Ro Khanna

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Ro Khanna
Born 1976 (age 37–38)
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Nationality American
Alma mater University of Chicago, Yale Law School
Occupation lawyer
author
politician
university lecturer
Known for Former Deputy Assistant Secretary in the United States Department of Commerce

Rohit "Ro" Khanna (born 1976) is an Indian American teacher, lawyer and politician. He served as the Deputy Assistant Secretary in the United States Department of Commerce under President Barack Obama. Khanna is a member of the Democratic Party and a candidate for the United States House of Representatives in California's 17th congressional district.

Early life

Ro's maternal grandfather, Amarnath Vidyalankar, was part of Gandhi's independence movement working with Lala Lajpat Rai and spent years in jail in the pursuit of human rights and freedom.[1][2][3] Khanna's parents emigrated to the United States from India prior to Khanna's birth. Ro's father is a chemical engineer who graduated from the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) and the University of Michigan, and Ro's mother is a former substitute school teacher.[4]

Khanna was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in 1976. He received his B.A degree in economics with honors from the University of Chicago in 1998; he was Phi Beta Kappa.[4][5][6] He attended Yale Law School, receiving his law degree in 2001. He specializes in intellectual property law.[7]

Career

As a student at the University of Chicago, Khanna worked for William D. Burns walking precincts during Barack Obama's first campaign for the Illinois Senate in 1996.[8][9][10] Khanna interned for Jack Quinn when Quinn served as the Chief of Staff for Vice President Al Gore.[11]

President Barack Obama appointed Khanna to a role in the United States Department of Commerce in 2009.[5] In his role as deputy assistant secretary,[12] Khanna led international trade missions[13] and worked to increase United States exports.[14] He was later appointed to the White House Business Council.[12] Khanna resigned from the Department of Commerce in August 2011 to join Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati, a law firm located in Silicon Valley.[15] He also teaches economics at Stanford University and law at the Santa Clara University School of Law.[4] He has written a book on American competitiveness in business, "Entrepreneurial Nation: Why Manufacturing is Still Key to America’s Future", which was published in 2012.[12][16] Jerry Brown, the Governor of California, appointed Khanna to the California Workforce Investment Board in 2012.[17]

Khanna ran one of the nation's first anti-Iraq war campaigns for the United States House of Representatives in the 2004 elections, challenging Tom Lantos in the Democratic primary in California's 12th congressional district.[18] He received endorsements from prominent officials, including Matt Gonzalez,[18] and newspapers, including the San Mateo County Times,[19] but lost to Lantos.[20]

Khanna intended to run for the House in California's 15th congressional district in the 2012 election, hoping to succeed Democrat Pete Stark after Stark's eventual retirement, though stating he would not challenge Stark directly.[21] He raised $1.2 million, receiving support from Governor Brown, House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, former Secretary of Transportation Norman Mineta Representatives Zoe Lofgren and Anna Eshoo, and businessmen Vinod Khosla and John W. Thompson.[21] Khanna's fundraising total for the fourth quarter of 2011 exceeded that of all but two House candidates nationwide.[11] Eric Swalwell defeated Stark in the 2012 elections.[22]

On April 2, 2013, Khanna announced that he will challenge Mike Honda in California's 17th congressional district in the 2014 elections.[23] Khanna has assembled a campaign team composed of top members of President Obama's re-election team, including Jeremy Bird, Obama's 2012 national field director, and Steve Spinner, one of Obama's top-three fundraisers.[24]

Personal life

Khanna resides in Fremont, California.[21]

Bibliography

References

  1. ↑ "Members Bioprofile". 164.100.47.132. December 8, 1902. Retrieved July 16, 2013. 
  2. ↑ "Towards socialism: a compilation". Worldcat.org. July 26, 1974. Retrieved July 16, 2013. 
  3. ↑ "Elections '99". Tribuneindia.com. August 19, 1999. Retrieved July 16, 2013. 
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 "Ro Khanna". Ro Khanna. Retrieved January 27, 2013. 
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 "Obama Taps Fremont Man, Ro Khanna's Selection Heartens Indo-American Community". San Jose Mercury News. August 8, 2009. p. 1C. Retrieved April 5, 2013.  (subscription required)
  6. ↑ Jouvenal, Justin (January 14, 2004). "Young hopeful touts vision". San Mateo County Times. Retrieved April 4, 2013.  (subscription required)
  7. ↑ Boudreau, John (August 7, 2009). "Obama taps Fremont man for tech post". Oakland Tribune. Retrieved January 27, 2013.  (subscription required)
  8. ↑ Green, Joshua. "Ro Khanna, Silicon Valley's Wannabe Obama". Businessweek. Retrieved July 16, 2013. 
  9. ↑ Jaffe, Alexandra. "Top 5 House primaries to watch - The Hill's Ballot Box". Thehill.com. Retrieved July 16, 2013. 
  10. ↑ http://sanleandrotalk.voxpublica.org/2013/08/26/ro-khanna-a-political-portrait/
  11. ↑ 11.0 11.1 "Silicon Valley Democrat tops in fundraising, even though he's not running yet – San Jose Mercury News". Mercurynews.com. Retrieved January 24, 2013. 
  12. ↑ 12.0 12.1 12.2 Marinucci, Carla. "Honda v. Khanna: Could Silicon Valley be ground zero for 2014 House Asian-American battle royale? | Politics Blog | an SFGate.com blog". Blog.sfgate.com. Retrieved January 24, 2013. 
  13. ↑ "Ro Khanna to lead US energy trade mission to India". Indian Express. August 21, 2009. Retrieved January 24, 2013. 
  14. ↑ "Government helping firms expand exports". Charlotte Observer. May 21, 2010. p. 8A. Retrieved April 5, 2013.  (subscription required)
  15. ↑ Boudreau, John (August 20, 2011). "Ex-U.S. Commerce official from Bay Area believes government can help, not hinder economy". The Argus. Retrieved April 5, 2013.  (subscription required)
  16. ↑ "Former Obama Official Says Manufacturing Should be a National Security Issue". Forbes.com. August 13, 2012. Retrieved April 5, 2013. 
  17. ↑ Ross, Andrew S. (August 29, 2012). "Governor staffs up job investment panel". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved January 27, 2013. 
  18. ↑ 18.0 18.1 Jouvenal, Justin (January 17, 2004). "City Supervisor endorses Khanna". San Mateo County Times. Retrieved April 5, 2013.  (subscription required)
  19. ↑ Traubman, Libby; Traubman, Len (February 17, 2004). "We can entrust America with Khanna's principles". San Mateo County Times. Retrieved April 5, 2013.  (subscription required)
  20. ↑ "Rep. Mike Honda digs in against potential challenger Ro Khanna". Inside Bay Area. February 4, 2013. Retrieved April 5, 2013. 
  21. ↑ 21.0 21.1 21.2 Carla Marinucci, Chronicle Political Writer (January 20, 2012). "Pete Stark may put Ro Khanna's rise on hold". SFGate. Retrieved January 24, 2013. 
  22. ↑ Molly Redden (December 5, 2012). "Eric Swalwell, Pete Stark's Young Vanquisher, Gets Oriented | The New Republic". Tnr.com. Retrieved January 24, 2013. 
  23. ↑ Richman, Josh. "Silicon Valley Congressional battle takes shape: Ro Khanna to challenge Mike Honda, using Obama campaign operatives". San Jose Mercury News. Retrieved April 5, 2013. 
  24. ↑ Green, Joshua. "Ro Khanna, Silicon Valley's Wannabe Obama". Businessweek. Bloomberg. Retrieved April 5, 2013. 

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