Donald Trump’s attempts to win over Black voters are still doing the exact opposite.
The Trump campaign suggested Saturday night that the owner of a Black barbershop in Atlanta was lying when he claimed he was never informed that the roundtable of Black conservatives he hosted last week was in benefit of the former president.
“The business owner signed an agreement with the Trump campaign and received payment for the time spent in his location for this event,” the campaign wrote in a post on X, sharing snapshots of the venue use contract, which refers to event security as the “Secret Service” and the campaign as “DJTFP24” and a “private political committee.”
Rocky Jones, the owner of Rocky’s Barber Shop, said he wanted to return the money (just $4,800, per the contract) once he discovered that the event for which he closed his shop was actually for Trump’s campaign. Jones claimed that a friend had reached out to him to set up the event, misrepresenting its purpose. Jones also said he had never been in contact with anyone from Trump’s team or campaign, and that he never understood the intention of the event from the verbal communication he had received.
“I really take pride in my business,” Jones told Atlanta News First, noting that he had received multiple upset calls from his community over the event. “It’s never been about politics… I feel like I’ve been betrayed.”
Jones had jumped at the opportunity under the impression that it was an opportunity to lift up other small, Black-owned businesses.
“Just me agreeing to do a Black, small business roundtable,” Jones said. “I thought it was something private.”
But when Trump called into the event, Jones was shocked. “Why is the… ex-president calling somebody in my barber shop?” he said. “This has nothing to do with small Black businesses.”
Whoa! Trump’s Barbershop campaign event for paid for! Details:
— PatriotTakes ???????? (@patriottakes) June 29, 2024
1) “There was never any mention this was a political event”
1) Owner: “I feel like I’ve been betrayed”
3) Trump campaign won’t respond to media
4) The owner wants to return the money he was paid to host the… pic.twitter.com/zmcxNorUZW
The roundtable featured Representatives Byron Donalds and Wesley Hunt, as well as former Trump Housing and Urban Development Secretary Ben Carson, but Trump himself failed to show. Instead, he opted to literally phone it in to discuss the tax cuts he intends to make for billionaires and the ultrarich should he win in November.
