Joseph Cao

Podcast Show Notes

Last night, in a special join edition with David Oatney of Oatney on the Air, we were joined by Hatton Humphrey and discussed:

• Saxby Chambliss’ landslide victory in Georiga.

• Joseph Cao’s win in Louisiana

• Ken Blackwell joining the RNC Chairman’s race.

• The Big 3 Bailout

• Newspaper Failures and shrinkages.

• Is it time to end the war on drugs?

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There were two elections in Louisiana tonight, and it's fair to say that before tonight, what became John Fleming's squeaker in the 4th attracted 99% of the attention from the political class. After tonight, that figure should be reversed.

In the heart of New Orleans, in a district that is 28 points more Democrat than the national average, Joseph Cao sent Bill Jefferson packing. As Swing State Project notes, Cao now represents the district with the most lopsided voting patterns favoring the other party, outstripping the R+26 margin in Jim Matheson's UT-3.

As I noted yesterday and reiterate tonight, there could be no more vivid example of why we need to run Republican candidates in every district than Louisiana's 2nd. Cao won his seat more solidly than Fleming did in an R+7 seat. Starting with Obama CoS Rahm Emanuel, Democrats started to understand that Congressional races can be very nonpartisan under the right circumstances and that poor performance or other personal shortcomings by the incumbent can render even a hefty party ID deficit meaningless. 

We can't recreate Bill Jefferson in every district -- the guy was indicted on 16 counts and the feds found 90 G's in his freezer. It's also an accident of history that the election happened today instead of on 11/4 when Jefferson could have ridden Obama's coattails -- it was delayed by Hurricane Gustav. There isn't a Bill Jefferson in every district, but there is a Joseph Cao. Here's Cao's biography, boiled down:

• Family fled South Vietnam in 1975 when the Communists took over
• Learned English and graduated with a degree in physics from Baylor University
• Joined the Jesuits after graduation; taught philosophy at Loyola University in New Orleans while going to law school
• Advocated for Vietnamese refugees in the U.S., leaving private practice to do so
• Returned to New Orleans after Katrina and became a community activist on rebuilding issues
• Rebuilt his law practice from scratch after Katrina

Cao ran as an independent for the state legislature in 2007 but is otherwise a political novice.

In crafting our 435 district strategy, the lesson is that we don't need to run risk-averse politicians in longshot seats. We need to run everyday heroes like Cao. We need to identify people outside politics who've done things in the community and who can capitalize on the incumbents' mistakes. Every district has a Joseph Cao.

Congratulations to Congressman-elect Joseph Cao, who sent Dollar Bill Jefferson packing tonight, in a D+28 seat. The GOP can win when it runs everywhere. -Patrick

Louisiana's penchant for electing minority Republicans gains steam as Joseph Cao is projected to defeat Rep. William Jefferson in the New-Orleans based 2nd district.  With 391 out of 492 precincts reporting, Cao is comfortably ahead 53-43.  Cao will be the first Vietnamese-American elected to Congress.  He is the third Asian-American Republican elected to the House (Saiki-HI, Kim-CA preceeded him). 

http://www400.sos.louisiana.gov:8090/cgibin/?rqstyp=elcms2&rqsdta=120608

www.nola.com

Saturday is the Louisiana runoff election. There are two races still outstanding: the 4th Congressional district in the Western part of the state where John Fleming is fighting to hold on to Jim McCrery's conservative seat. And the 2nd, in the heart of New Orleans.

Normally, we wouldn't have a prayer in LA-2. Except for one thing: the incumbent is Wiliam "Freezer Cash" Jefferson. And recent polling shows Republican Joseph Cao actually has a chance to knock off Jefferson. An internal Republican poll shows Cao leading Jefferson 50-35, with Jefferson at 60 percent unfavorables (significant because Jefferson retains a base of support in the African American community). Quin Hillyer has been tracking this race for the Spectator.

This is Exhibit A of why we need a 435 district strategy. Yes, we need to be focused on our traditional targets. We saw how replacing Woody Jenkins with Bill Cassidy made all the difference in LA-6. But we can't be playing defense all the time. Congressional races can be surprisingly nonpartisan if the incumbent is corrupt or has other liabilities. We can pick off 60-40 and 70-30 Democrat seats if we focus on getting the right candidates with some level of professional staffing. (And I wouldn't be surprised if LA-2 wound up being even more lopsided than that.)

If you want to prove we can prevail in the bluest seat in Louisiana and show the world that Obama doesn't have coattails, we need to be supporting guys like Joseph Cao.