Politics: LL Cool J supports NY Governor (R)

AKA2D '91 · #1 09-29-2002, 03:51 PM

Instead of supporting a candidate (who happens to be AA), LL supports a Republican non-AA. I'm sure many would like to discuss this.

WHO KNEW? LL COOL J LEANS TO THE RIGHT: Rapper/actor decides to back incumbent NY Governor.

LL Cool J
(Sep. 27, 2002) *Politically speaking, we can put James Tood Smith, er, LL Cool J in the Republican column. Yesterday, after registering to vote, he announced his support for incumbent New York governor, George Pataki in his bid for a third term against Democratic challenger H. Carl McCall.
"The world that I come from, a lot of people aren't interested in politics," Uncle L said. "But after seeing how the governor handled the 9-11 situation, seeing what happened in this city ... I decided, you know what? I'm going to vote; I'm going to register."

It's worth noting that Russell Simmons, who created the label LL records for, Def Jam, along with Puffy Combs, has thrown his support to McCall.

You may wondering why LL isn't following Russell & P. Diddy in supporting McCall, a black man who mounting a serious challenge to Pataki.

"It's not about parties, it's not about race, it's not about what's cool or not cool, it's about action and it's about people stepping up," LL said.

And of course Pataki is just thrilled to have LL's endorsement. He said he was a fan of Cool J's and considered the rapper a good role model.

RedefinedDiva · #2 09-29-2002, 07:42 PM

I don't know what is going on with LL. I think that Pataki may have slid him a 10 spot or something!

It does sound crazy that after ALL these years he has just decided to vote and become interested in politics. There is definitely more to this story.

He does have the right to vote for whomever he chosses, even if it's not the "favored" candidate. But why now....?

legacypbs · #3 09-29-2002, 08:53 PM

What this shows is as black people we now look at more than color and party affiliation when making decisions. I think this is a good thing.

Jody · #4 10-01-2002, 07:11 PM

Since you asked for opinions... Just a little food for thought when people make BLANKET statements about political parties, remember Republicans freed the slaves, Southern Democrats used force to keep black people from voting and getting a better education. (ole' Miss- James Meredith and Little Rock come to mind)

Parties are really unimportant, I'm happy that at least, with his public support of a Republican, black people will begin to look at the issues instead of just supporting a political party. When we look at presidential appointments, Condalizza, Colin and Ron Paige aren't tokens!!!!

straightBOS · #5 10-03-2002, 03:47 PM

Although I was elated that LL had actually registered to vote and that he was backing a conservative candidate, I was disappointed with his reasoning. Although 9-11 will always be considered a turning point in US history, it should not be used as the sole reason to throw support behind a candidate.

I hope LL has taken some time after this announcement to fully evaluate the record of Pataki and become more informed about his decision. Until then, no matter what party we choose, we can still be misled by smoke and mirrors.

Love_Spell_6 · #6 10-04-2002, 04:14 PM

Whatever LL wants to do is fine with me.........especially after seeing his latest video!!!!!!!

........Can u say SIX PACK?? oH LAWD !!

Soulful Soror · #7 10-04-2002, 06:35 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by straightBOS
I was disappointed with his reasoning. Although 9-11 will always be considered a turning point in US history, it should not be used as the sole reason to throw support behind a candidate.

I heard that another reason L decided to support Geo Pataki is because he promised to provide housing of some sort in L's neighborhood & kept that promise. Candidates that keep promise are tops in my book. Besides, something about McCall strikes my in the wrong way. He was dishing some serious dirt on Cuomo (before he stepped down)..now, he's got an ad talking about how Pataki & his supporters are playing "dirty politics". (He can dish it out, but can't take it back??)....Anyway, in my hometown everybody (us, that is) voted for the "favored" candidate who is a black man...they've regretted it ever since...and, he's pretty much sealed the fate of my hometown to not have another black mayor for a long while after he finally gets out...