Anh "Joseph" Cao: The Surprises Are Just Beginning

On Sunday, December 6, Republican Anh "Joseph" Cao of New Orleans ousted nine-term Democrat William Jefferson from his House seat. Although Jefferson's campaign was doomed from the start by a corruption scandal, Cao's victory still took the nation by complete surprise. Here was a complete unknown, a Vietnamese American lawyer with no prior experience in public office, taking down an African American incumbent in a majority black congressional district. Moreover, he won as a Republican -- something hasn't happened in New Orleans in over 100 years. The improbable victory gave Republicans something to gloat about in the wake of its November defeats. But it seems that the real political surprises are yet to come. House Republicans may soon learn that they're getting more than they bargained for in newcomer Cao.

Cao (pronounced "Gow") is the first Vietnamese American elected to Congress,but only the fourth Asian American to join the House as a Republican. A child of refugees, his father served as an officer in the South Vietnamese Army, fighting communism alongside American troops. It's all too easy to portray Cao as a Vietnamese American with conservative views that stem from a legacy of anti-communism. Here, the obvious comparison can be made with right-wing Cuban Americans of southern Florida. But Cao's New Orleans East -- home to the largest concentration of Vietnamese Americans of Louisiana -- is no Little Havana. And Cao is no Republican ideologue. A political independent until only recently, Cao, who once trained as a Jesuit seminarian working with the poor in Latin America, described his politics as "walking the middle line" in a recent New York Times article.

But by holding fast to the middle, Cao isn't merely playing it safe as the first House Republican to represent New Orleans since Reconstruction. The middle line is proxy for the nuanced political and racial location that Vietnamese Americans of New Orleans occupy, a location that doesn't quite conform to traditional left-to-right political ideologies. Indeed, the Vietnamese Americans of New Orleans pride themselves on self-reliance, yet they also demand government accountability, especially when confronted with injustice. They seek to advance themselves politically and economically, yet seem to do so without sacrificing solidarity with other racial groups, particularly neighboring African Americans. Nowhere were these values more clearly on display than in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. Less than six weeks after the storm, the Vietnamese Americans of New Orleans East returned to their homes, doing so over the objection of local and federal officials. Their leader was Father Nguyen The Vien, a political firebrand and head of Mary Queen of Vietnam church (MQVN). "Before the storm, I guess you could call us libertarians," Father Vien said. "Our attitude toward government was: 'you don't bother us, we won't bother you.' But Katrina changed all that. We had a responsibility to speak out." And so with each step of the rebuilding process, the priest and his congregation battled those who stymied their efforts: foot-dragging FEMA officials, The Waste Management Corporation that sought to dump Katrina debris in their backyard, city leaders all-too-eager to sell off New Orleans East to developers. Through it all, the priest was surrounded by a coterie of experienced community organizers, policy wonks and attorneys.

The star among them was Cao. An immigration attorney with a private practice in New Orleans East, Cao led the legal fight to have utilities turned on in the Vietnamese American neighborhood. Along with other MQVN leaders, he also worked to shut down a controversial landfill that was to hold nearly one-forth of Katrina debris in New Orleans East.

As the first anniversary of Katrina approached, MQVN became a force to be reckoned with, and it soon launched a community development corporation to further advance its rebuilding plans, as well as to expand Vietnamese American political power in New Orleans. Cao was named to the organization's board of directors, and MQVN would serve as a vital political base during his congressional campaign. Yet at the same time, MQVN's post-Katrina activism was largely associated with (and celebrated by) the liberal-to-left of the city -- those who considered the community's defense of New Orleans East a rare victory for the grassroots. Cao never downplayed his involvement in these efforts. To the contrary, his campaign highlighted such activism in order to bolster an otherwise slim political record. So too, Democratic African Americans leaders in New Orleans lauded the work of MQVN. African American councilmember Cynthia Willard-Lewis, a Democrat, referred to its efforts as "a model for other communities." Meanwhile African American organizations such as the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, the Southern Poverty Law Center and Advocates for Environmental Human Rights emerged as political allies to MQVN in the post-Katrina era.

As Cao enters his first term, these alliances may prove strong enough to hold him accountable to an agenda that prioritizes the rebuilding of New Orleans, especially within communities that have yet to receive their fair share of federal support. At the very least, his ties to the New Orleans East grassroots will keep him from marching in lock step with House Republicans on key domestic issues.

The day after the election, House minority leader John Boehner dashed off a memo to fellow Republicans with the subject line: "The Future is Cao." His sanguine message: Cao represents fresh change for the Republican Party. Boehner may soon be dismayed by just how correct he is.

Comments

[rebel1]

I am a real Vietnamese and I could say for anyone who pronounces Cao as Gow is wrong. Cao is pronounced as similar to when you pronounce COW in English.

I think Cao may swicht party.

[Smith808]

It's easy for these sounds (/k/ & /g/) to get confused...

If "Cao" were pronounced like "cow" in English, it would be spelled differently in Vietnamese, like "khao."

In Vietnamese, the "c" in "cao" is produced without aspiration (air flowing out). In English, the "c" in "cow" is produced WITH aspiration.
>>RULE: "word" = /pronounced as/
>> VN: "cao" = /kao/.
>> EN: "cow" = /khao/.

In English, when the /k/ sound is produced without aspiration, it tends to sound like /g/.
EN: "crate" = /khrate/
EN: /krate/ = "great"

Sorry to distract from the story.

[cobraxus]

The real question is whether or not House Republicans(led by John "Cry-Baby" Boehner)will allow Cao to follow his conscience and the mandate of those who elected him.If they demand party loyalty and idealogical rigor(mortis) then he'll either get buried or forced out.The GOP is looking for new faces but only to mask their outdated politcal views.

[WilliePilgrim]

Ah yes...as my father had told me often; the pendulumn swings both ways. As unlikely as it seems, the radical progressives of Lincoln's day became the conservatives, but now the neo-cons have ejected the paleo-cons and they now are all about big programs and big spending as they seek the power that comes with it, taking a tip from the new deal and great society democrats. I suspect Ron Paul's libertarian ideas will become, as unlikely as it seems, the new home of the liberal left who will soon enough see beyond and become tired of the big, centralized, and ever-expanding government's solutions and its wastefull ways.

[abigail1]

let's not make too much of Cao. This was a low turnout run off election that barely ousted a congressman that got caught with money in his freezer.
If he wants to hold on to his seat, he'll switch parties.

[bronceye]

remember that most democrats were removed from NOLA after Katrina and not returned.

[reader39]

I'm a democrat but I also voted for Cao and I was very happy that he won. He's one of the few Republicans that I like. New Orleans needs drastic changes so I will vote for any candidate who appears to be ethical and competent.

[Bramble8]

Boehner is beyond entertaining... He is the gift that keeps on giving!

[cobraxus]

No "Cry-Baby"Boehner is The GIT That Keeps On Giving!

[BSERIUS]

Cao is a Vietnamese American lawyer with no prior political experience.... Obama is a Kenyan American lawyer with very little if any prior experience

[ElIngeniero]

"Experience" being the code word for "able to carry on business as usual."

Business as usual is how we got where we are.

So now we know the value of experience: something less than cat pee.

[zippywpinhead]

you just can't help lying, can you?

[UnknownSoldier]

I think Cao if he can be effective and runs a good campaign can win re-election easily in New Orleans.

[Smith808]

I look forward to following his career in DC, and I hope it lasts longer than many here predict it will. I'm not familiar with New Orleans politics, so my optimism may be a bit naive.

[Smith808]

KAO or GAO?

The Vietnamese "k" sound is different from the English "k" sound in several ways: The Vitnamese "k" is less aspirated (in fact, in can sometimes sound "implosive"); it is produced slightly further back in the mouth; and it is produced with more of a closure between the back of the tongue and the roof of the mouth.

This might help to explain why the Vietnamese "k" is sometimes confused with the English "g" sound.

[newshawk14]

As a liberal, I much prefer a republican moderate, who believes is good governance, to a democratic
crook, any day of the week. Representative Cao sounds like a very impressive addition to the house.

[Hebert]

I had the pleasure of working on the Cao campaign.

FYI - As mentioned in the NYTimes as above, the pronunciation is 'Gao'. Seemingly it will be hard for Joseph Cao to hold the seat. But, he will - just read the papers in 2010 and if your are in District 2 in Louisiana - VOTE. We just sent a very fine man to Congress. Check out the New York Times article from a couple days ago. When was the last time that you saw a bio story on a politician end with a quote of Aristotle by the pol?

[newshawk14]

I think that representative Cao might well be a very distinguished member of the
House, if he is really doing a fine job, I hope democrats concentrate their energies
on genuine trolls, who never will be missed, than attack any republican who is
doing a good job and furthering good governance, but might be politically at risk.

[jwb]

I think that law professor guy from the University of Chicago could probably do that but he would be branded an elitist.

Best of luck, Joe the Representative! Good government advocacy should respect no party lines.

[LMPE]

In short, Joseph Cao has been involved with community organizing, something that the GOP considers an object of ridicule. And yet they let him run.

[Filegirl]

A minority who wants to help the poor? He has no future in the Republican Party.

[iBlog4Food]

This election was actually held over from Hurricane Gustav so turnout was quite low and Mr. Cao, on CNN, contributed this fact to his win.

I think Mr. Cao's win is good for the Democrats. It gets rid of an indicted Democratic Congressman and paves the way for an eventual retaking of this district by a more reasonable Democratic challenger in 2010.

I really think Mr. Cao is going to have a really tough time holding this district down which apparently was gerrymandered to ensure an African American representative for the predominantly African-American voters who reside in that district. Some have even said that it's a given that he would lose the seat in 2 years. It would be a heck of a feat if he somehow holds onto his seat--maybe if he turns left and go Democratic, but I doubt it.

Having said that, I think Mr. Cao did the Vietnamese-American community proud. Before Cao"s win, the closest they got to any representation in the House or Senate was Senator Webb"s Vietnamese wife.

And btw, a Vietnamese friend of mine also thought the pronunciation of his last name as "gow" also amusing.