The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) delegation visiting the US arrived in New York on Tuesday, with President Ma Ying-jeou’s (馬英九) second-eldest sister, Ma Nai-si (馬乃西), appearing at a rally calling for Taiwanese expatriates to return to Taiwan and vote for Ma in the presidential election in January.
The delegation, led by Legislative Deputy Speaker Tseng Yung-chuan (曾永權) and made up of staff from Ma’s re-election campaign, including campaign manager King Pu-tsung (金溥聰), attended the rally in Flushing, New York, along with Ma Nai-si, who lives in New Jersey.
More than 500 supporters showed up at the rally, sources said, adding that 10 campaign T-shirts, two with Ma Ying-jeou’s signature on them, were sold for as much as US$6,000.
Ma Nai-si thanked the crowd on behalf of her younger brother, saying that everybody was at the rally because they loved Taiwan, they wished to uphold the Constitution of the Republic of China (ROC) and they wished for the national flag to fly for eternity.
Earlier during a visit to Capitol Hill in Washington, the KMT delegation held a closed-door meeting with US Representative Gerald Connolly, co-chairman of the US Congressional Taiwan Caucus.
Connolly told the media after the meeting that he and the Taiwanese group had discussed three issues — arms sales, visa-free treatment for Taiwanese, and trade and economic links between the two countries.
The KMT delegation also met with several senators, including Jim Webb, Robert Menedez, Dianne Feinstein and Joe Lieberman.
King, commenting on a speech delivered by Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Chairperson Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) at the American Enterprise Institute on Tuesday in which she said the DPP’s cross-strait policies relied on first having a “Taiwan consensus” that could provide a solid foundation for talks with China, questioned the content of Tsai’s consensus.
Tsai often makes up some very good slogans, but under the glitter of the words, there’s not a lot of content, King said.
As a presidential candidate, Tsai has an obligation to face up to voters’ scrutiny, King said, adding that Tsai has not been examined often enough on her proposals so she is not used to it. It seems as though she does not like to be scrutinized, he said.
Translated by Jake Chung, staff writer
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