Shantu Shah's April 12, 2006 TVCTV Address to League of Women Voters of Washington County

My Sisters and Brothers of Washington County:

It gives me great pleasure to introduce myself to you. My name is Shantu Shah. Like each of you I have been an Oregon citizen for the last twenty eight (28) years. I am your can do candidate for the Representative in US Congress for District One Oregon. I have met many of you in my door-to-door campaign through the neighborhoods, trails, malls, and the streets.

I would like to express my gratitude to the League of Women Voters of Washington County by making possible this televised interview of candidates so I can converse with many of you, as it is almost impossible to reach in person each and every voter of our District One spreading across four (4) counties of Clatsop, Columbia, Yamhill, Washington, and part of the Multnomah County.

I attended North Carolina State University, School of Engineering in 1970 and received a post baccalaureate degree in Electrical and Telecommunications engineering. I am a Registered Professional Consulting Electrical Engineer and have extensive experience in design, construction, and management of power generation, transmission, distribution for state government utility and emergency telecommunications systems to protect federal buildings in Pennsylvania and Colorado.

I am a Beaverton Leadership Charter Class graduate. A few years ago I received an award as the second fastest growing company within 100 fastest growing companies by the Portland Business Journal of Commerce. I am on the Board of Interfaith Council of Greater Portland. We are planning a Festival of Faith on September 17, 2006 with M.K. Gandhi’s grandson Arun Gandhi as a keynote speaker for the event.

My wife has worked for Reser’s Fine Foods in Beaverton for the last twenty years. My younger son, a graduate engineer from Oregon State University, works for Intel. My older son has a degree in Mechanical Engineering from Portland State University works for PAE consulting Engineers in downtown Portland and his wife has a diploma in performing arts from Louis & Clerk College. My family and I have contributed in the US and Oregon economy for several years now. We have hosted exchange students and businessmen from India, Brazil, Austria, England, Africa, Mexico, Japan, and Fiji Islands.

I participated in a trade mission by the City of Beaverton to its sister city Gotemba, Japan, and was the sole representative from Oregon for the U.S. Department of Commerce trade mission to Hong Kong and Singapore. I have extensively traveled to Asia, Europe, New Zeeland, and Fiji Islands for business and Rotary International community service. What distinguishes me from other candidates for US Congress is my international exposure to global trade and my background and experience with the city, state, and federal government. The advanced technology, utility, and industrial, clients like Intel and Willamette Steel Mills are the projects I have managed that have created thousands of jobs for the past three decades.

My brothers and sisters, please allow me to ask each of you “Are we better off today than we were eight (8) years ago?” Certainly I am not better off. Isn’t it a time for an overhaul of the entire U.S. Congress leadership, so you do not have to worry about escalating health care costs and the daily loss of lives and limbs of our sons and daughters in Iraq? It’s time for drastic changes in the status quo of déjà vu warmongers in Congress that are responsible for this economic fiasco.

Ladies and Gentlemen: George Bush’s war has now consumed $270 billion dollars and is rising daily - enough money to hire 4.6 million teachers and provide healthcare for 162 million children. Worse, nearly 2,300 brave American soldiers have lost their lives, another 17,000 have been maimed or wounded, and tens of thousands of innocent Iraqi civilians have been killed.

I have a clean slate. I am against the current political squabbling and the rampant corruption in the three branches of our government. Let’s turn the tables on these rascals with our high voter turnout and revolt against the déjà vu. We can’t remain silent while our livelihood, health, privacy, and our liberty are in jeopardy. We can’t be held slaves at the whims of this elite ruling class of Congress. We will tell them during this May primary with our high voter turnout that voters are not ignorant or as apathetic as déjà vu’s perceive us. And I need your assistance in throwing out the rascals from their corruptive stranglehold over American citizens like you and me. Drastic times call for drastic measures.

I am for what's just plain common sense to the average American. American citizenship is not for sale. I want to stop the infighting in Washington so that the government can do more for you, the common people. It's just common sense. I am for severely cutting, if not eliminating, taxes on the average American by raising taxes on the rich and cutting wasteful government programs.

I am for giving you increased benefits. You should get free healthcare like the members of Congress receive, free education, free food, free room and board — whatever you need, just like in Sweden. I am for cutting the cost of medicine and hospital equipment by opening price competition from other countries which make comparable medicine and hospital equipment.

I am for a strong US economy, education, research, and exports to South Asia. I am going to lower the deficit and stop going to war with far flung countries so that you get a good job and make more money. No more Regime changes please.

I am for the stronger environmental regulations, so that you have clean air to breathe and clean water to drink. I am for stronger corporate regulations, so that you don't get your money stolen from swindlers like Enron again. I am for stronger safety regulations so you don't die in a car crash or from some poisonous products. Why didn’t Bush-Cheney go to war on GM/Ford plants for making unsafe cars?

I am for common-sense security. Does it make sense to attack Iraq and then spend billions of dollars rebuilding it? Does it make sense to go to a war against terror when you're far more likely to be killed in a car accident than in a terrorist attack? I will initiate Bush and Cheney impeachment for lying to Congress about weapons of mass destruction and invading Iraq and creating the $9 trillion deficit. And if I have to begin fasting to convince the members of congress I will consider doing so. Bring back real democracy to our red and blue states, while the stubbornly stupid Bush-Cheney teamsters are trying to bring the democracy to lawless Iraq. Risking our sons and daughters, and plunging us into the inconceivable nine trillion dollar debt economic debt is ludicrous; it’s an impeachable crime.

Lastly each of these napping congressmen and women have been caught with their pants down while 11 million 21^st century immigrants snuck into the U.S. It’s high time we resolve this intellectually once and for all.

I am not with the tax-and-spend déjà vu liberals or the tax-and-bomb conservatives like the Bush-Cheney White House team. I am frustrated just like you. I want to be your voice in the U.S. Congress. I will do the things that just plain make sense. Instead of hearing news from Washington about whatever little things they've decided to bicker about this week, wouldn't it be great if you could hear about the new things I mentioned earlier like making wise use of your money and saving it for a rainy day?

I am for personal freedom and privacy. Rehab is much cheaper! Imprisonment is a waste of your money! It's time for real change in DC. It's time for the common sense candidates. The déjà vu’s, camouflaged with corrupt corporate and casino cash must be voted out.

We will begin our Voters’ Victory march in May 2006 to Washington, D.C., and experience it in November 2006 to teach a life long lesson to the tax cheaters. David Wu may hide déjà vu behind elite insidiously corrosive corporate curtains, while I, Shantu as your representative, am not going to sit silent to achieve the real and everlasting peace for the people and victory for the voters.

Let’s bring our friends in hordes to cast your votes by mail to oust the status quo for ever. This is not the last time the voters’ revolt has happened since the Boston Tea Party. History repeats itself. Voters’ victory is visible at the end of 2006 tunnel. If you will not drop our vote in the ocean of elections it would be one drop away from our thundering wave of victory. It’s you women and men whose choice counts. I wish my running mates, Good Luck!

My message is very simple:

"Please vote for Shantu Shah as Oregon District One Representative in Congress.

Mail your ballots before Monday, May 15 2006.

To Bring Troops Home.

To stop Corruption in Congress.

To Control skyrocketing Health Care Cost and For Stronger Economy, Higher Education, Cleaner Environment, and Stronger Exports.

Thank you kindly for your vote."

“War is weakness, Peace is Power.” “International understanding is Peace.”

If you need a copy of what I said today please log on to my website:

http://Shah4USCongress.blogspot.com

If you have questions please call me: 503-245-1722. My email address: EDCShah@yahoo.com.