Date: Fri, 19 Jan 2007 15:19:56 -0800 From: Norm Matloff To: Norm Matloff Subject: Silicon Valley has dibs on Barack Obama To: H-1B/L-1/offshoring e-newsletter If you think that Barack Obama is bringing a fresh view to the Democratic Party, think again. At least in terms of allying himself with big money, it's the same old story, as seen in the article enclosed below. Note in particular Obama's connection to Wade Randlett. Randlett was, as noted, an adviser to TechNet, the powerful Silicon Valley lobbying group that was at the forefront in the push for H-1B expansion in the 1990s. You can bet that if Obama runs, his stance on H-1B will be the same as the other Democratic (and Republican) candidates: "There aren't enough American kids studying math and science, so we have an engineer and programmer shortage. The long-run solution is education, but in the short-run, we need H-1Bs to fill the gap and compete in the global marketplace. Also, to stay innovative we need to give foreign students incentives to continue to come to the U.S. and to stay here after they graduate." Norm San Jose Mercury News Fri, Jan. 19, 2007 Obama wins over tech-savvy supporters VALLEY PAC FORMED; FUNDRAISER IN WORKS By Mary Anne Ostrom Mercury News Obama-mania has hit the Bay Area. Tech-savvy politicos have formed a Silicon Valley-based political action committee supporting Barack Obama. A major local fundraiser is being planned for next month for the Illinois senator, who posted an Internet video announcing an exploratory committee for a 2008 presidential run. Bay Area politicians say the media-genic, mixed-race Obama is a natural for California and could go far here. The PAC, created by San Jose Democratic consultant Jude Barry, raised $30,000 in the final week of December in Silicon Valley. Onetime TechNet adviser Wade Randlett, a San Francisco fundraiser for Obama, says the phone is ringing off the hook from potential contributors and volunteers. San Francisco District Attorney Kamala Harris, an Obama friend, and Rep. Barbara Lee, D-Oakland, say his story ``reflects America.'' In ways few politicians have, Obama has ``already crossed from the political culture to celebrity culture,'' says Barry, who launched obama4america.com earlier this week at the urging of former eBay executive Tom Adams. While 2004 presidential candidate Howard Dean revolutionized fundraising on the Internet, Barry, who was Dean's California director in 2004, and others predict Obama will take campaigning a step further -- to the YouTube generation. While generating excitement among the tech-centric, progressive pockets of the Bay Area, Obama, 45, for many remains little-known beyond his résumé. And potential Democratic rival Sen. Hillary Clinton, D-N.Y., remains popular here and has a strong California organization. But the fascination with Obama is mushrooming. ``He's certainly bringing a new perspective to national politics,'' said Clayborne Carson, founding director of the Martin Luther King Jr. Research and Education Institute. ``It's not just the fact he is biracial. I think the fact he was raised in Hawaii and Indonesia helps give him a distinctive understanding of America in the world.'' Obama's anti-war stance and youth, combined with his upbringing, has made him an instant magnet for attention. From his stirring 2004 keynote speech at the National Democratic Convention in Boston to his 2006 bestseller, ``The Audacity of Hope,'' much has gone well for him. Whether he survives the 2008 presidential primary season or not, Bay Area political leaders say Obama already has changed the dialogue over race and politics. The son of a Kenyan father and white Kansan mother, who was raised on the Pacific Rim before heading to Harvard University, the U.S. senator from Illinois and likely candidate for the Democratic presidential nomination transcends many traditional divisions. ``A lot of us tend to oversimplify political labels,'' said Harris, who has an Indian mother and African-American father. Obama and Harris have hosted earlier fundraisers for each other. ``He's much more interesting and complex than those normal categories.'' Added Lee, ``I think his candidacy reminds Americans that we are a diverse country. What Sen. Obama reflects is America. And I hope Americans will see that as a positive. I think they will.'' But others say it is far too early to tell whether Obama, with only two years in the U.S. Senate, has the staying power to survive what's expected to be a brutal and costly primary season. And while a growing number of Americans say they could vote for an African-American president,'' said Steven Millner, chairman of the African-American Studies Department at San Jose State University, ``until I see clear evidence that older white voters, who are not members of the Democratic Party's left, start attaching bumper stickers with a name like `Obama' on their gas guzzlers, I'll reserve judgment.'' And while Obama may be drawing a page from Dean's Internet playbook, which helped raise money and attract young voters, there needs to be more to the message than the medium, say others. ``Along comes Obama, who obviously has great communication skills and clicks with people. But, ultimately, you're going to have to give people a more basic idea of what you're about,'' said Democratic political consultant Chris Lehane, who worked for Al Gore's 2000 campaign but is not currently affiliated with any presidential candidate. ``Is he going to be the Google of the presidential campaign and redefine the model or will he be the Webvan.com, which has a lot of promise on paper and takes off quickly, but ultimately sinks.'' Part of the promise is his ability, so far, to bridge the historically divisive racial divides. Stacy Thompson, an Oakland college educator who works on mixed-race issues, says in her experience, people of combined Caucasian and black heritage are more easily accepted by white Americans. ``They can speak comfortably as a member of both groups, of the pros and cons of both groups,'' said Thompson. Political experts think Obama's success or failure may answer the question of whether Americans can embrace a leader who does not look like most of them. ``If he has any realistic chance to turn the tide of history in America, people will have to push back the legacy of the American past. When they go in the voting booth, will Americans in large enough numbers really say, `I can vote for this guy who is half-black and let the legacy go'?'' said Albert Camarillo, a history professor at Stanford University. ``It's a rocky, rocky road. But even if he slips and falls, he's a very ambitious guy, and he'll be a household name when this is all through.'' -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Contact Mary Anne Ostrom at mostrom@mercurynews.com or (415) 477-3794. -------------------------------------------------------------------------- The Mercury News is pleased to let readers post comments about a report at the end of the article. 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