Charlamagne tha God delivered a message directly to presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden on Wednesday’s episode of The Late Show, urging the former vice president to step up his efforts to reach the black community.
Asked by host Stephen Colbert what he thought about Biden’s speech in Philadelphia this week on racial injustice, Charlamagne tha God replied that he was impressed—but wanted to hear more.
“He was talking the way he needs to talk to win this election,” he said. “Because right now, it just seems like he’s expecting Trump to lose. But you got to play to win. Because a lot of us still don’t know how Trump won in 2016. We just know that there were 4.4 million registered voters who showed up in 2012 but didn’t show up in 2016, and a third of them are black. So there’s no guarantee they’re going to show up this year. So you really have to give them a reason to show up. That’s why I keep saying, ‘VP Biden, really lean into blackness.’”
Biden has been a frequent guest on The Late Show, and just last month sat down with Colbert for a lengthy interview—knowledge Charlamagne tha God had at the ready on Wednesday. “I know he watches your show,” Charlamagne tha God said. “So if he’s watching, he needs to know that if Barack Obama was JFK, then Joe Biden needs to be Lyndon B. Johnson. He has the opportunity to be as progressive as Lyndon B. Johnson. Lyndon B. Johnson may have been labeled a racist, but his record doesn’t reflect that. Lyndon B. Johnson’s record shows that he has a very progressive record on race and class, and we need Joe Biden to be that kind of civil rights hero. Right now, this moment calls for it. We need that kind of radical legislative change.”
Those comments echo similar remarks Charlamagne tha God made during an interview with CNN this week. On Tuesday, while comparing Biden’s potential time in the White House to Johnson’s term, the radio host added, “I think, you know, Biden’s record in the Senate actually reflects very racist legislation, but he has a chance to correct that by doing right by black people.”
Last month, Biden was criticized for saying during an interview with Charlamagne tha God that “if you have a problem figuring out whether you’re for me or Trump, then you ain’t black.” Biden later apologized for his remark, saying, in part, “I was much too cavalier. I know that the comments have come off like I was taking the African-American vote for granted, but nothing could be further from the truth. I’ve never, ever done that and I’ve earned it every time I’ve run.”