Indian in Obama project - Sonal role in transition

America’s President-elect took his first steps in a 75-day journey towards the White House by naming an Indian American to a core group that will oversee the complex transition from George W. Bush to Barack Obama.

The nomination of Sonal Shah to the “Obama-Biden Transition Project” is a clear indication that like his presidency -- whose theme is “change we need” -- the next US President will look for new talent in minority communities instead of relying on tired and familiar faces that have sought to represent such communities in moribund ways during successive administrations of both Democrats and Republicans.

During his presidential campaign, Obama rejected an offer by Indian-origin hotelier Sant Singh Chatwal to raise $10 million for his election. Obama spokesman Ben Labolt said on record that Chatwal “does not sit on a fundraising committee, he has not fundraised for the campaign and we do not expect him to”.

Forty-year-old Sonal Shah, unlike many Indian Americans who claim to be leaders of their community, is low profile, focussed and clear-headed, all of which are qualities that appear to have persuaded Obama to include her in his very first appointment on the day after his landslide victory.

Shah will closely work with her mentor, John Podesta, who heads the “Obama-Biden Transition Project”. Podesta was White House chief of staff when Bill Clinton was President.

Podesta and Shah got to know each other during that period when the latter was senior advisor to the under secretary for the treasury.

When Clinton finished his eight-year tenure in the White House, Shah followed Podesta to the Center for American Progress, a think-tank which he founded.

Obama campaign sources said the President-elect may be testing Shah for a big appointment in his administration by putting her to work on the challenging task of White House transition.

Shah has hands-on experience of dealing directly with the Asian financial crisis in 1997 when she was at the treasury. That experience will be useful for the next US president who will face problems here that are identical to the Asian crisis 11 years ago.

Although Shah is an American citizen, she has demonstrated a deep commitment to her Indian roots.

In 2001, Shah, along with her two siblings, Roopal and Anand, founded Indicorps, a non-profit organisation which was inspired by the ideas of the American Peace Corps.

Indicorps, whose motto is “service for the soul” provides ways for people of Indian origin not only in the US, but around the world to actively participate in India’s progress.

In the US, the group specifically cultivates prospective Indian-American leaders to have a better understanding of India and the challenges of development.

Impressed by the work of Indicorps, the world’s most popular Internet search engine firm, google.org, offered her the position of director for global development to promote Google’s philanthropy.Shah will work on the presidential transition team with Arizona governor Janet Napolitano, Susan Rice, who is tipped to be Obama’s national security adviser, Bill Clinton’s transportation secretary Federico Pena and yet another member of Clinton’s cabinet, former commerce secretary, William Daley.

Obama’s very first appointment to the next administration, Rahm Emanuel, today accepted the president-elect's offer to be the next White House chief of staff.

Both Podesta and Emanuel are from Obama’s home town of Chicago.

Source: telegraphindia.com