Presidential Candidate Questionnaire for NAME
OF CANDIDATE
"With liberty and justice for all." Thus
ends our pledge of allegiance to the flag with a ringing commitment
to all citizens. Unfortunately, liberty and justice remain an
unrealized dream for Asian Americans. Two main concerns
are stated below.
First, based on publicly available government statistics,
Asian Americans have the least opportunity to enter management when compared with blacks, Hispanics
and women; the slowest rate of progress toward equal employment opportunity in spite
of having the highest educational attainment. See a full-page color ad in Washington
Post on this matter which contains the complete documentation: http://www.80-20educationalfoundation.org/wpad.jpg . It has been read into the Congressional Record by Senator Thomas
Carper of Delaware.
Only 0.6% of our Level III Federal judges are AsAms,
all at the District Court level, while 5% of our nation's population
are Asian Americans.
Therefore, we, Asian Pacific Americans, wish to know your answers to the following questions:
(1) If elected, will you direct the Labor Secretary to hold public hearings regarding the validity of the huge amount of statistical data strongly suggesting discriminatory practices against Asian Americans in workplaces today?
(2) If the data were shown valid, will you issue a directive to the Labor Department asking it to focus on enforcing Executive Order 11246 on behalf of Asian Americans, since in the past similar efforts have already been made on behalf of women and other minorities?
(3) Two years after you have issued the directive described in item 2, will you meet with a group of Asian American national organizations, put together by 80-20 and the Labor Department, to review the progress in extending equal opportunity to Asian Americans?
(4) If elected, will you within your first term of office, seek to increase the nomination of qualified Asian Americans to serve as Article III life-tenured federal judges, whenever such vacancies are available until the current dismal situation is significantly remedied? [To put things in perspective, not meaning to imply quota, presently there are 0.6% Asian Am. Federal judges, while the Asian Am. population is 4.5% and the % of Asian Am legal professionals in law firms of 100 or larger is at least 5.3%.]
(5) If elected, will you seek to nominate, within your first term of office, qualified Asian Americans to serve as Article III Circuit Judges, whenever there are vacancies in those positions, until the current dismal situation is significantly remedied? [To put things in perspective, none of the 179 Article III Circuit judges is an Asian American.]
(6) If elected, will you consider nominating a qualified Asian America to the Supreme Court, when a vacancy occurs? Two years upon your taking the office, will you meet with a group of Asian American leaders, put together jointly by 80-20 and other Asian American national organizations to review the progress in adding Asian American Federal judges?
My answer to Question 1 above is (Yes/No)
______________
My answer to Question 2 above is (Yes/No)
______________
My answer to Question 3 above is (Yes/No)
______________
My answer to Question 4 above is (Yes/No)
______________
My answer to Question 5 above is (Yes/No)
______________
My answer to Question 6 above is (Yes/No)
______________
Signature: ________________________ DATE: _________________
(Name of the pres. candidate)
Respectfully submitted by The 80-20 Initiative.
Please fax this questionnaire to 800 877-1676, c/o
Kathleen To, President, The 80-20 Initiative.
