WASHINGTON: One of the earliest figures to tie the United States to India was Lord Cornwallis. The British soldier-administrator left America in ignominy after being routed by George Washington in the Siege of Yorktown in 1781, repaired to England, and on being reassigned to India, salvaged his reputation at the tail end of his career by defeating Tipu Sultan in the Battle of Srirangapatnam in 1799.
Buried in Ghazipur outside Varanasi after he died in India, Cornwallis had found America a thorny proposition. The realization pricked him most in the city of Charlotte, North Carolina, which he described as a ''hornet's nest.'' It is in this city, United States' second biggest financial center after new York City, close to the very intersection where Cornwallis was ambushed (scene now of the Bank of American headquarters and sundry protests), that the Democratic National Convention (DNC) kicked off this morning in a political atmosphere fraught with poisoned arrows after a series of barbs from the Republican Convention that concluded in Tampa last week.
President Obama launched one of his own over the weekend during his "On the Road to Charlotte" tour, saying Republicans only had an ''agenda that was better-suited for the last century,'' while asking for four more years to complete an unfinished job that will help the United States remain the pre-eminent power in the 21st century. On Tuesday, Democrats unveiled their platform (party manifesto) that pings familiar liberal talking points -- higher taxes on wealthier Americans and support for same-sex marriage and abortion rights, among other pledges.
The contrast from the Republican platform, which seeks to ban abortion and gay marriage and reverse Obama's healthcare initiatives, couldn't be sharper. But Democrats are banking on retaining the support of a majority of women and foreign-born voters who backed Obama in 2008. On Monday, First Lady Michelle Obama and the Indian-American actor Kalpen Mody (better known in Hollywood as Kal Penn) went through the paces, shooting a campaign video on stage at the convention center in downtown Charlotte, where the First Lady will launch her husband's bid for a second term.
Indian-Americans voted overwhelmingly (84 per cent) for Obama in the last election, and while Republicans have relentlessly courted wealthy and conservative sub-continental immigrants (dubbed by one political scientist as BJP Republicans), the plurality is still thought to remain with Democrats. Overall, polls typically show the two candidates are tied despite Romney getting a modest bump after the Republican convention.
While the First Lady works out the stagecraft for her opening salvo on Tuesday night, the President is still navigating the tricky terrain of statecraft, identifying the successes he has had in his first term which may resonate with the voters. Democrats have finally put together a decisive answer to the question Republicans posed repeatedly at Tampa to the American voter: Are you better off today than you were four years ago.
''Absolutely,'' the Democratic leadership said on Monday, with Vice-President Joe Bidenparaphrasing the major Obama first term achievement (gradual economic turnaround and a more secure America) with a slogan worthy of a bumper sticker: ''Osama bin Laden is dead andGeneral Motors is alive.''
Buried in Ghazipur outside Varanasi after he died in India, Cornwallis had found America a thorny proposition. The realization pricked him most in the city of Charlotte, North Carolina, which he described as a ''hornet's nest.'' It is in this city, United States' second biggest financial center after new York City, close to the very intersection where Cornwallis was ambushed (scene now of the Bank of American headquarters and sundry protests), that the Democratic National Convention (DNC) kicked off this morning in a political atmosphere fraught with poisoned arrows after a series of barbs from the Republican Convention that concluded in Tampa last week.
President Obama launched one of his own over the weekend during his "On the Road to Charlotte" tour, saying Republicans only had an ''agenda that was better-suited for the last century,'' while asking for four more years to complete an unfinished job that will help the United States remain the pre-eminent power in the 21st century. On Tuesday, Democrats unveiled their platform (party manifesto) that pings familiar liberal talking points -- higher taxes on wealthier Americans and support for same-sex marriage and abortion rights, among other pledges.
The contrast from the Republican platform, which seeks to ban abortion and gay marriage and reverse Obama's healthcare initiatives, couldn't be sharper. But Democrats are banking on retaining the support of a majority of women and foreign-born voters who backed Obama in 2008. On Monday, First Lady Michelle Obama and the Indian-American actor Kalpen Mody (better known in Hollywood as Kal Penn) went through the paces, shooting a campaign video on stage at the convention center in downtown Charlotte, where the First Lady will launch her husband's bid for a second term.
Indian-Americans voted overwhelmingly (84 per cent) for Obama in the last election, and while Republicans have relentlessly courted wealthy and conservative sub-continental immigrants (dubbed by one political scientist as BJP Republicans), the plurality is still thought to remain with Democrats. Overall, polls typically show the two candidates are tied despite Romney getting a modest bump after the Republican convention.
While the First Lady works out the stagecraft for her opening salvo on Tuesday night, the President is still navigating the tricky terrain of statecraft, identifying the successes he has had in his first term which may resonate with the voters. Democrats have finally put together a decisive answer to the question Republicans posed repeatedly at Tampa to the American voter: Are you better off today than you were four years ago.
''Absolutely,'' the Democratic leadership said on Monday, with Vice-President Joe Bidenparaphrasing the major Obama first term achievement (gradual economic turnaround and a more secure America) with a slogan worthy of a bumper sticker: ''Osama bin Laden is dead andGeneral Motors is alive.''
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