The Asian Conservative

I recently started a discussion at Rebuildtheparty.com on minorities in the GOP.  It has been quite interesting to see the responses from grassroots participants looking to fundamentally shift the coarse of the Republican party.  If you are a member of Rebuildtheparty I encourage you to stop by and give the discussion your two cents.  You’ll find a rather insightful discussion with some real people looking to solve this issue.

Aside from the participation there, I want to bring the same topic over to The AsianConservative to see what kind of responses we can generate.  I look forward to your comments.

Let’s talk about minorities. As the last election clearly showed, there are few minorities in the GOP, which is shameful. There is simply no excuse why Blacks, Asians, Hispanics, Native Americans, and other groups don’t have strong representation within the GOP. How can we fix this? What can we do to help the conservative cause among Minorities?

ryan Uncategorized Asian American, Asian Conservative, Asian Conservatives, Asian Republicans, GOP, Minority Conservatives, Minority Politics, Minority Republicans, Republican

I noticed an Asian man standing behind Barack Obama and Family a few times on TV. Mostly while President Obama watched the never-ending Inaugural Parade from his viewing booth.

It definitely was not Department of Energy head Steven Chu nor do I think it was VA head Eric Shinseki because this guy looks younger. Anyway, if he’s part of Obama’s administration that’s a good sign: Asians, whether conservative or liberal, are getting a foothold in U.S. Politics

Who is this guy? Is he a politician?

Eric Shinseki head of Dept of VA

Also: I’m not a big poetry fan but did anyone else think that the Poet (Elizabeth Alexander) at the end was weak? Robert Frost or Maya Angelou she is not.

jeff Events, People Asian American, Obama Inauguration

While we’re a bit late in reporting this, having just discovered that untested Republican opponent - Anh “Joseph” Cao, unseated nine-term Democrat U.S. Representative William Jefferson brings a promise and a smile to us here at the Asian Conservative.  We’re looking forward to following Representative Cao and what the future may hold.

ryan Events Asian American, asian congressman, Vietnamese Conservative, Vietnamese Republican

The current scene of Asian Pacific Americans in Congress is 100% left of center. Not only is this lopsided but also surprising, considering that the total number of representation is minuscule. To this date, only the states of California, Hawaii, Virginia, and Louisiana have now or at one time or another had Asian representation in Congress. This number totals twenty-two and historically has been represented by the Democratic Party.

Our current representation holds at 6 in Congress. Current Democratic Senators such as Daniel Inouye and Daniel Akaka of Hawaii or Democratic House Representatives such as Norman Mineta, Mike Honda, and Doris Matsui of California, David Wu of Oregon, Robert C. Scott of Virginia, and Mazie Hirono of Hawaii.

Conservatively, our legislators consist of Jay Kim of California and former Representative and now governor of Louisiana Bobby Jindal.

While I prefer a stronger conservative base, the miniscule number of representation is surprising. Especially considering the Asian population densities in areas such as Nevada, Washington, Texas, and Florida. The Nevada Asian population is over 88,000 and growing, The state of Washington counts over 447,000, Conservative Texas with a whopping 920,000, and swing state Florida counting over 360,000. These numbers should tell us that if united properly, a constituency could be activated for conservative Asian politics to flourish. And, that with the recent election of Governor Bobby Jindal, in the southern state of Louisiana, hope should be given that an even playing field exists for a new generation of Asian Americans to practice public service.

ryan Policy Asian American, asian congressman, Asian Conservative, Asian Conservatives, Asian Republicans, Conservative, GOP, Minority Conservatives, Public office, Republican

According to a New York Times article from 12/9/2008, minorities now account for 50% of the population in the largest U.S. Cities and percentages continue to grow broadly across small towns and suburbs. This being the case, Asian conservatives should strive to increase the public’s awareness of Asian opinion. Minorities have a growing voice in the United States and it is imperative that Asian Americans (especially Asian Conservatives) be recognized as an influential force among the voting public.

In the 2008 elections for instance, California witnessed the impact minority voters imparted on public policy. In particular the voter ballot for Proposition 8: whether or not gay marriage should be banned in California. A “yes” on Prop 8 was against gay marriage, a “no” on Prop 8 was in favor of gay marriage. During the 2008  elections the popular media obsessed over “the Black vote” and the “Latino vote” because these two minorities groups historically have low voter turnouts. In contrast to past elections minorities came out in droves to vote — mostly for Obama.  These “new” (or renewed) voters had a decisive impact on the fate of Proposition 8 because both groups overwhelmingly voted in favor of Proposition 8 - consequently banning Gay marriage in California.

The important point here is not approval of Gay marriage. Rather, the outcome that the United States and American media heard in the voices of Black and Latino communities via their ballots. America now knows that these two constituencies have the power to sway a vote. A power that I previously wouldn’t have assumed. Asian conservatives (and Asians in general) should strive to achieve similar recognition in other public endeavors.

My intent as a member of this AsianConservative.com is to get people interested in  and aware of the Asian conservative opinion. I encourage public servants, advertisers, American media,  Mayors, Governors, Congressmen, and Presidents to think to themselves “What do Asian Conservatives in America think of this?”

jeff Policy Asian American, Asian Conservative, Asian Conservatives, Asian Democrats, Asian Liberals, Asian Republicans, GOP, Minority Conservatives, Republican