I’ve read that you are
exploring a campaign for Congress as a Republican in the 13th District
of Pennsylvania. What’s the latest?
Barring any unforeseen circumstances, there will be an official announcement
of my intention to be a candidate and to win [in the near future].
When is the Republican primary?
There are going to be two primaries, one in the city of Philadelphia
which will happen in November or early December. And the next one
is going to be in the early part of the year [2006] in Montgomery
County. On both accounts, it seems as though there’s a very
significant chance that I’ll be running without substantial
opposition in the primaries.
What are your qualifications to be a member of the United
States Congress?
I think that to be a member of Congress you have to have a conviction
and a desire to serve your country. I have that. You need to have
a compass morally and politically of your beliefs. I have that. I
think you need to be an educated person on the issues and that is
achieved largely through reading and staying up-to-date. I certainly
have that. And, perhaps first and foremost, I’m bringing a fresh,
progressive perspective to a Washington that’s in substantial
need of reform and change.
How would you describe your political philosophy?
My political philosophy is one where I believe the government can
be a force for positive change in society. So, I believe that government
can do good work. I believe that government instead of creating dependent
individuals, and people dependent on government assistance,
should rather try to create independent people and give people the
tools to be free--independent citizens of a free, independent country.
Would you describe yourself as a conservative, a moderate
or a progressive?
I would say that I am fiscally conservative and socially progressive.
So, what does that mean in terms of issues like abortion
and gay rights?
On issues like abortion, I am pro-choice and believe they [abortions]
should be safe, legal and rare. And, on issues like gay rights, I
think that gay people are Americans too and are often a very positive
force, certainly in cities like Philadelphia.
What would be your top three legislative priorities?
There are three major issues facing the country. One is dealing with
the situation in Iraq. Two is reforming the health care system in
the country. And, three is making sure that our education system is
equal to the task of competing in the global environment.
With respect to the war in Iraq, we need to have a clearly defined
exit strategy. We have toppled a brutal dictator and now we need to
provide and allow the Iraqi people to deal with their own future themselves.
On health care reform, I think that it’s one of the most important
issues facing America. It consumes twelve or thirteen percent of the
gross domestic product of the country. It’s a grossly inefficient
system. It’s grossly expensive. Service and care are declining
in many areas. Fundamentally, [the problem is] because we do not have
a functioning market economy in the health care system. When you break
a finger, and get a $1,200 bill for having been in the hospital for
an hour, you know that something is wrong. The market is not functioning.
Special interests are controlling the single largest economic segment
in the United States. I would go into Washington with a view of making
health care much more affordable and unleashing the forces which,
for example, make cell phones and cars so affordable in America.
Is there anything in your business or personal history that
you think might distract from your candidacy?
Not materially. Not substantially. Certainly not in any way that’s
warranted. Are there certain things that my opponent, who is the very
definition of a career politician who cares nothing more than to get
re-elected, [would use] to win? She [may] engage in certain slanderous
campaign [tricks]. I don’t know. I hope not. If she does, that’s
her prerogative, and we’ll let the people decide in the end
what they think, but I’m not worried.
Are there things that you have said that you might wish you
hadn’t?
I’m a human being. And, we’ve all said things that, upon
reflection, we probably wouldn’t have said again. So, is there
something that I have said at some point that I wouldn’t say
again? Sure. That’s true of probably all six billion of us on
the planet.
Are you prepared for negative campaigning from your opponents
if it does come about?
You have to be prepared. Unfortunately, any time you enter the political
public arena in the United States, you need to prepare yourself to
be unfairly attacked and savaged in many ways. That is the highest
price that has to be paid in American politics. And, yeah, I’m
willing to do that. I believe in this country and I believe in the
causes that I’m standing up for and there’s a price to
be paid. It will be paid. I think we need reform in America. We need
a change in Washington. And nothing worthwhile ever comes with no
cost.
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| Do you think that you can
raise that kind of money? Three to five million dollars?
I think, at the end of the day, I’ll prove to be a quite capable
fundraiser.
Do you expect the South Asian community to
provide a base of support?
I think the South Asian community is going to be a very important
source of support. I think that, as a community, we have been extremely
successful financially in this country. However, while we’re
strong financially, the South Asian community in this country is comparatively
uninvolved and very weak politically. And, I think the time has come
for that to change. And, I think people within the community recognize
that.
What is it about your views that will excite the South Asian
community?
I think that the South Asian community represents the American dream.
People have come here, in most cases with little or no money, and
have succeeded by their own hard work, by their own discipline, by
their own belief in education, and by their own values. And, it goes
to show you that the American dream is alive and well. And, it’s
a very entrepreneurial community. I believe very passionately in the
Small Business Administration. It’s one of the great unsung
successes in American government. It’s an agency which gives
people the tools to create businesses on their own accord. I think
that the SBA should be strengthened and expanded massively because
it inculcates and breeds a society which is strong, independent and
entrepreneurial, which is America.
I think that another issue is my deep conviction that America’s
future in no small part lies in closer relations to the other great
democracy in the world, which is clearly India. From an ideological
basis, from a geopolitical basis, you name it, it’s a perfect
match. I think people in Washington are coming to recognize that.
[But there’s a] need to be forceful advocates, on both sides,
in India and the United States, and say this is an excellent, no-brainer
alliance relationship. It benefits India in terms of access to technology
and economic development. It benefits the United States by having
a friendly economic giant [on its side]. India is a proven peaceful
nation, whereas China remains a Communist dictatorship that is rapidly
growing and taking away our manufacturing base.
How do you think the United States should go about fighting
the war on terror?
This is obviously an extremely complicated question which great minds
have pondered. My belief is that the war on terror is won by a combination
of tools. On the one hand, it’s deterrence. If you actively
pursue terrorist policies towards the United States and its allies,
you will be eliminated. The second component of a policy is not to
expect that we can effectively change nations. I think one thing that
we’ve learned in Iraq is that you cannot go into a foreign society
and expect that with a fairly sparse concentration of troops that
we can change a society.
In Iraq and other places, I don’t support a policy of continuous
preemptive strikes against perceived enemies. In other words, wait
until an enemy proves himself to be an enemy by taking some action
or having clear, specific evidence that they’re intending to
take action, before making a preemptive strike. Bottom line, I’m
against the war in Iraq. And, I was against the war in Iraq when it
began. And, at this point, I think we need to leave it up to the Iraqi
people to determine their future.
What does that mean in terms of when President Bush should
withdraw the troops?
I think that the President needs to make it very clear to Iraqi leadership
that they need to stand up. They need to stop squabbling. They need
to stop hiding behind the shield of American troops’ presence
and begin to take measures immediately to provide for their own defense
and promotion of their own government. That means that the troops
should start coming out immediately. And, pressure should begin to
be brought to bear upon the Iraqi government to say, “look,
this is your country and you’ve got to deal with it.”
We’ve given you the tools, we’ve shown you the way, we
are doing what we can do to provide a path for you, but it is not
our job to build the sewer systems in Baghdad.
Do you keep in touch with your fellow candidates
on The Apprentice?
I keep in touch with many of them. I’d say about half of them.
What have they been doing? Give me a couple of examples.
A number of people have gone back to their regular lives. Maria has
started her own fashion line and is very successful at that. Chris
is back selling stocks which he does very well. Bradford is prospering
in his [law] practice. He’s actually running for city council
in Fort Lauderdale. I don’t know what Kelly does, apparently
he does something with water. Those are the people that I know about.
Actually, Andy is working for Trump. I think he has a more important
job than Kelly.
The ladies who read this magazine still want to know if you’re
single.
I remain single. I remain single.
And, how would you describe the ideal woman?
I think the ideal woman is a combination of beauty, inside and outside.
I think that she has an intense interest in the world around her.
She is a woman who can actually teach you something, who knows things
that I don’t know. She is an intriguing individual, and most
of all, is curious and interested in life. These are the women that
are really extraordinary, that you can sit down with and have a great
conversation with, and talk about some of the issues of the day and
about the interesting experience of life that we all go through.
Does that description include Anna Kournikova?
[laughs] We’ll leave that up for popular debate.
How can people get involved in your candidacy?
People can get involved in the candidacy in a number of ways. First
and foremost, this is going to require a lot of money. So, donations
are a great way to contribute to the campaign. Outside of that, we
will be building across the country a network of individuals who are
willing to bring people together in the South Asian community and
help mobilize the South Asian community to begin to take a very active
role in American politics. In their own areas, people can put together
events and dinner parties which I’ll go to and I’ll talk
to them about why I’m running and what I intend to do and answer
their questions about my candidacy. And, hopefully gain some support.
Sandeep Kathuria is an attorney and political junkie who works in Washington, D.C.
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