President Obama, as is his right, has nominated to the US Supreme Court another white man from Harvard, Merrick Garland. Yet Mr. Garland is highly unlikely to ever be confirmed given the Republican leadership’s unanimous position that no Presidential nominee will be confirmed while President Obama remains in office. The question raised by California’s more…

Why President Obama should quickly nominate an Asian American to the US Supreme Court PRESIDENT Obama, as a result of the unexpected death of US Supreme Court Justice Antonio Scalia, has an opportunity to appoint the first Asian American to the US Supreme Court in its more than 225 year history. As the late Justice Scalia…

With the 2014 midterm elections behind us, one demographic has both Republicans and Democrats buzzing. Based on exit polling of the 2014 midterm elections, 50 percent of Asian American support went to the Republicans. This is in stark contrast to 2012, when President Barack Obama and the Democrats won the Asian American vote in a…

Every study has demonstrated that our nation’s twenty million Asian Americans seek the American Dream of homeownership. Among many Asian American groups, including Filipino Americans and Vietnamese Americans, the percentage is well-over 95% or even higher than for Whites. But this American Dream is decreasingly available to most Asian Americans. Why has this occurred when…

WITH less than two weeks until the 2014-midterm elections, many races are still undecided. What many political leaders have failed to recognize is that there is a large, yet relatively silent, population that could be a key to some of these races. Despite being the fastest growing segment of the US population, with voters doubling…

Throughout California’s history, including the last thirty years, there is not a state or federal regulator that does not deserve some, if not substantial, criticism. The collapse of the banking system, which caused five million California homeowners to be desperately underwater, was due to the deliberate lack of oversight by state banking authorities. This should…

A Filipino-American’s success is generally measured by the steady flow of balikbayan boxes that show up on our relatives’ doorsteps in the Philippines, as well as our ability to readily provide for their needs. Sadly, though, the real stories of our day-to-day struggles are hardly ever told. People come to the US with hopes of…

The US and President Obama should be key partners with the Philippines and President Aquino in demonstrating  the benefits of democracy.  With one exception, all the Arab nations that have moved towards democracy in the last three years have failed such as Egypt and Libya. Other Middle Eastern nations, with the exception of Israel, operate…

President Aquino is correct that Typhoon Haiyan demonstrates that our efforts to prevent future similar damage should focus on fundamental reforms and “build back better.” However, the price President Aquino has put on the damage is approximately 600 billion pesos or $13 billion. The problem confronting the Philippines, however, is that the nations most capable…

Three weeks ago, the National Asian American Coalition (NAAC) was among the first, if not the very first minority organization in the nation, to protest the proposed merger of American Airlines and US Airways before the antitrust division of the U.S. Department of Justice. Last week, the Department of Justice employed many of our arguments…

Over 99 percent of all issues decided by the federal government that affect our nation’s 20 million Asian Americans are decided with little or no Asian American input. Largely, this exclusion is self-inflicted. We still think and act as if we are just temporary guests. Yet, we are citizens, have many Asian American legislators and…

The head of the SBA, Karen Mills, has announced her resignation. During her four years in office, the 98% of Asian American-owned businesses that are small received very few loans and close to zero technical assistance. President Obama, however, has a unique opportunity to ensure that the SBA is truly a small business agency that…

President Obama has nominated a prominent and generally well-qualified civil rights attorney for Secretary of Labor, Thomas Perez. Mr. Perez is presently Assistant Attorney General in charge of the Department of Justice’s (DOJ) civil rights division. He is being attacked by Republicans who may block his confirmation because of his contentious civil rights positions. Although…

Next week, we will celebrate Martin Luther King Day and Dr. King’s extraordinary contributions to the civil and economic rights of more than 120 million people of color in the United States. During this week recognizing civil rights, President Obama will celebrate his second inauguration and address the nation on its future. In examining the…

President Benigno Aquino III has just achieved a triumph that has eluded every Filipino President in our history and matches, and perhaps exceeds, the triumphs of America’s most successful President in the twentieth century, FDR. Against all odds, President Aquino took on and bested the Catholic Church, the tobacco industry, the liquor industry, Filipino billionaires,…

Consistent with President Obama’s historic visit to Burma (Myanmar) on November 19th and Burmese opposition leader Aung San SuuKyi’s call for responsible investments in Burma, the National Asian American Coalition (NAAC) met with U.S. Ambassador to Burma, Derek Mitchell, in Yangon, Burma, four days after the President’s visit. As one of our nation’s largest Pan…

President Obama’s battle with the Republicans about how to avoid the so-called “Fiscal Cliff” is unfortunately more political drama than reality. First, the U.S. faces no short-term financial crisis relative to those faced by Greece, Spain, Italy, China or Japan, for example. Second, some of the issues dividing the two political parties are either artificially…

For the first time in American history, presidential candidates actually considered courting and including Asian Americans in their agendas for the future. But, in large measure, 18 million Asian Americans were overlooked. It is our expectation that this will never occur again if all Asian American communities put aside their small differences and unite on…

Six million Asian Americans in California are deeply affected by the actions of one of the most powerful California government agencies, the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC). The CPUC influences a broad range of multibillion dollar utility and telecommunications companies. This includes PG&E, SoCalEdison, SoCalGas, SDG&E, AT&T, Verizon, and Sprint. This powerful five member commission…

SoftBank, a major Japanese telecommunications company, is seeking to acquire America’s third largest telecommunications company, Sprint, for $20 billion. It is possible that a combination of anti-foreign investment politicians, community groups, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), the Department of Justice (DOJ) and the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) will seek to oppose this merger. The…

The National Asian American Coalition (NAAC) is a nonprofit bi-partisan organization. It is offering its suggestions and advice on the four most crucial California ballot measures (propositions) before the voters on November 6th, 2012. We offer our observations with reservations since we believe the initiative (proposition process), once the hallmark of California’s democratic system, is…

After patiently waiting for more than 100 years for the government to provide them with automatic citizenship rights, the American Samoan community has filed suit against the US Government. Our nation’s almost 300,000 American Samoans have demanded what should have been granted long ago, automatic and full US citizenship rights. These rights already exist for…

Last week, a deeply divided US Supreme Court upheld President Obama’s health care initiative, the Affordable [Health] Care Act. But many are applauding this decision for the wrong reasons. LAST week, a deeply divided US Supreme Court upheld President Obama’s health care initiative, the Affordable [Health] Care Act. But many are applauding this decision for…

For more than 300 years, Asian Americans have been ignored and until recently, discriminated against. This includes the infamous incarceration of over 100,000 Japanese American citizens during the Second World War, frequent denials of landownership rights and until the 1960s, the official barring by many states of intermarriage between Asian Americans and whites. By dint…

Governor Brown, facing growing pressure to fund programs necessary for California’s future growth has decided to put 2.2 million homeowners facing foreclosure in further distress. Spotting a soft target for short-term revenue “growth,” he has raided the Attorney General’s homeowner bank settlement fund in the amount of $300 million. The legislature will be voting during…