Like any American under our justice system, Leland Wong will have his day in court, and until the case is finished, we will refrain from commenting on the allegations or any specifics of this case, not only because we simply don? know all or even many of the facts of this case, but also because Leland Wong is, like any other American, entitled to the presumption of innocence until proven otherwise.

However, from what we at CAUSE do know of the man, and what we have observed of politics in general, we hereby offer a few observations that we hope will be instructive.

In the interest of full disclosure, Leland Wong, as a public affairs executive for Kaiser Permanente, has in the past contributed some of Kaiser? charitable foundation monies to CAUSE, as well as to other 501c(3) community non-profits. As a 501(c)(3) non-profit, non-partisan organization, however, CAUSE is prohibited from engaging in, has not engaged, and does not engage in partisan political activities.

The first point to note is that Leland Wong had a remarkable career, growing up in Chinatown, and rising from a mere city council staffer to become one of the most powerful political brokers in LA. He was not afraid to take tough stances and he was perceived by many to be a loyal team player. As today? article in the LA Times indicates, he had the style and the smarts to serve for nearly 14 continuous years on the biggest city commissions. http://www.latimes.com/news/politics/la-me-profile24aug24,0,4407142.story?coll=la-headlines-politics

Second, as a public affairs executive for a major corporation, Mr. Wong was very good at marshalling available resources to enhance his political influence and using this political influence to advance the goals of his employer and his own career. This is a trait much prized in the business, legal and political worlds, and shrewd politicians, politicos and leaders wield such influence everyday and everywhere. That said, there is a cautionary aspect to this as well: as one notices with a lot of other powerful political figures with increasing influence, the line separating the different interests can blur. The more successful a politician, or business leader becomes, the easier it is to get complacent and become less careful of the lines separating the different interests. There is an important lesson here for all of us interested in having a role in the public arena: you can never get too comfortable that you stop paying attention to how your actions might be interpreted by critics in the future. Or even critics in the present, those just below or above you on the watch for one false move. And as the saying goes, everyone is a critic.

The third thing that can be said for Mr. Wong is that he has never been shy about using his company? charitable foundation monies to help Asian American non-profit organizations. Many community service organizations are stronger today because of his generous contributions. No matter how Mr. Wong ends up being judged, his role as a strong advocate for our community should not be minimized. It will of course be interesting to observe how the APA community reacts to his indictment in the coming months.

This case will continue to play out in the courtroom and newspapers, and most likely in local community discussions. As a final note for now, reports indicate that Mr. Wong? case might be the only indictment of the long and broad investigation of the Hahn administration. Alas, until events develop further, this has an all-too-familiar ring to it for many Asians. After all, John Huang was singled out for prosecution in the Clinton fundraising scandal. Wen Ho Lee, James Yee, and even Katrina Leung could claim they were singled out. However one chooses to view this and the other situations mentioned, Leland Wong? case is yet another caution that Asians need to be extra careful. It is dangerous for us to think that just because other politicians and politicos (of every stripe) may have wielded political power or acted in similar ways with apparent impunity, that we can do the same. As Asians, we all know that we are held to a higher standard. Moan and gripe about it as much as we will, that fact is not likely to change anytime soon. So let? recognize that and protect ourselves accordingly.

Post By : Charles Woo and Sharon Owyang

Post Date: Thursday, August 24, 2006    11:14:54 PM