At the end of October I profiled Jigar Ashwin Madia, a “Democrat” (or DFLer) who is running for Congress in the 3rd District of Minnesota. An important thing to note here is that, as I understand it, in order to compete in the general election as a DFLer in Minnesota, you have to first obtain an endorsement from the Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party.

Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party (DFL) is a major political party in the US state of Minnesota. It was created on April 15, 1944 when the Minnesota Democratic Party and Farmer-Labor Party merged. Hubert Humphrey was instrumental in this merger. The party is affiliated with the national Democratic Party. The nickname “DFLers” is often used in Minnesota by both members and non-members of the party as an alternative to “Democrats”. [Link]

The Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party will base part of its decision (a long process) on which candidate has raised the most money by the end of the year, since money in the war chest is an indicator of general election viability (an unfortunate fact about politics in America today). Therefore, the month of December is critical to Madia’s campaign if he hopes to contend for this seat. One of Madia’s staff explained the process to me back in November:

“…the fundraising period that matters most ends December 31, 2007. That period matters most because the results from that time will be what voters know going into the endorsement process that begins on February 5, 2008. (Ashwin has agreed to abide by the results of the endorsement process, so if he does not receive the endorsement from the Democratic Party, the campaign is over.) The next round of fundraising numbers will not come out until April 15, 2008, and at that point, the endorsement process will be almost over.”

Asking for your effort as a volunteer or for a monetary contribution, just like asking for your vote, demands that a candidate explain his positions clearly and thoughtfully enough to satisfy you as a voter or donor. I asked Madia a few questions that I was curious to know the answer to (some of them just to warm him up for you all). I am counting on our smart readers to vet him some more with thoughtful questions. If you like what he has to say, consider supporting him. If not, this is still a chance for one-on-one participation in the political process. Here we go:

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p>Abhi: Tell us a little about your experiences in Iraq. What are the top three things you learned over there that you feel helps make you a better candidate now that you are back in Minnesota?

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p>Madia: While in Iraq, I worked with the military, the State Department, the Justice Department, the European Union, the United Nations, and Iraqi judicial officers to strengthen Iraq’s legal system and establish the rule of law. I learned that: 1) Iraq is a beautiful country with some of the most gorgeous sunrises I’ve ever seen; 2) the Iraqi people (at least those that I dealt with – primarily lawyers and judges) are brave and very kind; and 3) we, the Americans, need to do a better job of establishing unity of command of our military and State Department efforts, to ensure cohesion and maximize the effectiveness of our efforts. I believe these understandings make me a better candidate because they will give me the foundation to help reestablish Congressional oversight over the conduct of the war through probing questions and initiatives. I can draw upon my experiences to push the military and State Department when necessary about their planning and execution of long term strategy in Iraq.

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p>Abhi: How did your family feel about you being deployed to Iraq? Did you join the military through a ROTC program that helped pay for college or by some other manner?

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p>Madia: They didn’t like it. I think it’s natural for family members to worry, particularly my parents, who of course are from India and had no prior experience with the American military – let alone the Marine Corps – prior to me joining. Mom and Dad initially didn’t even like the idea of me getting in the Corps in the first place, because I think they had an idea in their head of what it was (brainwashing, hazing, etc.) that was based on certain media images but not necessarily reality. They came to love it, though – after I got through basic training and was stationed in Japan, they really came to appreciate it. I didn’t join through ROTC. At the end of college, I just decided I wanted to do it, so I went through a program that let me go through Officer Candidates School, then go through law school, and then go on active duty immediately afterwards and report to The Basic School.

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p>Abhi: Your opponents will probably focus in on your relatively young age in their efforts to sell themselves as more experienced than you. How do you hope to convince the voters that you have enough experience and don’t need to start with a more local position?

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p>Madia: A few ways. First, on the age question. When we make a decision to go to war, it’s young people that end up going. When we make the decision to bust our budget, it’s young people that will end up paying for it. And when we make the decision to trash our planet, it’s young people that will inherit the consequences. Maybe it wouldn’t hurt to have someone under the age of 50 contributing to our national discussion on these policies. On the experience question, I say that experience is important, but there’s different kinds of experience. I may not have experience sitting in committee meetings, but I’ve got experience in Iraq, and with the military. When I talk about Iraq and the military, it’s not because I read about it in a book or saw it in a movie – I was there. I have experience advocating on behalf of unemployed people, immigrants, disabled children, battered women, and the LGBT community. In fact, I was one of the first marines to successfully defend a gay marine from “don’t ask, don’t tell.” I’ve traveled much of the world: India, Taiwan, Japan, Thailand, Korea, Qatar, Kuwait, and Iraq, and seen some of the effects our policies have on other nations. In short, I haven’t been sitting on my hands for 29 years – I’ve done a lot of living and have plenty of life experience to draw on. Finally, I’d point out that Dick Cheney has plenty of experience, but that obviously hasn’t made him a great vice president. There are other traits that matter: values, integrity, judgment, dependability, unselfishness, courage, and endurance. I’d like people to look at my life and my stances and judge for themselves whether I have these traits.

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p>Abhi: Why are you running as a Democrat? Researching your background one wonders why a lifelong Republican (I’m assuming since you were a member of the College Republicans at the University of Minnesota) would decide to run as a Democrat. Do your ideals now align better with the Democrats and is this primarily because of your experience in Iraq or is it because of a host of issues?

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p>Madia: It’s true that I considered myself a moderate Republican in college, but I wasn’t a member of the College Republicans. When I ran for student-body president, I ran with a liberal Democrat as my running mate, and my supporters (and ultimate governing coalition) were a motley crew comprised of moderate Dems, moderate Repubs, and a whole lot of independents. I stopped calling myself a Republican in late 2002, when the Iraq War resolution was stampeded through Congress – I didn’t understand why we couldn’t give the UN inspectors more time to find out if Iraq really had WMD and I didn’t like the political timing of the resolution (Nov 2002 – just in time for our domestic elections). I also was disgusted by what the RNC did to Max Cleland (triple amputee Vietnam War veteran), comparing him to Bin Laden in its ads. I didn’t want to be associate with them anymore, so I left, and haven’t looked back since.

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p>Abhi: Your first name is Jigar but you go by Ashwin (for the purposes of your campaign I suppose). What does your family call you (feel free to include embarrassing nicknames)?

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p>Madia: I’ve used my middle name for years, but my family and old friends still call me Jigar. Mom also calls me “Jiggie,” “Jiggie-baby,” and of course, “Beta.” Something tells me no election in the world could get her to stop. I wouldn’t want her to stop, anyway.

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p>Abhi: What are the top two changes you’d like to bring to your district? I mean specific policy changes you’d like to implement, not just vague ideals.

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p>Madia: First, I want to expand Minneapolis’s light rail system to the western suburbs in my district. There are many people in my district who live in the suburbs, but work downtown (and vice versa, as well). If I can get some federal funds to help quicken the expansion of the light rail – everybody wins: it’s better for the environment, it clears congestion on our local highways, it produces jobs to build and operate the new lines, and increases productivity for businesses as their employees will be coming in to work fresh and rested, not having just spent an hour honking their horn in bumper to bumper traffic. Second, I want to help create a fund that will assist some people in my district – particularly the northern part of my district – who have been deeply affected by the sub-prime loan crisis.

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p>Abhi: Reading up on you I got the feeling that running for office isn’t something you just decided to do on a whim, or even mostly because of your experiences in Iraq. It seems (please correct me if I am wrong) as though you’ve been working toward this methodically for years. When you were in 5th grade, what did you say you wanted to be when you grew up?

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p>Madia: When I was in 5th grade, I’m pretty sure I was telling people I wanted to be a basketball player. I used to shoot hoops for hours every day (it was the one sport that I was reasonably competent at, so naturally I should do it professionally, right?). As I got older, I always thought I’d be a doctor, I think. Not because I was particularly interested in medicine, but more just because that’s what I think I felt was sort of expected. I never really thought hard about it and just assumed that’s where I would end up. I was pre-med in college for a couple years, but – I discovered, or maybe was reminded – I’m terrible at science. Organic Chemistry handed me my rear end and I decided it was probably best for everyone if I found another career path. I majored in political science and decided to go to law school. I was always interested in politics, but never really thought of myself as a candidate. I thought I’d do a tour in the Corps and then come back home and maybe try to open up a small practice. It didn’t quite happen that way, but everything happens for a reason.

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p>Abhi: In your opinion/experience do South Asian Americans contribute enough money to political campaigns? If not, then why not? Do you think they are just uninspired by candidates or are they uninterested in politics in general?

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p>Madia: You know, I’ve heard that before but I haven’t experienced it personally. In fact, I’d say the opposite. South Asian Americans have been incredibly supportive and generous to my campaign and I’m very grateful for it. I’m a first time candidate who’s never run for anything before, yet they (and others) have given to me in amazing numbers, and I’m honored by it. Of course, I’d like more – both in terms of larger contributions and larger numbers of South Asian Americans believing in my campaign and contributing, but that’s more a function of just how expensive it is to run. So, if you’re reading this, and you believe in my campaign, please forward my website and your personal endorsement on to people you think might be supportive. Sorry to do that, guys, but I have to. I hate asking for money, but it’s just a necessity for this line of work. I’m a proud man and so is my dad. I could be unemployed and out on the street and I wouldn’t ask anyone for a dime, but since I decided to do this, I spend most of my day asking for money. Ultimately, I think we need to move toward public financing of campaigns to just take the money out of it.

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p>Abhi: To the best of your knowledge are there any particular issues that South Asian American voters in your district care about more than the average voter? Are there any issues that you have a position on that you feel might inspire South Asian American voters from outside of your district to contribute to your campaign?

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p>Madia: I think many care about the bureaucracy and inefficiency at the Dep’t of Homeland Security in processing citizenship applications. I’d like to explore the reasons for the bottleneck there and find out if there’s a way we can make it better, so that it still effectively processes and screens, but without the exceedingly long waiting periods. In terms of specific issues that might inspire South Asian Americans from outside my district to contribute, I don’t know. I think the issues that are the basis of my campaign – ending the Iraq War responsibly; balancing our budget; addressing global warming; making health care more affordable and accessible; renewing the federal commitment to education; and restoring and safeguarding our civil liberties – apply to all of us and I hope and believe that South Asian Americans will be motivated by them. Also, I think it’d be remarkable to have a South Asian American in Congress – currently, there are none in the House and none in the Senate. Bobby Jindal was the only one and he moved on to become Governor in Louisiana.

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p>Abhi: Based on your campaign so far, what one point of concrete advice can you give our readers who might want to run for a Congressional seat of their own someday?

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p>Madia: If you want to run, run. No matter what, just do it. Do not listen to all of the bad odds that people will give you and the reasons to wait, etc. There will always be more reasons not to run than to run, e.g. you have a nice job, it will disrupt your life, you need more time, etc. Don’t listen to those reasons – just get in and pursue it with everything you’ve got. You can either wait your entire life for someone to tap you on the shoulder and say, “Now, it’s ok – it’s time, you should run now,” or you can get in, give it everything inside of you, talk from your heart, and say what you’ve got to say. Run if you have the desire to do it.

If any of you would like to get involved or contribute to Madia’s campaign, you can do so by visiting his website. But first, interview him with your own questions. Like I said, I was just getting him warmed up for you all.