Ro's Presidential Misrepresentation
LIAR LIAR PANTS ON FIRE: Presidential Misrepresentation
Many of us are finding it hard to reconcile with Ro Khanna violating the pledge he took to oppose race based discrimination (SCA5) and supporting ACA5, which is on the ballot as Prop16.
Looking back at Ro's political career, we have observed a pattern of deception, and bold-faced misrepresentation. He was not afraid to fake endorsements by the President of the country; not once, but twice over a decade!
President Clinton's Press Release: Ro Khanna vs Tom Lantos (2004)
Ro Khanna ran against the Tom Lantos in the 2004 primaries for CA-12. In one of his mailer, he misrepresented comments President Clinton made to give an impression of an endorsement. In a strongly worded press release, President Clinton asserted that Ro Khanna had misled the voters and took the unusual step to endorse Congressperson Lantos.
The following is an excerpt from a post titled "You Know What They Say About Old Dogs And New Tricks-- Meet Crooked Conservative, Ro Khanna" published on this liberal leaning blog, Down With Tyranny. The post references a report in San Mateo Times (Feb 28, 2004). San Mateo Times has stopped publishing, and we cannot access the archives online. We are reproducing sections from the blog-post below:
It is probably any Democrats' worst nightmare heading into the final days of a tough primary-- Bill Clinton bashing your candidacy. But that's exactly what happened to Khanna on Thursday.
Clinton got steamed after Khanna sent out a mailer featuring his photo and comments he made to Khanna at an event. Clinton said Khanna did not have his permission to use the photo and comments, and it created the impression that the former President had endorsed the candidate.
Clinton wasn't satisfied with telling Khanna to cease-and-desist, he took the unusual step of endorsing Khanna's rival Congressman Tom Lantos because of the flap. Clinton said he generally does not endorse candidates in primaries.
"I regret that Ro Khanna has misled the people of the 12th District in this mailing," Clinton said in a press release.
President Obama's Endorsement: Ro Khanna vs Mike Honda (2014)
You would expect that a decade later Ro would have become wiser than his 27 year old self, and not create the false impression that the sitting president was endorsing him against the incumbent.
But some character flaws run deep.
Ro did not learn from his brush with President Clinton, and repeated the folly with President Obama.
A section from the blog post is reproduced below. The Obama endorsement is available in the Web-Archive of Mike Honda's old site.
Khanna attempted to mislead people into believing that because a few former low-ranking Obama operatives were taking his paychecks, Obama was behind him.
Obama immediately invited Honda in for a photo session and released this statement: "Congressman Mike Honda is the right leader for the 17th district. Together, we’ve worked hard these last four years to bring meaningful, positive change to our nation, but there is much more to do. As we continue rebuilding our economy from the middle out, we know expanding educational opportunities is critical. Congressman Honda's lifelong commitment to education and fierce advocacy for innovation and technology is exactly what this nation needs as we continue to move America forward. We need Congressman Mike Honda in the United States Congress, and I urge you to vote to keep him there."
Pattern of Deception: Surface in College Days (Univ of Chicago)
This pattern of electoral misrepresentation was not new to Ro. When he a student at the University of Chicago, he had to quit an elected position, after he admitted to doctoring receipts and mis-stating his campaign's expense to keep it under the $275 limit set by the University. An excerpt from the blog post is included below:
I managed to find a contemporary piece in the University of Chicago student newspaper, the Chicago Maroon (November 12, 1996) in which Khanna, confronted with the facts, admitted he had deliberately doctored receipts to hide the evidence that his campaign had exceeded spending limits
In a mea culpa published in an open letter in the student newspaper, Khanna admitted wrongdoing: "We did overspend the budget, and that in itself is unacceptable since it may have influenced the results of the election."
Food for Thought: What about Integrity?
One of the biggest challenge facing the America relates to the trust and integrity of politicians. Starting from the White House, our leaders have displayed a callous disregard for truth and integrity.
Unfortunately, Ro Khanna has also failed the integrity test repeatedly..
Ro is bold enough to mislead the electorate about endorsements from US Presidents, both sitting and former. He had no qualms about reversing his stand on race based discrimination by the state (SCA5/ACA5/Prop-16).
WE DESERVE BETTER!
Please join us in restoring dignity in to our politics, and vote out Ro Khanna.
Lets #MakeRoGo.
