Roundtable Speakers Spotlight Asian American Vote

Los Angeles, CA — On the heels of a riveting Super Tuesday, Gov. Michael Dukakis and five prominent leaders distilled and debated the 2008 election at the Asian American Action Fund's Presidential Roundtable. Asian American Action Fund and the international law firm of Sonnenschein Nath & Rosenthal hosted the Roundtable. The discussion, which was covered by a Los Angeles television station, can be viewed from the AAA-Fund's dynamic websiteat www.aaa-fund.org.

Segment 1 Summary: Humorous and gently self-deprecating, Governor Dukakis speaks about reforming the presidential nominating process, the role of precinct-based grassroots organizing, and Mitt Romney. With a flashback to 1988, the Governor apologizes for not "beating the old man", enabling "the kid" to subject us to "the worst national administration we've ever lived under." Admitting that he has "no idea" who will win the competitive race for Democratic nominee, the Governor offers two ideas for reforming the nominating process: (1) reforming the Electoral College by instituting a national popular vote, and (2) conducting six regional Presidential primaries. The Governor believes that organizing all precincts nationwide is key to succeeding in November.  see more videos

The Roundtable's distinguished speakers spanned the political and professional spectrum: 1988 Presidential Nominee Michael Dukakis, also a UCLA Public Policy Professor and former Governor of Massachusetts; Judy Chu, Chair of the California Board of Equalization and former California Assemblymember; Darry Sragow, longtime Democratic strategist and Sonnenschein partner; Allan Hoffenblum, publisher of California Target Book and longtime Republican strategist; Charlie Woo, CEO of Megatoys and Founder/Chair of the Center for Asian Americans United for Self-Empowerment (CAUSE); and Gautam Dutta, Executive Director of the Asian American Action Fund and former Tax Counsel to now-State Controller John Chiang.

"We thank Gov. Dukakis, Equalization Chair Chu, Darry Sragow, Charlie Woo and Allan Hoffenblum for taking the time to share their insights. We especially thank the Sonnenschein law firm and its partner James Hsu for making our Roundtable possible," said AAA-Fund Executive Director Gautam Dutta.

The Roundtable covered a number of topics, particularly the role of Asian Americans in California's Presidential primary. On Super Tuesday, Sen. Clinton decisively won California because Asian Americans voted for her over Sen. Obama by a margin of three to one. One of seven Californians is Asian American.

While Chair Chu has endorsed Clinton, Woo has endorsed Obama (AAA-Fund will not make a pre-primary, Presidential endorsement). Significantly, Chu, Woo and Dutta agreed on one major reason why Clinton won the Asian American vote: her campaign had acted quickly to successfully secure the early endorsements of key APA leaders.

AAA-Fund California Chair Marybelle C. Ang observed: "The Roundtable was inspiring on several fronts ­ the balanced and insightful perspectives of our guest speakers, their thoughts on reforming and navigating our political processes and the discussion of the present and future dynamics of California voters."

Videos of the Roundtable are available on YouTube.

The AAA-Fund 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 information, please contact Marybelle C. Ang at asianamfund AT gmail.com or 323.550.8266.