Asian American Voice Is Heard in Philadelphia
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Asian Americans Rally at GOP Convention

2000 Republican National Convention Coverage

By Sam Chu Lin

Many of the delegates who attended the Republican National Convention in Philadelphia kicked off the week of politicking with plenty of enthusiasm. With George W. Bush leading in most of the polls, the “sweet smell of success” was in the air, given the anticipation of victory for the Texas governor.

The convention played out like a big party filled with rallies, barbeques and fireworks, and climaxed with Bush’s grand entry alongside his running mate, Dick Cheney.

Joseph Kung, a delegate from Diamond Bar, Calif., attracted media attention at the convention by affixing Bush stickers all over his body. photo by Sam Chu Lin.

Many Asian Pacific American Republicans joined the celebration. Joseph Kung, a Chinese American delegate from Diamond Bar, Calif., attracted plenty of media attention, wearing a costume decorated with Bush’s campaign stickers. Raising both hands like a boxing champion, he credited Bush for uniting the party.

“We’re tired of being trashed, and Governor Bush offers the best hope for all of us,” he said. “If Gore wins, that means another eight years with the Democrats.”

With so much optimism in the air, APIs attending the convention seized the opportunity to bring more attention to the accomplishments and contributions of the API community, and to urge the party to appoint more Asian Pacific Islanders to top federal government posts.

“Asian Americans have made so many contributions to this country in the arts, medicine, science and many other areas,” Marina Tse, a delegate from Los Angeles, said. “When Bush becomes president, I would like to know how he is going to recognize this. Hopefully this will be done through more appointments.”

Tse said Asian Americans are also organizing on a grassroots level to register and get out the vote. “We want to deliver that vote, but we also need the RNC’s help with money and staff.”

At a banquet attended by Asian Pacific American delegates, former California state treasurer and U.S. Senatorial candidate Matt Fong called attention to President Clinton’s recent nomination of Norman Mineta as commerce secretary and remarked that Mineta’s appointment and confirmation would also be used as campaign ammunition to attract the API vote.

“This current president in the 23rd hour put Norman Mineta in as commerce secretary,” Fong said. “I’m very grateful for that, even though it’s the very last hour. But he has masked one thing that we should be putting pressure on and that is we still have Wen Ho Lee in solitary confinement.”

Fong criticized the president and U.S. Attorney General Janet Reno for their “double standard” in the treatment of Wen Ho Lee versus former CIA director John Deutch, who also allegedly downloaded classified material.

“So when our friends in the Democratic Party say, ‘What a great thing that President Clinton has done for Asian Americans, raise the issue of due process and that our own scientist Wen Ho Lee is not being treated fairly or equally,” Fong said.

In another meeting, the coalition of Republican API delegates were asked to respond in a show of hands if they thought an Asian American should be considered for a cabinet post in a Bush administration. Everyone’s hands shot up.

Serenety Hanley, director of coalitions for the party, acknowledged during a question and answer session that “there is definitely a disparity as far as who is represented, but I think by being aware of that is the first step of doing something about it.”

John Tsu, California Asian Pacific American coordinator for the Republican Party, quickly pointed out that former President Bush, the Texas governor’s father, had appointed many Chinese Americans and other APIs to high-ranking positions in his administration. Tsu added he was confident that George W. would do no less.

“When George W. Bush became governor of Texas,” Tsu declared, “he appointed a large number of Asian Americans. When he becomes president, he would like to see Asian Americans hold high positions of great responsibility in elected and appointed offices. He is against discrimination in our society.”

At a banquet put together for the API delegates, Congressman Tom Campbell of San Jose, Calif., and the GOP challenger for U.S. Senator Dianne Feinstein’s office, also brought up the subject of political racism in his own remarks.

“I have been saddened by the fact that in the last several years there have been political opportunities seized by those who would try to deny Asian Americans the right to participate in our political system,” he said. “Newspapers have gone down the list of contributors to campaigns and selected Asian sounding names. I say to those reporters, ‘Those are American names.’ Those are not Asian sounding names.”

During the week, the Bush campaign organized around a recurring theme of party unity. According to several delegates, there was an internal struggle as to who should lead the API coalition, but the Bush organization made it clear that it is calling the shots: No wrangling between ethnic factions will be publicly permitted.

The party’s platform was presented on a silver platter with almost something for everyone. Still, the APIs pushed for their own agendas and put together a list of resolutions and priorities they thought were important to their respective communities.

Among the many issues that were considered, the API coalition called on the party to adopt a resolution demanding that the federal government provide fairer treatment and due process of law regarding the prosecution of Wen Ho Lee for allegedly mishandling nuclear secrets. The group also asked that there be a shorter waiting period to reunite immigrant families, and that there be an increase in the number of H-B1 visas for high-tech workers to come to this country.

Manny Wong, a delegate from Phoenix, Ariz., called on Governor Bush and his campaign organization to lend more support to APIs seeking public office and to give them their endorsement. Without mentioning the Lee controversy or campaign scandals by name, some people thought Wong was inferring that the party had been avoiding some contact with Asian Pacific Americans.

“I definitely believe that there are some bridges that have to be repaired between the Republican Party and the Asian community,” said Hanley. “I think there was a great relationship at one point, but unfortunately it has become a little frayed and I’m looking forward to this department helping to repair that relationship.”

Regarding education, the Asian American coalition called on the Republican Party to lead the way in encouraging universities to eliminate “maximum quotas on admissions of ethnic Asians and Pacific Islanders.” The API delegates pointed out that qualified Asian Pacific American students were being disqualified solely because of race.

The Asian Pacific Islander coalition also called on the Republican Party to support stronger laws to fight hate crimes. In the area of business, it reminded everyone the GOP is the party of equal rights and equal opportunity.

The API delegates requested that Asian Pacific Americans have the same opportunities as other minorities to win government contracts and also that Asian and Pacific American firms be included in the Minority and Small Business programs. The coalition also asked that the party reaffirm its commitment to the “financial security, physical well-being, and quality of life of older Americans including Asian Pacific Americans.”

As one political observer on scene put it, “It’s now up to the political leadership of the Asian Pacific Americans in the Republican Party to register more voters and to get out that vote. Winning elections is the kind of language that generates results.”