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Los Angeles, CA, Dec. 6, 2007 — An all-star cast of Asian American leaders energized the audience at the AAA-Fund's Presidential Candidates Forum. Afterwards, Sen. Barack Obama won the Forum's Presidential Straw Poll.
AAA-Fund — which will not make a pre-primary endorsement — invited every Democratic Presidential campaign to the Forum. Three candidates responded: Sen. Hillary Clinton, Sen. Barack Obama, and Gov. Bill Richardson. In addition, Eric Bauman, Chair of the Los Angeles County Democratic Party, delivered opening remarks.
Each speaker brought a unique perspective to the Forum. Clinton speaker Judy Chu, Vice Chair of the California Board of Equalization, is California's highest ranking elected Asian American woman; she previously served as Chair of the California Assembly's Appropriations Committee. Obama speaker Wilma Chan, the former Majority Leader of the California Assembly, is seeking to become the first Asian American woman to serve in the California State Senate. In 2006, Richardson speaker S.R. Sidarth shot a video in which former Sen. George Allen mocked Sidarth because of his skin color — galvanizing Asian Americans and Democrats to defeat Allen, elect Sen. Jim Webb, and retake the U.S. Senate.
"We thank Sen. Hillary Clinton, Sen. Barack Obama, and Gov. Bill Richardson for sending their top representatives to our Forum," said Gautam Dutta, AAA-Fund Executive Director. "We also thank LA Democratic Chair Eric Bauman for joining us," he added.
Chu, Chan, and Sidarth addressed a wide range of issues, including Iran, Iraq, healthcare, immigration, and commitment to diversity. Chu remarked that she joined the Clinton campaign largely because Sen. Clinton was the first Presidential candidate to launch an Asian American outreach program.
Chan noted Sen. Obama's personal ties to the Asian American community: he grew up in Indonesia and Hawai'i, and his sister is Asian American. Sidarth announced that Gov. Richardson favors a Constitutional amendment to allow naturalized citizens to run for President (two-thirds of Asian Americans are foreign-born).
"All three speakers were highly knowledgeable on the issues, and made a compelling case for their candidates," said AAA-Fund California Chair Marybelle C. Ang. "We wish their candidates well," she added.
Following the Forum, guests participated in the AAA-Fund's Presidential Straw Poll, in which voters ranked their first, second, and third choices. Sen. Obama won the Straw Poll, with 71 percent of first-choice votes. Sen. Clinton finished second, with 23 percent of first-choice votes. (Sen. Clinton and Gov. Richardson led the field in second-choice votes, with 34 percent and 24 percent, respectively.)
The Forum and Straw Poll were held at the acclaimed East West Players Theater in Los Angeles' historic Little Tokyo. The AAA-Fund thanks the following friends and sponsors: Korean American Democratic Committee, Edwin Chau, Daniel M. Mayeda, Dan & Jay Kim, Amy Ghosh, Kumar Jawa, Mark Nguyen, Michael Lew, Bakul & Niru Parmar, Ron Wong, Gautam Dutta, Marybelle C. Ang, and East West Players Theater.
The AAA-Fund (aaa-fund.org) is a national Democratic political organization whose goal is to increase the voice of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders (AAPIs) in local, state and federal government, by encouraging AAPIs to volunteer on campaigns, raise money for candidates, and run for political office.
For more info, contact: Marybelle C. Ang, Esq. at camang AT stanfordalumni.org
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