Rep. Jasmine Crockett Breaks Down Why Tuesday’s Debate Is Vital For Black Voters, Says Trump Wants To ‘Return Us To The Days Of Jim Crow’ – Essence

Ahead of Tuesday’s presidential debate, Congresswoman Jasmine Crockett (D-Texas 30th District) is making it clear what’s at stake in this election—especially for Black voters. Recently appointed as a national co-chair for the Harris-Walz 2024 campaign, Crockett is using her platform to draw attention to the stark contrasts between Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump, particularly in how their policies will impact Black communities.

“Tuesday’s debate will provide the American people, and Black voters specifically, yet another opportunity to witness the stark choice in this election,” Crockett declared. “On one side, you have Vice President Kamala Harris, who has delivered historic progress for hardworking people across the country in the form of millions of new jobs created, record high Black unemployment, millions forgiven in student-loan debt directly working to close the racial wealth gap, and more Black Americans with health care coverage now than ever before,” she told ESSENCE. “And you will hear from her a vision for the future of our country too: where Black small businesses succeed, where we are focused on lowering costs for families, and where all of our rights are respected and protected,” she added. 

“Then, we’ll see Donald Trump,” Crockett said, “A failed conman parading as a businessman who has only ever cared about himself.” Her most damning critique centers on Project 2025, a policy agenda spearheaded by conservative think tanks that she believes would have disastrous consequences for Black Americans. “If given the chance, he will cause more harm than good as he seeks to return us to the days of Jim Crow,” she warned.

As ESSENCE has previously reported, Project 2025 is a detailed plan led by the conservative think tank the  Heritage Foundation to reshape the federal government under the next Republican administration. Overall, the  922-page document would increase executive power and roll back several protections for minorities and marginalized groups, including Black people. The plan would eliminate tens of thousands of federal jobs, the Department of Education would be abolished, and undocumented immigrants would be deported in mass numbers, among other policies.

 Trump has tried to distance himself from Project 2025, claiming he doesn’t know anything about it and had nothing to do with it. However, many of Trump’s key allies and former administration officials are writers of Project 2025. 

“He won’t be able to hide from his Project 2025 agenda that specifically takes aim at the Black community,” Crockett said. 

Her recent appointment as a national co-chair for the Harris-Walz campaign places her at the forefront of their fight to block Trump’s return to the White House. In her view, Trump’s lack of accountability and blatant disregard for the struggles of Black Americans stands in sharp contrast to Harris’s grounded, community-oriented leadership.

“One candidate worked at McDonald’s while she was in college at an HBCU,” Crockett said recently when she addressed delegates at the DNC, drawing a sharp comparison between Harris and Trump. “The other was born with a silver spoon in his mouth and helped his daddy in the family business: Housing discrimination. She became a career prosecutor, while he became a career criminal, with 34 felonies, two impeachments, and one porn star to prove it.”

Crockett is encouraging Black voters to tune in and witness the clear differences between the two candidates as the debate draws near. “We will see who the adult is on stage,” she quipped, referencing Trump’s history of erratic debate behavior. Crockett believes the truth will come out—and Project 2025 will be the nail in the coffin for Trump’s appeal to Black voters.