Joseph Cao | |
---|---|
File:CaoBlueBackground.JPG | |
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Louisiana's 2nd district | |
Assumed office January 3, 2009 | |
Preceded by | William J. Jefferson |
Personal details | |
Political party | Republican |
Spouse(s) | Hieu "Kate" Hoang, daughters Sophia and Betsy[1] |
Residence | New Orleans, Louisiana |
Alma mater | Jersey Village High School,[2] near Houston, Texas Baylor University Fordham University Loyola University New Orleans |
Profession | Lawyer |
Website | http://josephcao.house.gov/ |
Anh "Joseph" Quang Cao (Vietnamese: Cao Quang Ánh Template:PronEng; Gow[3]) (born March 13, 1967) is a New Orleans lawyer and a U.S. Representative from Louisiana's 2nd congressional district. He is a member of the Republican Party. On December 6, 2008, Cao defeated nine-term Democratic U.S. Representative William Jefferson with 49.6 percent of the vote to Jefferson's 46.8 percent. Cao is the first Vietnamese-American as well as the first native of Vietnam to serve in Congress. He won in a district that usually votes overwhelmingly Democratic.[4]
Cao previously ran unsuccessfully as an independent for District 103 of the Louisiana House of Representatives.[5] He was a delegate to the 2008 Republican National Convention.[6] Cao is a member of the Orleans Parish Board of Election Supervisors.[7] A devout Roman Catholic, he is a board member for Mary Queen of Vietnam Catholic Church's Community Development Corporation[8] which assists Vietnamese-Americans with hurricane relief,[9] and is a member of the National Advisory Council of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops.[10]
Family
Cao's father, My Quang Cao (born 1931), was a lieutenant in the Army of the Republic of Vietnam and was captured by the North Vietnamese Army at the end of the Vietnam War. His mother, Khang Thi Tran (born 1935), fled South Vietnam in May 1975, during the fall of Saigon, with Cao and two more of her seven children. Cao was 8 years old when he arrived to the United States with two siblings and an uncle as a refugee.[11] Cao's father was imprisoned for seven years in a communist re-education camp, before being released and joining his family in Houston, Texas. Both of Cao's parents, the mother pushing the wheelchair-bound father, attended their son's swearing-in ceremony in Washington on 2009 January 6.[12] Cao is married to Hieu “Kate” Hoang; they have two daughters—Sophia and Betsy. The Caos live in New Orleans' Venetian Isles neighborhood.[13] Kate and Joseph met, in 1998, at Mary Queen of Vietnam Catholic Church in New Orleans East and have attended there since, with the children. After the 2008 election, registered pharmacist Kate, an alumna of the Xavier University of Louisiana College of Pharmacy, resigned her position with a New Orleans Walgreens pharmacy.[14]The family relocated to the District of Columbia for Joseph Cao's congressional service.[15]
Education
Cao has a diverse educational background and, in fact, almost became a Catholic priest. He graduated from Jersey Village High School in Houston. He then earned a bachelor's degree in physics at Baylor University in Waco, Texas, and became a Jesuit seminarian, which he remained for a period of six years.[16] Cao received his master's degree in philosophy from Fordham University in New York City. In 2000, he completed his J.D. at Loyola University School of Law in New Orleans. While in law school he also taught undergraduate courses in philosophy at Loyola.
Legal career
Cao abandoned his plans to become a Roman Catholic priest to focus on lay ministry in assisting parishioners and others, using his legal training and experience in immigration issues.
He taught at a local parochial school in Virginia and volunteered at Boat People SOS (BPSOS)[17] to assist Vietnamese refugees and immigrants and help organize Vietnamese-American communities toward self-sufficiency. He served as a board member of BPSOS from September 1996 to March 2002.
After working with Waltzer & Associates, Cao opened his own law practice specializing in immigration law. He decided to enter politics after seeing the ineffective government response to Hurricane Katrina, and soon became involved in leading New Orleans East residents to oppose a landfill.[18]
Louisiana's 2nd Congressional District election, 2008
The situation, endorsements, campaign dynamics, and results gave the election significance far beyond the boundaries of the district.
Situation
Incumbent U.S. Representative William J. Jefferson won the Democratic primaries in 2008. Jefferson had weathered a major challenge in the Louisiana 2nd congressional district election, 2006, overcoming allegations that he had inappropriately used members of a Louisiana Army National Guard unit to reach his home during the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.[19]
In 2008 Jefferson also faced federal charges of bribery involving Nigerian business interests and was perceived as vulnerable, with only 25 percent of Democrats voting for him in the Democratic primary. Jefferson faced six African-American challengers, along with newscaster Helena Moreno, all clamoring to change Louisiana's reputation for political corruption.[20] In a runoff primary, Jefferson defeated Moreno by 57 percent to 43 percent in a vote largely along racial lines. Unopposed for the Republican nomination, Cao ran against Jefferson, as did Green Party candidate Malik Rahim and Libertarian Party candidate Gregory Kahn.[21] An earlier candidate, independent Jerry Jacobs, had withdrawn.[22]
Endorsements
On November 30, the New Orleans Times-Picayune endorsed Cao in an editorial,[23] while on its op-ed page columnist James Gill stated that Jefferson's reelection "is not going to happen."[24] The prospect of a serious general election in the heavily African American and Democratic 2nd district was startling, as the last Republican to represent the district was Hamilton D. Coleman, who left office in 1891.[25]
Cao's candidacy received the endorsements of the Alliance for Good Government,[26] the Family Research Council's Action PAC,[27] Jefferson Parish Sheriff Newell Normand,[28] Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal,[29] and singer Pat Boone.[30] In the final days of the campaign Democrats Helena Moreno, who was defeated by Jefferson in the Democratic primary runoff election, and former District Attorney Harry Connick, father of singer Harry Connick, Jr., endorsed Cao and recorded telephone messages to be played to voters.[28] New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin had announced his support for Jefferson during the Democratic primary elections. The New Orleans Gambit Weekly, citing its opposition to Jefferson's alleged corruption and to Cao's noncommittal statements on embryonic stem-cell research, made no endorsement.[31]
Campaign
The campaign was characterized by what Jefferson's campaign called "overly negative" tactics on behalf of Cao's campaign by outside organizations, such as the National Republican Congressional Committee. References were made to Democratic Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi's removal of Jefferson from the House Ways and Means Committee and entailed what USA Today termed a "barrage"[32] of automated telephone calls, including from a woman who identified herself as "Katy" and who cited Jefferson's federal indictment on 16 counts of corruption. In a meeting of African-American ministers, Reverend Samuel Butler claimed the reason was to "disenfranchise" African-American voters, which motivated Cao advisor and former New Orleans City Council member Bryan Wagner[33] to reply: "with Rev. Butler's imagination, he may want to go to work for Walt Disney."[34]
On December 6, the Times-Picayune reiterated its endorsement of Cao, pointing to President-Elect Barack Obama's efforts on behalf of Democrat Paul Carmouche in the simultaneous election in Louisiana's 4th congressional district and Obama's non-involvement in efforts to support Jefferson.[35]
Results
CNN, at 10:20 PM CST of the election day, projected Cao to win.[36] Complete unofficial results on the Louisiana Secretary of State's web site showed Cao with 33,122 (49.55%), Jefferson 31,296 (46.82%), Kahn 548 (0.82%), and Rahim 1,880 (2.81%).[37] Jefferson won by 23,197 to 20,246 in Orleans Parish, where 21 of the 392 precincts showed zero votes for Cao.[38] Cao, however, more than made up the difference with a margin 12,696 to the incumbent's 8,099 in Jefferson Parish.[39] A post-election map analysis by the Times-Picayune showed the election result as having depended on higher turnout in the precincts favorable to Cao.[40]
After speaking by telephone 4 days after the election, on 2008 December 31, Wednesday, Jefferson and Cao met cordially at the home of New Orleans' Liberty Bank CEO Alden McDonald to discuss the transition. Despite the difference in seniority, the late date of Cao's election means that he will inherit Jefferson's office, 2113, in the Rayburn House Office Building.[41]
Cao made the following staff appointments:[42]
- District Aide: Murray P. Nelson
- Director of Constituent Services: John Tobler
- Director of Special Projects: Rosalind Peychaud
- Legislative Director: Christopher Ingram
- Scheduler: Anna Dearmon
After confirmation by the House Republican Conference, Cao was assigned to the Homeland Security Committee and the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee.[43]
Significance
Politico.com declared Cao's victory one of America's "Top 10 Political Upsets" of 2008.[44]
Cao's win rendered the 2nd District the most Democratic district in the nation to be represented by a Republican; the district has a Cook Partisan Voting Index of D+28.[45]
Cao's victory over a tainted incumbent became a cause for celebration among many in Louisiana. As stated by Jeff Crouere in his column Ringside Politics, "The victory strikes a major blow against the reputation of Louisiana as a corrupt state."[46] Contrasts to a virtually simultaneous event—the allegation that Illinois continued to be corrupt as its governor, Rod Blagojevich, was trying to benefit personally by selling a U.S. Senate seat—were inevitable.[47]
No sooner had Cao been elected than questions about his reelectability were already front and center. According to AP reporter Kevin McGill,paraphrasing longtime New Orleans political consultant William "Bill" Rouselle, Cao "will have his work cut out for him."[48] In this presumed quest for reelection Cao has been adamantly encouraged by Wagner, who, as described by Times-Picayune columnist Stephanie Grace, asserts that Cao can win reelection if he staffs key positions with African-Americans and emphasizes service to constituents. Grace quoted Wagner as saying that, if Cao focuses on the needs of the people he represents, they "aren't going to care whether the congressman is black, yellow or blue."[49] In his final column of 2008, John Maginnis, naming Cao's election as one of eight reasons why the year was one of the "most eventful" in Louisiana political history, asserted that Cao's "electoral future is uncertain but not untenable."[50] Political watchdog C.B. Forgotston said he assumed that the Democrats would regain the seat in 2010 once the majority party unites behind a new candidate free of the scandal associated with Jefferson.[51]
As of 2008 December 20, Cao's relationship to the Congressional Black Caucus remained uncertain. George Mason University political scientist Michael K. Fauntroy described Cao's expressed interest in joining as "a very smart move":
- It sends a message to black voters in his district that, even though he's a Republican, he is doing more than just paying lip service to the history of the district. . . . I don't expect it to work out, but if it doesn't, to me the caucus will look bad on this.[52]
House GOP members have particularly been vocal in their glee over Cao's defeat of the Democrat. Among many other statements, House minority leader John Boehner asserted Cao's win as "a symbol of our future" in a memorandum with "The Future Is Cao" as its subject line.[53]
Electoral history
Louisiana State Representative, 103rd Representative District, 2007[54]
Threshold > 50%
Candidate | Affiliation | Support | Outcome |
Reed S. Henderson | Democratic | 1,376 (21.61%) | Runoff |
Mark Madary | Republican | 1,188 (18.66%) | Runoff |
"Mike" Bayham | Republican | 1,154 (18.13%) | Defeated |
Clay Cosse | Republican | 1,144 (17.97%) | Defeated |
Anh "Joseph" Cao | Independent | 895 (14.06%) | Defeated |
"Rob" Ruffino | Democratic | 609 (9.57%) | Defeated |
Candidate | Affiliation | Support | Outcome |
Reed S. Henderson | Democratic | 3,143 (52.37%) | Elected |
Mark Madary | Republican | 2,858 (47.63%) | Defeated |
U. S. Representative, 2nd Congressional District, 2008[54]
Candidate | Affiliation | Support | Outcome |
Joseph Cao | Republican | 33,132 (49.54%) | Elected |
Bill Jefferson | Democratic | 31,318 (46.83%) | Defeated |
Others | n.a. | 2,432 (3.64%) | Defeated |
Notes
- ^ Michelle Krupa and Frank Donze. "Anh 'Joseph' Cao beats Rep. William Jefferson in 2nd Congressional District" (The Times-Picayune, 2008 December 6, Saturday, 11:40 PM CST, for paper publication the following day).
- ^ "The Candidate" by Michelle Krupa, Times-Picayune, 2008 December 8, p. A2. See also Jersey Village, Texas.
- ^ Halloran, Liz (2008-12-10). "Once Snubbed By GOP, Now Hailed As Its Future". National Public Radio. Retrieved 2008-12-10.
- ^ Greg Giroux, "Republican Wins Upset Victory over Indicted Louisiana Congressman" in CQWeekly, 2008 December 15, p. 3374.
- ^ "After Katrina, Vietnamese Become Political Force in New Orleans."
- ^ "Should Congress Have a Cao?" by Quin Hillyer. While Cao and his family were at the Convention, the Cao home had been flooded by Hurricane Gustav. They spent much of the campaign living with friends while their home was repaired.
- ^ Orleans Parish Board of Election Supervisors membership accessed 2008 December 8. Each parish has a Board of Election Supervisors established in the Revised Statutes 18:423 of the Louisiana Election Code. The Louisiana Secretary of State web site displays an easier-to-read analysis of the duties of the Parish Boards of Election Supervisors. Cao was appointed to the Board by Governor Bobby Jindal.
- ^ "The Candidate" by Michelle Krupa, Times-Picayune, 2008 December 8, p. A2.
- ^ MQVNCDC "About Us" web site. Observe the photographs of then-Councilwoman Cynthia Willard-Lewis and the demonstrations against the landfill.
- ^ PoliticsLA Cao article, which lists various facts about Cao's background.
- ^ "Q & A: Rep. Larry Kissell and Rep. Anh "Joseph" Cao". C-SPAN. 2009-01-11. Retrieved 2001-01-16.
- ^ The parents stayed, during their trip to swearing-in ceremony, with a daughter, Thanh Cao Tran, who had fled simultaneously with her brother Anh "Joseph" Cao from Vietnam in 1975 and who now lives in Falls Church, Virginia. Jonathan Tilove, "Cao Makes Splash as Congress Sworn In" (Times-Picayune, 2009 January 7, Saint Tammany Edition, pp. A1, A5), http://www.nola.com/news/index.ssf/2009/01/cao_makes_splash_as_congress_s.html retrieved 2009 January 6. For many years Cao either could not or did not keep in regular contact with his father. His mother was permitted to visit the father just five times during his 7 years of captivity in the communist re-education camp. Released from captivity, the father had post-traumatic stress disorder and diabetes and hardened anti-communist feelings but is reticent in Vietnamese and knows very little English, as reported by CNN.
- ^ For the Parish Board of Election Supervisors, the Louisiana Secretary of State lists Cao's address as 4371 Murano Road, New Orleans, LA 70129-2646, the telephone number being (504) 368-0491. See Mapquest and Google Maps.
- ^ Peter Finney, "Mr. Cao Goes to Washington as First Vietnamese-American in Congress" reported by the Catholic News Service on 2008 December 16.
- ^ Besides Cao's parents, Kate and the two children along with Wagner, people with a background in New Orleans, and a contingent of Vietnamese-Americans attended the swearing-in. Cao held 4-year-old Betsy in his left arm while raising his right arm for the oath. After the official swearing-in by Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, Jefferson Parish Judge Robert Murphy readministered the oath in front of a crowd assembled at Cao's new office. See Tilove, "Cao Makes Splash" also cited supra.
- ^ For Cao's pragmatic and Kierkegaardian reasons for departing his quest to be a priest, see Neely Tucker, "The Possible Dream: Louisiana's Historic New Congressman Seems to Surprise Everyone but Himself" from the Washington Post, 2008 December 30 (retrieved 2009 January 6). Tucker notes that Cao spent part of his seminary training at the home of his sister in the District of Columbia suburbs. Cf. the "Family" section concerning Cao's sister in Falls Church, Virginia. In the 2009 January 5 Times-Picayune (Metro Edition, pp. A1, A4), Jonathan Tilove ("Cao's Star Already Rising in D.C.") termed Neely's Washington Post "Style Section" article on Cao "a grand and glowing profile . . . the likes of which most members of Congress can only dream of" (retrieved 2009 January 12).
- ^ For an explanation of the term "boat people" with respect to refugees from the Vietnam War, see the "Vietnamese boat people" article. For information on Boat People SOS (BPSOS) per se, see the BPSOS web site.
- ^ 2006 successful opposition to landfill.
- ^ "Katrina: Louisiana Congressman William Jefferson Used National Guard to Retrieve Belongings" by James Joyner.
- ^ "A Troubling Bayou Tradition" by Bret Schulte in U.S. News & World Report, 2005 October 2.
- ^ Michelle Krupa, "Newcomer Hopes to Unseat Jefferson: Republican Lawyer Vows to Restore Ethics," Times-Picayune (New Orleans), 2008 December 1, pp. A1, A4. Most of the print article is at http://www.nola.com/timespic/stories/index.ssf?/base/news-12/1228112427291090.xml&coll=1 (accessed 2008 December 1).
- ^ Michelle Krupa (with Frank Donze), "2 Candidates Offer Alternative Views," Times-Picayune, 2008 December 2, pp. A6, A7.
- ^ "Cao for Congress". The Times-Picayune. November 30, 2008. Retrieved December 20, 2008.
- ^ Gill, James (November 30, 2008). "Polls Apart". The Times-Picayune. Retrieved December 20, 2008.
- ^ Nossiter, Adam (December 7, 2008). "History and Amazement in House Race Outcome". The New York Times. Retrieved December 20, 2008.
- ^ "United States Congress - 2nd District". Alliance For Good Government. 2008. Retrieved December 20, 2008.
- ^ PR Newswire (November 3, 2008). "FRC Action PAC Endorses Joseph Cao for Congress". FindLaw.com. Retrieved December 20, 2008.
- ^ a b Krupa, Michelle (December 6, 2008). "Anh 'Joseph' Cao beats Rep. William Jefferson in 2nd Congressional District". The Times-Picayune. Retrieved December 20, 2008.
{{cite web}}
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suggested) (help) - ^ Josh Kraushaar, "Holy Cao, Republican Defeats Jefferson" from The Scorecard: The Latest Campaign News and Analysis on the Battle for Congress, Category Louisiana for 2008 December 6. Kraushaar speculates that Jindal may have waited until 2 days before the election to gain certainty as to whether Cao had a serious opportunity.
- ^ Krupa, Michelle (December 4, 2008). "Sea of early New Orleans voters dries up". The Times-Picayune. Retrieved December 20, 2008.
{{cite web}}
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suggested) (help) - ^ "For Congress: No Endorsement". Gambit Weekly. December 1, 2008. Retrieved December 20, 2008.
- ^ Associated Press (December 7, 2008). "Voters oust indicted U.S. Rep. Jefferson". USAToday.com. Retrieved December 20, 2008.
- ^ Wagner is Cao's political mentor. According to Tilove ("Cao Makes Splash" also cited supra), "Pop" is the term Cao uses in referring to Wagner.
- ^ Krupa, Michelle (December 5, 2008). "Tension rises as finale nears in 2nd". The Times-Picayune. Retrieved December 20, 2008.
- ^ "Why today's election matters". The Times-Picayune. December 6, 2008. p. B4. Retrieved December 20, 2008.
- ^ "Louisiana Election Results for the U.S. House". CNN.com. December 7, 2008. Retrieved December 20, 2008.
- ^ "Louisiana Secretary of State Multi-Parish Elections Inquiry". Louisiana Secretary of State. December 6, 2008. Retrieved December 20, 2008. These results remained the same on becoming "official" after promulgation by the Jefferson Parish Board of Election Supervisors, the Orleans Parish Board of Election Supervisors, and the State Board of Election Supervisors.
- ^ "Louisiana Secretary of State Election Results by Precinct U. S. Representative, 2nd Congressional District Orleans Parish". Louisiana Secretary of State. December 6, 2008. Retrieved December 20, 2008.
- ^ "Louisiana Secretary of State Election Results by Precinct U. S. Representative, 2nd Congressional District Jefferson Parish". Louisiana Secretary of State. Retrieved December 20, 2008.
- ^ "How Cao Did It" (JPG). NOLA.com. 2008. Retrieved December 20, 2008.
{{cite web}}
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ignored (help) - ^ McDonald and fellow Jefferson supporters Rev. Mr. Tom Watson and Jefferson's campaign manager and former chief of staff Eugene Green attended the 2008 December 31 meeting. With Cao at the meeting was former Appeals Court Judge David Williams. Jonathan Tilove, " Cao's Star Already Rising in D.C." (Times-Picayune, 2009 January 5, Metro Edition, pp. A1, A4; URL retrieved 2009 January 11). Tilove observes the historicity of 2113 in the Rayburn Building due to its being the only congressional office ever raided by the FBI.
- ^ "Cao Settles on Legislative Director" in Times-Picayune, 2009 January 11, Metro Edition, p. A10. Peychaud is a Democratic former member of the Louisiana House of Representatives. Another individual Cao had under consideration for employment in his office was South Carolina political consultant Ruth Sherlock. See Jonathan Tilove, "Cao's Star Already Rising in D.C." in Times-Picayune, 2009 January 5, Metro Edition, pp. A1, A4. (Both URLs retrieved 2009 January 11.)
- ^ Gerard Shields, "Lawmakers Get Assignments" in the Advocate (Baton Rouge) (accessed 2008 January 12); cf. the earlier article by Jonathan Tilove, "Cao Learns Which Panels He'll Get" in Times-Picayune, 2008 January 9, Metro Edition, p. A4, which mentioned Cao's desire to take the seat previously occupied by Jefferson on the Ways & Means Committee, which would have been a long shot for a freshman; instead, Charles Boustany, a Republican reelected from Louisiana's 7th congressional district, was assigned to Ways & Means.
- ^ Alexander Burns, "Top 10 Political Upsets of 2008" posted 2008 December 29 retrieved 2009 January 7. Cao was supposed to be interviewed on Fox News' Hannity & Colmes but was repeatedly bumped by news stories related to Rod Blagojevich and Caylee Anthony. Cao was, however, interviewed on C-SPAN, broadcast 2009 January 11. See "Dance Cart a Little Too Full for Cao on Fox News Show" (retrieved 2008 January 12) in Times-Picayune, 2008 January 11, Metro Edition, p. A10.
- ^ Before Cao, the last Republican to represent a majority African-American congressional district was white attorney Webb Franklin for Mississippi's 2nd congressional district from 1983 to 1987. The last black Republican to represent a district with an African-American majority was Oscar Stanton De Priest, whose career representing Illinois' 1st congressional district ended in 1935. Besides numerous examples during the Reconstruction era and its aftermath, in the 20th century black Republicans Edward Brooke, Gary Franks, and J. C. Watts represented largely non-black constituencies in Congress.
- ^ "Holy Cao, Louisiana Makes History". Daily Star. Hammond, Louisiana. December 16, 2008. p. 4A.
- ^ Willis, Mary (December 12, 2008). "Sign of a New Start?". Times-Picayune. p. B6.
- ^ McGill paraphrased Rouselle in McGill's Louisiana Spotlight column titled "Can Giant-Killer Cao Repeat?" in the 2008 December 23 Daily Star (Hammond, Louisiana).
- ^ Wagner, quoted by Grace, in "GOP Advisor Never Gave Up on Cao" in the Times-Picayune, 2008 December 23, p. B7.
- ^ John Maginiss, "Louisiana Made Its Share of History in '08" (http://blog.nola.com/johnmaginnis/2008/12/louisiana_made_its_share_of_hi.html accessed 2008 December 31), Times-Picayune, 2008 December 31, p. B5. Of Maginiss' eight reasons, two of the others also involve Cao: the demise of the Jefferson family and the gain of two U.S. House seats formerly held by Louisiana Democrats (see Bill Cassidy).
- ^ "Richard Fausset, "'In Louisiana, an unlikely victory makes history", December 9, 2008". Los Angeles Times.
{{cite web}}
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suggested) (help) - ^ Fauntroy, quoted by Jonathan Tilove in the Times-Picayune, 2008 December 19, p. A15 (Tilove's entire article "Cao Tries to Crack Black Caucus" appears on pp. A1 and A15 of the Saint Tammany Edition).
- ^ Grace, Stephanie (December 14, 2008). "Gleeful GOP mobs Cao bandwagon". Times-Picayune. p. B5. Retrieved December 20, 2008.
- ^ a b "Election Results". Louisiana Secretary of State. Retrieved December 20, 2008.
External links
- Congressman Joseph Cao official U.S. House website
- Joseph Cao for Congress official campaign website
- Biography at the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
- Financial information (federal office) at the Federal Election Commission
- Profile at Vote Smart
- Profile on Sourcewatch Congresspedia
- Profile from Congress.org
- Frank Donze's 2008 December 2 Times-Picayune article on William J. Jefferson's reelection campaign.
- In New Orleans, beyond black and white politics from LA Times
- Vietnam-born lawyer wins US poll from BBC News
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