LOS ANGELES: While the Indian-American community remains somewhat divided over the upcoming American presidential vote, a new report suggests that many Indians living in the United States are giving more support for Republican candidate Mitt Romney. Indian Americans supporting Romney were reported to have raised between $15 to $20 million for his campaign. While Romney has not released any fundraising statistics from ethnic coalitions nor has it made public the list of its bundlers or exclusive Stars and Stripes members, the list of donors include over 200 prominent Indian Americans. The Indian American Coalition was established in November 2011 by the Romney Campaign National Finance Committee chairman Spencer Zwick to recognize not only the individual donor but the larger community under a group identity, Press Trust of India reported. Other ethnic coalitions that have featured in Romney campaign's Finance Committee were the Jewish American coalition, Women's coalition and Veteran's Coalition, among others. “An Indian American coalition in a presidential campaign's National Finance Committee is new and historic. Such a decision of the Romney campaign has produced the desired results,” said Indian American supporters of the 65-year-old former governor of Massachusetts. Sue Ghosh Stricklett, Stars & Stripes Member, Romney Finance Committee, said: “Everyone has contributed funds, bundled money or held an event that has raised a minimum $1 million. “They are unanimously supporting Mitt Romney for President because they believe that the country is on the wrong track and that their children's economic future is at stake. “They are also appalled by the incendiary anti-India rhetoric coming out of the Obama campaign with numerous ads attacking India for loss of American jobs due to outsourcing.” But here in Los Angeles, Alisha Bharavan told Bikyamasr.com that “this is disgusting. When has a Republican president shown any desire to deal with the mutli-ethnic make-up of India. This just shows that once you become American, you can just as easily be ignorant as the others.” She is an ardent supporter of President Obama and said all her Indian friends also will vote for the incumbent, “in the hopes that we can continue to bring dignity back to our foreign policy.”
