When it comes to the US elections this year, you get a sense that for most people it's a done deal: A democrat is going to win the Presidency this year. And while we can always count on the democrats to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory-the Clinton/Obama brawl anyone?- let's just be pessimists and submit to the idea that McCain will lose this election, and the republicans- with their brand's reputation and fundraising is at an all times low- will further lose the house and the Senate. Fine, so are they done for for the next 8 years then? Not bloody likely, and mainly because of their newest star politician: Bobby Jindal.
For those of you who don't know him, Jindal is the republican governor of Louisiana and a 36 year old Indian-American. The fact that they are polishing his image right now (some are even going as far as calling him "the next Reagan") with some even dropping hints of his being a VP to McCain, means that someone is thinking ahead in the republican party, and whomever that Lone-worlf is, he is a goddamn Genius. If McCain ran with Jindal as his running mate, a revolution will take place in the american political climate, and it could even affect this current race and tilt it to the republican favor. What am I talking about? I am talking about the entrance of the Indian Immigrant population into the political fray, and how it would change everything.
You see, the american desi population usually stays out of politics, choosing to rather to keep to themselves and concentrate on their work on families. There are millions of them, the majority of which have Upper-middle class life-style, they are capitalists by nature, they have a heavy emphasis on traditional family values in the culture, and complete haters of the illegal immigrant population. In a sense, they are the republican dream voting bloc, and yet not a single politician ever courted them.
Enter Jindal: Young, good looking Indian from both parents, a success story by both American and immigrant Indian standards, all in all a source of pride for the Desi community at large. And if the Desi blogs in America are any indication, THEY LOVE HIM. His candidacy for VP would be a source of pride to the Indian Community, and would politically mobilize this rich but usually apathetic voting population. Not to mention, it would beat the whole "republicans are racist" meme, with them taking on a distinctively non-white population that doesn't suffer a history of opression in the US and who actually love that country. If they come out for him, and they would, the US political equation will be unbalanced irrevocably. The republicans would in effect be saying to the Democrats: "Oh, you got that black vote now, didja? Good! Keep them. Enjoy their campaign contributions. Oh wait, they rarely donate, don't they? Well, we got us the Indian votes, and boy do they have deep pockets. Suckaaaaas!"
The republicans should make McCain to pick Jindal even if it costs the earlier to lose the election, because that would be the perfect way to introduce Jindal to the american political stage and getting his name known. If they start having him on TV as their candidate for VP, making him the focus of the party the way the Democrats did with Obama, with the prospects of nominating him for President in 4 years, then they just locked themselves the indian vote and support throughout the coming two elections at least. Not something to laugh at.
Add to that the geopolitical ramification of a Jindal presidency: He would very likely bring India and the US closer together, forming an alliance that would be crucial for the survival of the US as a world power for the coming decades. The Chinese are becoming too big for the US to keep back on their own, and the Russians- aided by Venezuela, North Korea, Iran and every other despotic regime in the world- are too busy finding new ways to stab the US in the back, while the Europeans "allies" are being useless as usual, with half of them wishing to see the day where "the US is humbled", just like they are. An Alliance with India- given their common attributes of Language, democratic values, reverence for capitalism, secularism and history of fighting islamist terrorism- would be the most logical move for the US in the current political climate, and would probably benefit them greatly in the long run, espeically that the two new up and coming world powers are India and China, and they both despise each other, and the US adminstration knowing that a confrontation with China will eventaully become inevtiable. If you are going to piss off a Nuclear Giant like China, you best have one of your own, and in this case that would be India.
This is all, of course, all premature. McCain didn't choose his VP yet, and it's very possible that it might not be Jindal. But boy oh boy, if he does choose him! Now That would be change!
No way the GOPpers are racists even ask George Allen he will tell you that he loves “macacas” .
Jindal is too young, has too little experience, and was just elected governor of Louisians last year. If the Republicans are really interested , they should wait until he finishes his term and acquires some real experince to speak of. At this point, he’s a liability.
should be ‘of Louisiana’
Brilliant analysis, Sandmonkey!
There is also Michael S. Steele, former Lt. Governor of the State of Maryland. He uses Republican philosophy to arrive at workable solutions, is charming, capable, … and black. If he were selected as VP, black voters get a choice of black candidates, the race issue is gone from the campaign and we will be back to having a policy debate.
John Adams wrote that the office of Vice President was not worth a bucket of warm spit. (Yeah, he actually wrote ‘spit’.) He should know. He was the first Vice President.
I agree with Xylo. Jindall should remain in Louisiana where he can gain executive experience. But if his first year in office is a true indication of his abilities, he will be a kick-ass candidate for the Presidency very soon.
Sandy,
I agree that India is a natural ally for the US against China. The only one, in fact.
I like Jindal too. I like Steele even more. I’d be happy to see either one as the vice presidential candidate.
But neither one has any chance of delivering the huge bloc of African American voters to the republicans. Look at what happened to Powell and Rice – not to mention Clarence Thomas. The identity politics crowd, and the media, managed to discredit them completely and isolate them from people of their ethnic background. They were cast as inauthentic black people or, to use Harry Belafonte’s elegant phrasing, house niggers. If a black person runs as a republican, he ceases to be black any more in terms of identity voters.
Jindal might, perhaps, deliver the Indian vote. But there’s not enough Indians in the US to make that much of a difference: about 2.5 million (compared to around 40 million blacks).
So the only reason to consider these guys is based on their merits, not on their race. I like to believe that this is how a lot of us republicans operate, anyway: color blind, at least compared to the dems. Based on their merits: I think Jindal and Steele are better than most of the current alternatives. Run ‘em, I say. But don’t expect them to get 90%+ of the African American vote like Obama does.
Nice way of looking at it. Btw, I found this clip of Jindal on Jay Leno!
http://youtube.com/watch?v=2ObRh2djXjs
I agree with Xylo on the need for seasoning, but I had not thought about the India angle. A very thoughtful post, Monkey. I like Jindal and njow have more interest than ever in seeing if he can survive the political cesspool that is Louisiana.
++
Martin Luther King, Jr. was a Republican
http://www.nationalblackrepublicans.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=pages.DYK-Why%20MLK%20was%20a%20Republican&tp_preview=true
==
The smart money is on Condi as VP for 2008-2012 and then do a run on her own from 2012. A black, leasbian on the republican ticket would be so nice.
The US is already building a close friendship with India. We have started selling them nuclear and weapons technology over the past couple years and they have been purchasing US fighter jets and weapons systems. I also think that the sheer amount of US businesses that are building close relations with Indian companies will help a great deal, as the companies on both sides will continue to lobby for things that benefit close relations, be it close relations make it easy to do business.
Classic Sandmonkey post!!
Everyone seems to agree with ‘xylo’…
“Jindal is too young, has too little experience, and was just elected governor of Louisians last year.”
…but just replace ‘Jindal’ with ‘Obama’ and ‘governor’ with ‘senator’ and it’s pretty much the same thing.
So strange SM, you’re a bigger Patriot than most in America
And I loved the John Adams reference…for those who haven’t seen the HBO series, get on it, right away!
Godspeed John McCain!
I live in Louisiana, voted for Jindal for gov, and I also agree with xylo. In addition to what xylo said – we need him here in La. for awhile to clean up the mess he inherited.
to Bob at #9 – yes Jindal WILL survive what you call the “cesspool” that is Louisiana politics. Without excusing Louisiana, I do have to say – I see “cesspools” all over the country, we are not unique.
Of course Jindal has too little executive experience. But how can the Dems complain about that? Their candidate-apparent has no experience of any relevant kind, whatsoever.
SM……… a few points:
1) Indians make a very small proportion of the US population so there is no way they can swing the election decisively for the republicans. Moreover, they are dispersed, though primarily the coasts, so their voting numbers get further diluted.
2) Indian-Americans are divided on Jindal. ALL of them are proud of this accomplishments, and there are many, but not all support his policies. A lot of rich In-Am are enthralled by the Clintons and contribute heavily to the Dem/Clinton cause. Hilary’s opponents have sometimes derisively called her Dem Senator from Punjab (alluding to the Sikh dominated state in India. A lot of her In-AM supporters are originally from that state).
3) I have no statiscits to back this up, but anecdotally, the In-Am vote leans more towards the Dems. This though might change if Jindal comes in as VP.
4) He just got elected a LA gov. and if he runs on the VP ticket and wins you can justifiably say that he deserted LA voters and left them in a lurch. Weak argument, sure, but you can spin it to make him look like a carpet bagger.
5) You are spot on about India and US relations. But we Indians have seen too many false dawns so while India as all the right ingredients to be a world player please do not hold your breath. SM you are always complaining about your politicos, have you ever come across an Indian one? Man, we got the worst of the lot in the WHOLE world. Don’t be surprised if we screw it up yet again and become like, I don’t know, Pakistan (yikes!!)
And here we have Jaipur ( India ), rocked by multiple explosions two days ago …. 60 people died.. all civilians…apparently in an attempt to destabilize Jaipur’s ( lovely city with a lot of history) reputation as a tourist hub..
Apparently, they are waging a war on the Indian establishment for supporting the “US-UK” foreign policies ….
How does killing innocents help spread anything but hate?
Islamic fundamentalists try to screw up progress wherever it happens…
Assholes…-
Governor Jindal will not be a VP Candidate this year. He’s made it clear that he is needed in Louisiana to clean up the mess left there over the years, and I’m not just talking about what Katrina kicked up. He will be a fine candidate for President when he completes two terms as Governor.
Putting him on the ticket now when he’s still had limited experience in governing a state or working in Congress would not be as helpful. Plus, it would do a serious disservice to Louisiana.
Ditto to #18:
Jindal will be on the ticket either in 2012 or 2016, but not before.
And cut the shit about “Macaca”, calling some one a name isn’t necessarily indicative of racism. You might consider some of Sen. Joe Biden’s comments (just google Biden and 7/11). The idea that Republicans are racist and Liberals aren’t is genuinely fatuous considering the Democratic primary where we are seeing race politics as never before. What Liberals do is impose a soft bigotry of low expectations, refuse to consider the actual consequences of their policies, and live in gated communities while their race based constituencies suffer the consequences.
Xylo said:
Jindal Obama is too young, has too little experience, and was just elected governorsenator of Louisians Illinois last year. If the Republicans are really interested , they should wait until he finishes his term and acquires some real experince to speak of. At this point, he’s a liability.
There. Fixed it.
I’d argue your evaluation of Jindal as good-looking, for one. Secondly the biggest drum beat around here is Tim Pawlenty as VP with McCain.
Jindal is too young, and he also isn’t anywhere on the news.
I say in 10 years Jindal might become a key player, but right now he’s an unknown.
Its telling that the first I’ve heard of him is on an international blog.
HaHaHa! sorry couldn’t stop laughing at MCsame…oops he did it again
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/05/15/exclusive-video-mccain-wa_n_102031.html
Those republicans are the worst.
Bobby is invited to the all-important BBQ at McCain’s compound over Memorial Day weekend. Sam, you are a genius!
http://www.comcast.net/articles/news-general/20080521/McCain/
Yeah fiona, Mcphony needs a VP that is half his age to make him and barbie doll look younger
From Wikipedia, which confirms what I recall: “[John Nance] Garner [FDR's 1st VP] once described the office of the vice presidency as being “not worth a bucket of warm piss.” The media changed it to spit but a lot of people think it was shit. Most folks don’t even know that FDR never told his 3rd VP — Harry Truman — about the A-bomb; Gen. Groves, the engineer in charge of Manhattan, took Truman aside after the funeral and said, “oh, by the way Harry, we got this really big bomb that FDR didn’t bother to tell you ’bout….”
“given their common attributes of Language, democratic values, reverence for capitalism, secularism and history of fighting islamist terrorism”
Dumbass, do you even know what the Hell you’re talking about?
Why don’t you ever bring up Hindu terrorism by the likes of Shiv Sena? After all, they have torched churches in the eastern state of Orissa on Christmas.
Are you that much of a fucktard to bend over for neocons that you’re willing to make up bullshit that suits your agenda? Then again, everyone that doesn’t represent wingnut territory thinks you’re a sell out dipshit anyways.
No wonder why you’re too much of a spineless coward to reveal your identity. What a joke you are, sandHOMO.
“Islamic fundamentalists try to screw up progress wherever it happens…”
Sid, you also forgot to mention Hindu fundamentalists representing the likes of Hindutva and Shiv Sena.
But again, I’m sure you’d look the other way when Hindu fanatics torch churches and attack Christians on a regular basis, simply because it doesn’t fit the agenda of LGF homos and wannabe neocon sellouts like sandHOMO here.
“What am I talking about? I am talking about the entrance of the Indian Immigrant population into the political fray, and how it would change everything.”
you lost me with that sentence, since I was thinking Indians are NATIVE AMERICANS you idiot, but then realized you meant people from India:)
I think they should find a Native American candidate..for any party..they are the real Americans…
Yeah, someone from India would be a complete disaster in an election