During an event honoring Black History Month, a former NFL player seemingly lost all recollection of Barack Obama and called Donald Trump the country's "first Black president."

"Mr. President, I don't mean to interrupt, but I've got to say this because it's Black History Month. Man, you the first Black president," Jack Brewer said.

On Thursday, President Trump held a roundtable in the White House Cabinet Room with a number of his Black supporters including Candace Owens, online personalities Diamond and Silk and Martin Luther King Jr.'s niece Alveda King.

Brewer, now an ordained minister, is a well-known Trump supporter and frequently appears on Fox News to discuss his avid love of the president.

After Brewer made the comment, the room erupted in applause as Trump smiled and egged them on.

“You’ve changed me. You touched me. And you made my work go to another level. You inspire me. And every time I go into those prisons and I ask my guys how many of them had their sentences reduced and they raise their hands, I know I’m doing God’s work and I thank you for that,” Brewer said.

Ex-NFL player declares Trump "first black president" https://t.co/zUgYowv97g
pic.twitter.com/A1wbEp14uo

— The Hill (@thehill) February 28, 2020

The event is part of a recent push by Trump to increase his support among the Black community which polls show hovers around 8% reports Fox News. The president, however, thinks his approval rate should be much higher.

"The African American poverty rate has plummeted to the lowest level in the history of our country," Trump said, according to the Washington Examiner. "These are good numbers. I don’t know. I mean, I should be at 100%, I hate to tell you, right?"

A recent survey from BlackPAC found that 77% of Black people think Trump is a racist, and dozens of polls show that most Black Americans plan to vote for any of the Democratic candidates over the president in the next election, NBC News reported.

His low approval numbers with Black Americans haven't stopped him from taking steps to shore up support with the community.

The Trump campaign faced accusations this week that they were trying to outright buy Black votes through self-proclaimed "Black Voices for Trump Community Centers" in 15 majority Black cities across the country.

We’re going where no other Republican campaigns have gone before and are excited to announce our new Black Voices for Trump Community Center—can’t win the vote without meeting people where they are!

Read more about our announcement here: https://t.co/di8uhAEHB6
pic.twitter.com/BasQOsD7Rl

— Black Voices for Trump (@BlackVoices4DJT) February 26, 2020

Last week Donald Sherman, deputy director of Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics In Washington, raised concerns about money being paid to Black pastors and other high-profile supporters that may violate campaign finance rules.

"First, it seems like the president suggested that the scholarship for Janiyah Davis was part of a government program. But then we found out that it was paid for by the personal charity of one of his employees. We're also interested to see whether the Department of Education officials were used in facilitating this donation because then it makes it seem like they are actually grant officers for the secretary's personal charity," Sherman told PBS.

"In addition, the Urban Revitalization Coalition event is particularly troubling, one, because this is supposed to be a nonpartisan 501(c)(3) charitable organization. And engaging in political activity, like voter registration drives aimed at upping African American participation for the president, would violate IRS regulations for charitable organizations," Sherman added.

Katrina Pierson, senior adviser to the Trump campaign, later admitted to PBS reporter Yamiche Alcindor that "even if this was part of the campaign, this looks like it would be illegal."

Sherman also told PBS that Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington has filed a complaint with the Department of Justice against Trump's daughter Ivanka for her role with the Opportunity Zones program. Her husband, Jared Kushner, "has a $25 million stake in a company that is packaging investment vehicles through the Opportunity Zone program," Sherman noted.

After the event, Trump also faced criticism for referring to Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren as "Pocahontas," which is considered offensive to Native Americans. Trump has frequently used the racial slur to refer to the presidential candidate, mocking her initial claims of having Native American heritage.

Jack-Brewer

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