Kanwal Rekhi comes out swinging against Honda.
By Deepak Chitnis
WASHINGTON, DC: Indian American community leaders in the San Francisco Bay Area have called on Congressman Mike Honda and a Political Action Committee (PAC) to stop sending flyers in the mail that disparage Democratic opponent Ro Khanna.
Last week, Honda was accused of conspiring with a PAC called Working for Us, sending out literature to constituents in California’s 17th Congressional District saying that Khanna was outsourcing jobs unfairly and would not help bring economic growth to the region, despite his promises.
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While Honda’s involvement with the scheme has remained unconfirmed, Working for Us is certainly the one sending the mailers, and is known to be a key donor to the Honda campaign. The mailer says that Khanna will reduce taxes for corporations that send jobs overseas, and will also cut taxes for the wealthy, and is allegedly being used to put down Khanna and also prop up Republican Vanila Singh, to ease the road to re-election for Honda.
“With so many good-paying American jobs getting shipped to other countries, Ro Khanna maintains that outsourcing is good for the American economy,” says the mailer. “That’s just not right for working families.”
Now, Indian American community leaders in the Bay Area have rallied to Khanna’s support, telling Honda to stop the dirty politics and, even more so, stop lying about what Khanna plans to do about bringing jobs and economic strength to Silicon Valley.
“[We are] appalled to see the campaign mailer that was sent out to voters in the 17th district by the Working for Us [PAC],” says the letter. This is the crudest form of racially coded language.”
The letter goes on to say “The intentional association of an Indian American and outsourcing to gin up fear and hatred is deplorable and unacceptable – especially in the heart of Silicon Valley. It is sad to see it coming in support of your campaign Congressman; you and your family suffered much from racial hatred during the Second World War.”
Finally, the letter concludes by saying “I implore you to disassociate yourself from such dirty tricks. These tactics should have no place in the political discourse in this meritocratic district where Indian Americans have contributed so much.”
The open letter is signed by four individuals: Kanwal Rekhi, Anil Godwhani, Kamil Hasan, and Talat Hasan. Rekhi is the co-founder of The Indus Entrepreneurs (TiE), a non-profit organization consisting of some of the most successful South Asian-origin business owners in America.
The other three are all co-founders of the India Community Center, which was founded in Milpitas in 2003 to “promote Indian culture and values by providing social, cultural, recreational and community programs, thereby uniting the Indian community, and raising awareness about Indian culture in the local community.”
In spite of the backlash against the tactic, however, Working for Us is sending out a new mailer, again claiming that Khanna supports outsourcing jobs away from Silicon Valley. The new mailer has just begun getting sent out, with the Khanna camp decrying the tactic and joining the chorus of voicing telling the PAC and, by association, Honda, to put it to an end.
California’s top-two primary system means that the two candidates with the most votes, regardless of party affiliation, make it through. If it was just one Democrat and one Republican, Honda would comfortably be through to the general election (even now, he still is). But Khanna’s strong fundraising and support from Silicon Valley make him a serious threat, despite the fact that Honda has maintained a strong lead throughout.
The California primary races are tomorrow, June 3, which will be judgment day to see if Khanna makes it through and what effect, if any, the Working for Us mailers have had on the race. The general midterm elections will be on Tuesday, November 4.