Big Trouble in Little Saigon

Due to the recent classiness of Republicans in the news, especially those from Orange County, I figure it would be relevant to talk about the upcoming 2010 US House elections regarding California's 47th District. Loretta Sanchez, a "Blue Dog" Democrat, is currently the representative and she will probably continue being so after the election, based on past election results. Still, the Republican Party won't go down without a fight, so why not throw in some Vietnamese dudes into the mix?

So, we've already got Van Tran, about whom Danielle has already written, and as you can see from this OC Register piece, we've now got Quang X. Pham. From the article, it is stated Pham is gaining some ground through the raising of some much-needed funds and Tran has lost a bit of his sparkle from some involvement in a DUI case involving a Westminster Councilmember. (Also from the article, they used a pretty bad photo of Pham, which is cut off below his nose and shows him really pale.)

better looking photo of Pham

So who is this Quang X. Pham? A quick search yields some articles he wrote about war in Iraq and Vietnam and a piece about President Ford shortly after he died. And of course, his campaign site. From the bio, it mentions his history: "Quang 'Q' Pham, 44, is a healthcare entrepreneur, community leader, decorated Marine Corps veteran, and author". Quite an interesting story, if you read the rest of the bio. Very American Dream-y, he and his story are. In fact, he embodies very much what a lot of people think of when they imagine Orange County in their minds. To quote a FiveThirtyEight piece:

unapologetic anti-communism, embrace of the military-industrial complex, strong Christian family values, suburbanization, bootstrap entrepreneurialism, and a fierce resistance to big government, new taxes and the welfare state.

I'm not sure about the Christian values part, but I'm pretty sure about everything else. His chances of doing well in an OC election would be pretty good, except for the fact that the 47th District is one of the more diverse districts, with the number of Democrats actually outnumbering Republicans.

So that sort of paints a picture of who he is, but why should one vote for him? What's he running on? On his site, there's not really a section that talks about a platform with specific issues. Rather, a visitor is given a generic introduction. Let's take a look:

There's a short bio of Pham, and then the line "Now there's a fresh voice and a new choice." Oh dang, I'm totally digging the internal rhyme. +1 right there. Here's the next paragraph:

I joined the Republican Party for its principled stance on less government, lower taxes and sensible and strong national defense. I believe in individual choices, liberty and the right to pursue happiness. I believe in personal responsibility and respect for others.

Nothing to disagree with here (except maybe the part about sensibility). That's the Republican party. The rest are things that are not very controversial, like saying I believe in freedom and democracy and being nice to people. Then, the next two paragraphs are the most interesting, as they have the most content in them. Still, there is not really a clear platform, but just a bit less vagueness.

And, the pièce de résistance, his personal story of overcoming adversity and achieving the American Dream: When I arrived in America as a boy from Vietnam, I had lost my country, my freedom and my father. Yet the American Dream was still attainable. It took dedication, encouragement, hard work and perseverance. And it can still be done. We need leaders who will emphasize self-sufficiency and who will inspire others to seek opportunities--not just government handouts.

If he can do it, why can't everyone else? Come on people, jeez! This is a simple sufficient-necessary relationship. If you work hard, then you'll achieve the American Dream. Thus, the contrapositive follows as true: if you did not achieve the American Dream, then you did not work hard. Simple as that, no other factors like structural inequalities or institutional barriers. [side note: too much sarcasm and too much LSAT studying make my head hurt.]

[Edit: the inverse of this had me thinking for awhile. One could say if you have achieved the American Dream, then you've worked hard. I guess it makes sense like that, but too many people do the reverse and that is how you get to the conclusion of people blaming others for their failures or non-realizations of whatever it is the American Dream is.]

Even Craig Nelson (Mr. Incredible hisself) knows what's up: "I've been on food stamps and welfare, anybody help me out? No. No." You think about that.

And... I'll just leave it at that. Before I'm down though, I wanted to share this endearing clip of Loretta Sanchez during the 2008 DNC. Yeah, she's definitely gonna be re-elected.

Questions? Comments? Concerns? Criticisms?

to get nominated

so a while ago i wrote a blog that did a little roastin' of our Vietnamese Congressman.

however, yesterday a colleague of mine from new orleans shared with us a one on one conversation he had with cao about how things are going.

cao basically told him that because the district is so heavily democractic, the primary election is fierce. Also, since the district is so heavily black, in order to even get nominated through the democratic party in louisiana's second district, you needed to be from the black community.

this implied that cao may have run for office under the republican party because it was simply easier to win that nomination.

explains why the the GOP didn't really support him very much during the campaign.

reminds me student politics and how in order to be nominated through calserve was actually a really difficult process.

i wonder if this is true.

cao is actually really good on a few things like immigration and human rights. the only thing i'm concerned about is reproductive rights. Also, his vote on the stimulus package wasn't so great (he argues he didn't have enough time to read over).

so what does this mean for us and for our community?

is this strategic?

is this selling out?


any thoughts?

Vietnamese Refugee Day

Dear Congressman Anh "Joseph" Cao:

First and foremost, I would like to congratulate you on your many accomplishments this year. Not only are the highest ranked Vietnamese American elected official and first Vietnamese American elected to service in our fine country's Congress, you are a Republican that has been elected to represent a predominantly Democratic district of Louisiana.

In fact, you’re the first Republican to be elected to represent the Second District of Louisiana since 1891.

While some may argue that your victory only occurred due to very rare circumstances, such as running against a Democratic candidate marred by controversy and low voter turn out as a result of Hurricane Gustav, I still take great pride that someone who is sometimes called a community organizer, has advocated for the rights of immigrants and refugees, and whose family was also torn apart by the war in Southeast Asia, has accomplished such things.

I only wish that you were able to see these connections between you and me that I see so clearly.

I actually had the amazing opportunity to meet you in March at the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus (CAPAC) event to welcome newly elected Asian and Pacific Americans to CAPAC. I commend your effort to be bi-partisan and join a heavily Democratic Caucus – making CAPAC the only bi-partisan Congressional caucus based on race.

When you admitted that you “may be a closet Democrat,” I wished you were telling the truth instead of just cracking a joke.

I know you’ve been faced with some obstacles since joining office, especially with concerns from your constituents regarding the economic stimulus package, but I’m glad that you are trying to build those bridges. I mean, seeing that your first piece of legislation passed unanimously, I guess you can say that you’ve definitely build some bi-partisan bridges in Congress.

However, how about those bridges that exist in your district? Does this piece of legislation address the concerns of your constituents in your district?

I think voting for the economic stimulus package might have.

How about those bridges that exist in our community?

I can take a hint. You’ve gone and drawn the line very clearly between you and me.

Regardless, I’m happy to see that you’re using your POWER – as the first Vietnamese American to serve in the US Congress – and PRIVILEGE – as a product of the main Viet Nam War and not just a product of one of the satellite wars – to empower and bring voice to YOUR community.

I only hope that one day… I will be able to have the same power and privilege to do something as honorable as H.Res. 342.

However, when I say similar, I mean similarly honorable but not similarly narrow, exclusive, self-centered, and self-serving.

Love&Solidarity,
Monica