Supervisor Dave Cortese & President Obama

Jade Buddha of Compassion & Supervisor Dave Cortese

Dear Vietnamese-American Leaders:

 

 

On behalf of the Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors and the Di Lac Temple, I would like to invite you to attend a Ceremony for Greeting the Jade Buddha of Compassion in San Jose, which will be held at 11.00 AM on March 3rd, 2012 at Unify Center, 765 Story Road in San Jose, CA.

This ceremony will feature the world acclaimed Jade Buddha of Compassion, which is one of the largest Buddha carved from gemstone quality jade in the United States of America. The Jade Buddha is a solemn and prayerful symbol of compassion, empathy, love and peace and it arrives in San Jose for the first time.

It is a privilege and honor for Santa Clara County to have been selected as a host site for the Jade Buddha of Compassion. This beautiful statue serves to encourage and inspire all citizens of the human race to reflect on love and compassion; compassion and love within the community, compassion and love within each of us, compassion and love within the family. I feel extremely humbled to have been asked by the Di Lac Temple to help organize this unique opportunity and I hope you will join us in this awe-inspiring experience.

The Grand Opening Ceremony will be attended by diverse representation from the faith, political and grassroots communities, and will include a special prayer for world peace and compassion.

The Jade Buddha of Compassion is a spectacular sight for all to see and I hope you can make time to participate in the ceremony. For more information or to RSVP, please contact The-Vu Nguyen in my office at (408) 299-5038 or the-vu.nguyen@bos.sccgov.org or Venerable Thich Quang Bao at (408) 888-2062 or dilactemple@gmail.com.

Thank you for your consideration of this invitation and I look forward to seeing you at the event.

Sincerely,

Dave Cortese

Co-Chair of the Jade Buddha of Compassion Committee

Santa Clara County Supervisor-District Three

Tyler Diep Quits the Race for State Assembly

As has been rumored since last week in Little Saigon,  Tyler Diep officially announced his intention to quit the race for 72nd Assembly District.  This is a newly drawn district where Asian American voters will be a deciding factor in the race.   His reason - " A new tactical change and also the situation is not favorable".     He felt that since there are 2 other Vietnamese-American candidates in the race, he does not want to be in a three-way battle vying for the Vietnamese-American votes.

This is quite strange for somebody who was supposedly the strongest candidate with the support of well known Republican leaders and also his amazing ability to raise money.  Within 2 months of his announcement to run, he has raised over $130,000. 

The other two Vietnamese- American candidates so far could hardly raise any money.  One of them is a perenial candidate for state assemblyman for the last 10 years,  Long Pham.   He is considered to be a joke within Little Saigon and has decided to take out a $100,000 loan instead of trying to go about raising money.

What even more puzzling why he was so unsure of himself is that  he has the personal support of the editor-in-chief of Nguoi Viet Daily News.   Matter of fact,  Nguoi Viet Daily News has indirectly promoting his campaign by giving him extensive media exposure for the last 2 months.   This is the largest newspaper in town and still quite influential.

So Tyler must know something that everybody in Little Saigon knows,  Van Tran and his cohorts are not well liked within the Vietnamese-American voters in Little Saigon.   He does not have a Vietnamese-American base since the voters rather vote for a political jokester like Long Pham than him.

Anyway, the winner in this new landscape is Do Vinh, the democratic candidate and the husband of Dina Nguyen, the one time supervisor candidate against Janet Nguyen.

What is next for Tyler,  the rumor is that he will be running  for mayor against Tri Ta.    What would even be more interesting is to see if Andy Quach would test the water and also run for the mayoral seat in 2012?  He and Tyle Diep have a big fallout recently because of their personal business competition against each other. 

John Tran Guilty of Bribery & Van Tran Cohorts

John Tran, a member of the "Gang of Seven" of former state Assemblyman Van Tran, recently pleaded guilty for bribery.  Basically when he was the mayor of Rosemead, he used his office to bully a developer in paying him money on the side in order to get the building permit approved.    Appearantly, he is not as smart as his "Gang of Seven" cohorts, in this case, Andy Quach and Tyler Diep, city council members of Wesminster.   But first let us read the news as published by Whittier Daily News -

http://www.whittierdailynews.com/news/ci_19890654

There had been rumors of corruption but it took a developer who has the gut to be the informant for the FBI to bring down John Tran.

According to the Whittier Daily News -

Cathy Satterfield, president of the El Monte Union teachers union, often questioned Tran's integrity during his tenure at the district.

While Tran has not been charged with any wrongdoing at the school district, Satterfield said she had concerns about how the board was awarding contracts and taking bids on projects

I don't know what to say besides, 'I told you so,"' she said. "When you make a decision like that, you can't turn back the clock." ........

Now let us go back to Tyler Diep and Andy Quach.  It is well known that both Andy Quach and Tyler Diep have their own consultant firms involving in helping client getting permits from housing development, opening a restaurant to liquor license. 

The business is booming it seems for each of them have multiple houses and at least two Mercedes in their respective garages.   This is a perk that goes along with being a council member in a small town where it is not a full time job. 

When Van Tran was still in power, his underlings Tyler Diep and Andy Quach knew that in order to be successful, they had to learn how to share the actions.   Well, now without adult supervison,  Quach and Diep are at each other throat vying for every bit of business.    It is not a suprise in Little Saigon that Quach is not endorsing Diep for assemblyman or even provide Diep with any politcal support. 

In the mean time, poor John Tran.   He was a strong supporter of Van Tran and the Trannie as they were vying for political offices.     But now, according to his wife, none of the  members of the  "Gang of Seven" even bother to reach out to him during his trying time.

Luna New Year's Greetings - Janet Nguyen, OC Supervisor

Lunar New Year's Greetings - Dave Cortese, County Supervisor

Chúc Mừng Năm Mới

Dear Vietnamese-American Community,

In celebration of the Year of the Dragon, I wish you and your family a joyous year of prosperity, harmony, and good health.

I congratulate the Vietnamese American community for its special and unique contributions to Santa Clara County and for enriching our cultural diversity.

What is crucial to strengthening our County? It is your participation in local events and government so your voices could be heard and your needs can be met. Please join me in improving the Vietnamese American community.

Once again, “Chúc Mừng Năm Mới” and let’s continue to work together to build a better County.

Warm Wishes,

Dave Cortese

Santa Clara County Supervisor

Happy Lunar New Year from President Obama

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kd7tbOVJKZg&feature=email