| Angela Rye | |
| Birth Date: | 26 October 1979 |
| Birth Place: | Seattle, Washington, U.S. |
| Education: | Holy Names Academy, Seattle |
| Alma Mater: | University of Washington (BA) Seattle Law School (JD) |
| Employer: | N/A |
| Occupation: | Former CNN commentator |
| Party: | Democratic |
Angela Rye (born October 26, 1979) is an American commentator, entrepreneur, and recurring guest on The Breakfast Club radio show. She is also the CEO of IMPACT Strategies, a political advocacy firm, and a special correspondent for ESPN.[1] She was, until November 2020, a liberal political commentator on CNN.
Rye served as the executive director and general counsel to the Congressional Black Caucus for the entirety of the 112th Congress.[2] [3] She formerly served on the boards of the Congressional Black Caucus Institute, Congressional Black Caucus Political Action Committee, Seattle University School of Law Alumni, and Women in Entertainment Empowerment Network.
Rye was born and raised in Seattle, Washington.[4] [5] [6] She graduated from Seattle's all-girls Holy Names Academy, the University of Washington, and Seattle University School of Law.[7]
Rye began her career in legislative advocacy at the National Association for Equal Opportunity in Higher Education, an umbrella association of 120 historically black colleges and universities in the United States.[8]
Upon moving to Washington, D.C., Rye joined IMPACT Strategies, an organization founded prior to her arrival by attorneys Joe Briggs and Kendra Davis Briggs[9] as well as public policy advisor David Johns,[10] who served as director from 2007 to 2013. IMPACT was focused on the economic empowerment, civic engagement, and political involvement of young professionals. The group later invited Rye to help form partnerships with the National Bar Association, Congressional Black Caucus Foundation, National Urban League, Rainbow/PUSH, Congressional Black Caucus Political Education and Leadership Institute, Black Leadership Forum, and other organizations.[11] She also serves as a senior advisor to the Government Technology and Services Coalition and is a member of The Links, Incorporated.[12]
Rye is one of few recurring guests on The Breakfast Club radio show. On December 6, 2016, She was invited by Charlamagne The God (real name Lenard McKelvey) after he received backlash from tweeting that he wished women of color had a platform "like Tomi Lahren did".[13] In January 2017, she made her first appearance on The Breakfast Club and frequented the show regularly, often discussing the Trump administration and other pop culture topics. As of October 2024, Rye continues to serve as a guest host of The Breakfast Club.[14]
She also served as a senior advisor to the House Committee on Homeland security, where she helped develop the general political strategy, focusing on modernizing government contracting practices and assisting small businesses. She then served as the executive director and general counsel to the Congressional Black Caucus for the 112th Congress. During her time as director, she was "tasked with developing the overall legislative and political strategy for the Caucus".[15] Rye left her role at CBC after just over a year.[16]
Rye was a political commentator for CNN, but was released by the network shortly before the 2020 presidential election.[17] In 2022, ESPN announced that Rye was hired as a special correspondent to provide perspective on sports-related matters of race, culture, and social justice issues.[18]
Rye received widespread backlash[19] [20] after she defended podcast co-host Charlamagne Tha God (Lenard McKelvey) against resurfaced rape allegations. She referred to his alleged victim, who was 15 at the time of the assault, as "broke" and "looking for a come-up." Rye insisted publicly on McKelvey's innocence (while citing his personal account of the assault in his 2017 published memoir as the "evidence" exonerating him).[20] Many
advocates have been critical of her repeated attempts to silence and discredit sexual assault victims while claiming that "no physical evidence" connects McKelvey to the incident.[21] [22]
Rye has also argued that statues of George Washington and Thomas Jefferson, like those of Robert E. Lee, should be taken down because they were slave owners.[23]