Filam GOPs are Energized
September 17, 2008
WASHINGTON- The polls used to show Republicans were lukewarm over presidential candidate Sen. John McCain, who does not conform to party line.
“But now, they have started to come home,” said Warie Azarcon, outgoing president of the Filipino American Republicans of Virginia (FARV). But Dr. Rawlein Soberano, who claims to be a Republican, disagrees. After analyzing the programs of government of both candidates, Soberano said, he has decided to go for Democratic Candidate Sen. Barack Obama who will make history by becoming the first black to be elected president of the United States.
Azarcon based this assessment on McCain’s qualifications, the Sept. 3 star-turn national convention performance of Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin-McCain’s choice of running mate-her Republican policy credentials, as well as the enthusiasm she has generated among the party base since her announcement for the No. 2 spot.
Azarcon said FARV, founded in 2002, would “go full-blast” in campaigning for the ticket after the induction of the new set of officers Sept. 13.
Leaders and volunteers would “knock on doors, put up yard signs, set up phone banks to identify Republican voters, and mobilize them on Election Day.” On Sept. 20, FARV will join the Fairfax County Republican Party’s ethnic rally at Edison High School in Virginia.
By now, the public knows about Palin’s compelling story as a working mom and an anti-corruption political giant-killer in Alaska. She’s also a mother of five, including a son in the Army deployed in Iraq this month, an infant with Down’s syndrome that she decided to carry to term, and a teen pregnant daughter.
Azarcon said in phone interview an hour after Palin’s speech, that he himself “had not met area Republicans crossing over to the Democrats,” but had read about it. Before Palin’s pick, polling and media reports have noted Republicans’ lack of enthusiasm for McCain.
But now Rasmussen Reports, which publishes polling of the race, released data showing Palin’s selection “is helping to fire up the GOP rank-and-file.” It reported that while 73% of Democrats are voting for Obama with enthusiasm in November, 57% of Republicans now say the same.
Previous surveys have not shown this level of Republican voter enthusiasm, the report added.
FARV president-elect Ed Pabalan knows about McCain from his dad, a former shipmate of the presidential candidate at USS Enterprise. He said his dad “values his privacy,” and did not want to be interviewed.
Ed said in an email interview Sept. 5, “The McCain-Palin ticket offers Americans a viable and compelling choice for leadership. Senator McCain’s acceptance speech was heartfelt and introduced Americans to his story of service. He says what he believes and he doesn’t waiver.”
“Governor Palin’s speech was honest and soul stirring,” he added. “She has a history of doing the right thing. Her speech was funny, engaging. She is a fighter.”
Lawyer and community leader Azarcon said, after watching Palin’s 37-minute acceptance speech, “She exceeded all expectations.” Echoing Republicans’ anxiety nationwide, he added, “Frankly, I was so
apprehensive on how well she would do tonight. I’ve only seen a snippet of her performance when Senator John McCain introduced her as his running mate” on Aug. 29.
“She exuded confidence,” he said. “Her style was conversational, assured, and would connect with the ordinary folks.” Palin was a former TV sportscaster.
Former FARV president Vellie Sandalo Dietrich-Hall emailed Sept. 3, “For sure, she has fired up Republicans, that is why I am heading out to the convention tomorrow. Palin is the ace in the hole that everyone in the party has been waiting for.”
Palin made several jabs against Obama. “It’s easy to forget that this is a man who has authored two memoirs but not a single major law or reform, not even in the state Senate,” she said at one point.
The media praised her speech for its wit and delivery. “Of the governor’s jet,” Palin quipped, “I put it on e-bay.” The media have criticized her lack of national experience, but they unanimously gave
her speech excellent reviews. Some even compared her to the late President Ronald Reagan.
But a student activist at George Mason University whose car displays the McCain sticker is not happy with Palin’s selection. The reaction of Ma. T. Lopez was: “It’s a bad selection. I will not vote in November.”
Soberano, who says he is voting for Obama, cites the current deficit and loss of American prestige globally, criticized Palin’s speech. He said in an email interview Sept. 3: “Her speech was geared towards the audience to make them feel good. But it was short on specifics, like the economy, unemployment, the war.
She was sarcastic, insulting and hurled personal attacks against Obama.”
Soberano served as chief of staff of the Small Business Administration during the time of President Ronald Reagan, a Republican. Soberano, Asian American Business Roundtable president, thinks Obama will make history by becoming the nation’s first African-American president.
He added: “When you add the eight years of Republican administration, of failed policies of tax cuts to benefit the top 2% of Americans, big government, budget deficit galore and destroyed image of the US abroad, how can they win?”
But he noted Obama has to contend with some voters, including Filipino Americans, who cannot bring themselves to elect a black person for president. He said he was “appalled at the racism among some Filipino Americans.”
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