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By Matthew Rusling
WASHINGTON, Aug. 21 (Xinhua) -- U.S. Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump tried to reach out to African Americans this week, but that key demographic is unlikely to cast their ballots for the bombastic billionaire, analysts said.
As African Americans statistically back Democratic candidates in presidential elections, Trump made a speech earlier this week, saying that his Democratic rival Hillary Clinton has neither helped blacks, nor will she ever be able to do so.
But while addressing blacks, Trump did so in front of a mostly white audience.
"I'm asking for the vote of every African-American citizen, struggling in our country today, who wants a different and much better future," he said in front of a mostly white crowd in a speech Tuesday night.
Indeed, the candidate is depending on white, blue-collar men to put him in the White House. And those African Americans who come out to vote are likely to hit the button for Clinton.
Hillary Clinton and her husband and former president Bill Clinton have been viewed over the years as espousing causes important to the black community, and Bill was once referred to by Nobel Prize winning poet Toni Morrison as the nation's "first black president."
Darrell West, vice president and director of governance studies of the Brookings Institution, told Xinhua that Trump is getting very few votes from African Americans and this is not likely to change.
"He doesn't speak their language or take their side on crucial economic issues. He will poll lower with minorities than most recent GOP presidential candidates," he said.
Julian Zelizer, professor of history and public affairs at Princeton University, told Xinhua that African American voters have become very attached to Democrats, in large part because the party has promoted policies from civil rights to economic assistance for the middle class that appeals to them.
"This makes it very difficult...to see how Trump can change the dynamics," he said.
Trump has also not addressed African American or minority groups, nor has he held many rallies in diverse urban areas.
While some on the right have tried to highlight the narrative of Trump "heading to Milwaukee," - a city with a large black population - he gave his address from the town of West Bend, which is 94 percent white, Dan Mahaffee, an analyst with the Center for the Study of the Presidency and Congress, told Xinhua.
"While a GOP candidate could highlight how the status quo has not benefited African Americans, Trump continues to address white supporters about issues facing African Americans rather than reaching out to that community," Mahaffee said.
Christopher Galdieri, assistant professor at Saint Anselm College, told Xinhua that African American voters are crucial to the Democratic electoral coalition, and helped save Clinton's candidacy from former Democratic rival Bernie Sanders.
"So taking a position that brings African Americans to the table is vital for her to maintain good relations with these voters," Galdieri said.
Galdieri added that polling shows that black Trump supporters are few and far between. "Trump appears to be doing worse with these voters than any Republican in fifty years," Galdieri said.
"If you want to win the support of African Americans, the first step needs to be talking to them, not about them," he added.
