Merkley endorsed by Asian American Action Fund

The Asian American Action Fund has endorsed House Speaker Jeff Merkley for U.S. Senate. Merkley brought together Democrats and Republicans in the Oregon Legislature to pass the most progressive agenda in the country in 2007. Merkley has been endorsed by U.S. Representative David Wu of Oregon’s First Congressional District. Wu is the first Chinese American and the first Taiwanese American member of the House of Representatives.

“Barack Obama is running an historic campaign, but to bring real change to Washington, he’ll need a working majority in the U.S. Senate,” Asian American Action Fund Executive Director Guatam Dutta said. “Jeff Merkley is a progressive leader who will work for Asian-Pacific Americans and make waves in Washington on health care, job creation, and civil rights. Having served as a national security analyst in the Pentagon and the head of Habitat for Humanity in Portland, Jeff brings to the table a unique combination of community-building experience, foreign policy knowledge, and a determination to get things done.”

“I’m proud to have the endorsement of the Asian American Action Fund,” said Jeff Merkley. “Working families across the country, including many Asian-Pacific Americans, are struggling with rising health care costs and a damaged economy. We deserve leaders who will fight to create good-paying jobs and provide quality, affordable health care for all Americans instead of siding with corporate special interests. Gordon Smith says he’s independent in Oregon, but he’s voted with President Bush 90% of the time. To change Washington, we’re building the largest grassroots effort this state has ever seen. I’m honored to have Asian Pacific Americans on my staff, fighting with me to make America work for working Americans again.”

Born in the small town of Myrtle Creek, Jeff Merkley has spent his lifetime fighting for change for Oregon families. The son of a sawmill worker, he spent his early years in Roseburg, where the children of loggers and mill workers learned the value of honest work, good schools, and strong families. Jeff worked hard, earned scholarships and became the first in his family to go to college. He went on to serve as a national security analyst, first for the Pentagon and then for Congress. After returning to Oregon with his wife Mary, Jeff led Habitat for Humanity and worked with low-income families to rebuild neighborhoods and purchase their first home.

As Speaker, Jeff helped lead the fight against special interests to make health care more affordable, clamp down on pay day loan scams, pass landmark environmental legislation, and create thousands of family-wage jobs in Oregon. Working together, Oregonians achieved results – restoring fiscal responsibility by creating the state’s first “rainy day fund,” cutting taxes for working people, and passing sweeping ethics reform to clean up government.

In the U.S. Senate, Jeff will fight to end the tax breaks going to companies that ship our jobs overseas, stand up to oil companies to invest in renewable energy, and end the war in Iraq. For detailed information on Jeff’s plans to bring change to Washington D.C., visit www.jeffmerkley.com.

Today, Speaker Merkley lives in East Multnomah County with Mary, a professional nurse, and their two children, Jonathan age twelve and Brynne age ten.

The AAA-Fund is a progressive political organization that is dedicated to empowering Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders across the United States. Through the AAA-Fund, Asian Pacific Americans (APAs) from different ethnic groups and from all over the country work together to increase the voice of the APA community in local, state and federal government.

Each campaign cycle, the AAA-Fund selects a limited number of Democratic candidates to endorse. Following endorsement, the AAA-Fund works together with the candidate to determine how best the AAA-Fund can support their candidacy. In the past, the AAA-Fund has supported endorsed candidates by contributing to their campaigns, hosting fundraisers for the candidates, assisting in online and media outreach, and door-knocking and phone-banking for the candidate.

Posted September 10, 2008
Press