Attorney General Rob McKenna (right) exchanges business cards with Chinese Consul General of San Francisco Gao Zhansheng (left) as his secretary (center) looks on in the lobby of Northwest Asian Weekly’s office on Sept. 24. (Photo by George Liu/NWAW)
On Thursday, Sept. 24, Chinese Consul General of San Francisco Gao Zhansheng and Washington state Attorney General Rob McKenna dropped by the Northwest Asian Weekly’s office in Seattle’s Chinatown/International District. Gao’s friend had called us two days earlier about his visit, but he never mentioned McKenna.
Neither one of them had been to our office before. Gao was a special guest at the Washington State China Relations Council’s 30th anniversary banquet held at the Seattle Sheraton Hotel. He flew in that morning and visited our state capitol in Olympia. Then he stopped at our office with his aides. This is the first time I met the consul general.
He has a very tight schedule.
Gao left the next day for San Francisco to attend a much bigger celebration — that of the founding of the People’s Republic of China — and then returned to Seattle on Sunday for a concert to celebrate China’s national birthday at the University of Washington’s Meany Hall.
Why did he meet with McKenna? Rumor has it that he will be the next governor of our state.
I am not surprised. A Republican, McKenna is young, ambitious, and perceived as a rising star. So, this makes perfect political sense.
The Asian Weekly has been a requested place for leaders to gather. We serve as a community forum. There are many media companies in Chinatown including several Chinese and other Asian newspapers.
We are an independent paper without any political affiliation. Some may think that’s why Gao picked us and not others. However, I think it was a matter of convenience. ♦