African American community, and, therefore, they are left to the Democrats who take them for granted because they are sensing or knowing that the Republicans do not care to be bored with the concerns of the African American community; the Democrats take us for granted, and they do not exercise themselves too much either over our concerns. Those myths, neither one probably is true.…”