The Republican National Committee says attracting minorities is its "number one priority." And its major focus, reports the Los Angeles Times, is on African American clergy. Republicans are bringing pastors to Washington and are visiting others. "Of course I know the Republican Party has an objective and an agenda," Frank Stewart of L.A.'s Zoe Christian Center tells the paper. "But I don't think that's negative." Boston's Eugene Rivers and L.A.'s Charles E. Blake are among black clergy who feel taken for granted by Democrats. "It's really coming down to the black preachers versus the black Democrats," Rivers told The New York Times.

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Articles referenced above include:

Some Black Pastors See New Aid Under Bush – The New York Times (Feb. 2, 2001)