With 14 days left before the final face-off between Democratic candidate Senator Barack Obama and the Republican candidate Senator John McCain, their respective supporters in Taiwan are sharpening their political rhetoric to make sure their candidate is the one showered with confetti and balloons on Nov. 4.
“Obama is incredibly intelligent. I think the US needs a black president to reverse the racist attitude in many white folks who have to undercut the misconception of African Americans in the country,” said Hillary Galland, a teacher at the Hsinchu International School.
Galland, much troubled with the quality of education in the US, applauded Obama’s plan to boost teacher’s salaries, saying the persistent low wages have resulted in under qualified teachers and a substandard education system.
Galland was one of the more than 100 Obama supporters gathered at a fundraising dinner in Tienmu (天母) last month. The most common complaint among the crowd was not related to McCain, but to McCain’s running mate, Alaska Governor Sarah Palin.
One person said that he cannot sleep at night for fear that Palin, often mocked by the Democrats as a “hockey mom,” could end up with her finger on the red button.
“McCain is 72 years old and is known to have health problems. If elected, Palin would only be a heartbeat away from the presidency. What if something happens to McCain? Palin is not qualified to run the country. She is just not qualified. Period,” said Arizona-native Hal Falls, who has been in Taiwan for 16 years.
Doubts about Palin’s competence, however, are a non-issue for the McCain fans, one of which has complimented her as a “quick learner.”
“She has proven herself as a pretty quick learner. To me, she won the [vice presidential] debate by a wide margin,” said David Mann, a US businessman.
Richard Thurston, vice president of a major tech company based in Hsinchu, pointed out that Palin, as Alaska governor, is the only person in the race that had hands-on experience running a state and believes she will “learn on the job” as US Secretary of State Condelezza Rice has done since 2005.
Former US president Ronald Regan, he said, was criticized for being too old and frail to be the president, “and he turned out of to be one of the best US presidents in history.”
Both camps also vehemently argued that their candidate has Taiwan’s best interest in mind and that if elected, the Oval Office would not bow to Beijing’s whims and demands but would actively safeguard Taiwan’s democracy against any possible Chinese aggression.
“There is no doubt that Obama and the Democratic Party would be a lot stricter on the US dealings with China than McCain would be. McCain, and especially Palin, would end up kowtowing to China because she has so little experience in foreign policy,” Fall said.
“Presidents have come and gone in the last 30 years but the support for Taiwan expressed by Congress through the American voters has always been steadfast. I am confident that Obama will continue to respect the support voiced by the American people,” said Christopher Fay, the chief executive officer of Saatchi and Saatchi Taiwan.
In a letter he penned to President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) on his victory in May, Obama advocated maintaining a US military presence in the Asia-Pacific region and wrote, “I will do all I can to support Taiwan’s democracy in the years ahead,” while continuing to adhere to the “one China” policy.
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