This Year of the Tiger, Republicans reaching Asian voters

Today marks the start of the Lunar New Year for the Asian community around the world. This occasion allows us to celebrate our heritage and look ahead with optimism. This year is the Year of the Tiger. The Tiger embodies strength, bravery, and courage — characteristics that Asian Americans consistently show in their contributions to our country. As Asian Americans, this is deeply embedded in our identity.

As two of the first Korean American women to serve in Congress, these values have always guided us in serving our communities and helping future generations achieve their American Dream, just as we did.

But over the last year of Democratic leadership, rising prices, tax increases, deteriorating public safety, and reduced educational opportunities have put that dream at risk.

The most immediate concern facing families is rising prices. Uncontrolled inflation is wreaking havoc on the family budget, causing prices to rise at the fastest pace in almost 40 years. The root of this is massive spending by Democrats who continue to push trillion-dollar spending bills and have failed to solve the supply chain crisis. Gas prices are hitting historic levels, groceries are breaking the bank, and housing is getting more expensive. 

For many parents, the dollar store is where they can get school supplies at a budget-friendly price. Not anymore. Under Joe Biden, dollar stores permanently raised prices by 25 percent due to inflation. 

Like rising prices, the rapid increase in crime in our communities is hard to ignore. It seems like every day there is a new story of criminals brazenly robbing businesses, destroying property, and even targeting Asian elders. Twelve major U.S. cities set new records for homicides in 2021, leaving communities reeling and looking for answers.

Calls to defund the police are backed by some Democrat lawmakers, leading to no prosecutions for criminals, weakened bail policies, and downgrading of felonies to misdemeanors. Los Angeles Sheriff Alex Villanueva said about liberal politicians who enact these failed policies, “They live in this ‘woke palace’ where they’re not affected by the policies, but the average person is impacted by them.” We are both proud to stand with our brave law enforcement officers who put their lives on the line to keep us safe.

We also have seen our Asian American community unfairly targeted by race-based education policies at some of our nation’s top institutions of higher education. The Biden administration dropped a lawsuit targeting race-based education standards and discouraged the Supreme Court from hearing this case for educational opportunity. All Americans deserve to be judged by their merit and race-based education policies go against the American values we hold dear and only divide us further as a nation.

As American families, workers, and small businesses across the country struggle to make ends meet due to inflation and ongoing public safety concerns, we are fighting back against more reckless spending and out-of-touch policies pushed by Democrats. Together we are promoting safe communities, economic prosperity, and more opportunity for Americans.

The Republican Party is the Grand Opportunity Party and our message is resonating with the Asian American community. We will continue to make historic investments months before the midterms to bring our message to new voters. 

Between the 2016 and 2020 elections, the GOP gained 7 percent with Asian American voters and more recent elections have shown that this shift is accelerating. The Republican National Committee built on these gains in 2021 by opening three Asian Pacific American community centers across the country to engage voters, with more to come this year.

These community centers are hubs of political action where volunteers can make phone calls, organize for door knocking, and learn how to effect change in their community. Most importantly, these centers allow Asian Pacific Americans to reach out to neighbors and fight for the ideas that empowered so many of us to achieve the American Dream.

This Year of the Tiger, we need to get back to commonsense policies that ensure security, prosperity, and freedom for future generations. The out-of-touch policies from Democrats have led to higher prices, rising crime, and fewer opportunities — the time for action is now. 

We extend a warm invitation to all Asian Pacific Americans to get involved at an RNC community center near you. We wish everyone a safe, healthy, and prosperous Lunar New Year celebration and we look forward to meeting you and your family soon.

Michelle Steel represents the 48th District of California. Young Kim represents the 39th District of California.