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Kosoglu to Work at the White House!

Vice President-Elect Kamala Harris today announced 3 new White House senior staff  who will work on her team. The wife of Turkish-American Ozkan Sedat Kosoglu was Sri Lankan-born Rohini Kosoglu will be working for Kamala Harris as  Senior Advisor for Domestic Policy
 
"Serving as my Domestic Policy Advisor will be Rohini Kosoglu, who is not only an expert on some of the most important issues facing the American people, but also one of my closest and most trusted aides from the Senate and presidential campaign,” said Vice President-elect Kamala Harris.
 
Turkish-American, Ozkan Sedat Kosoglu ,the wife of Rohini Kosoglu,  a software engineer at TransitScreen.He has a MS-Computer Science from Georgia Institute of Technology.He is from Vize, Kırklareli.
 
The Couple married on June 25th, 2011 and have three sons.
 
***Turk of America congratulates Rohini Kosoglu for her new position at White House.We wish her lots of success and happiness in your new job.
 
Rohini Kosoglu, Domestic Policy Advisor to the Vice President 
 
Rohini Kosoglu currently serves as Senior Advisor to Vice President-elect Kamala Harris on the Biden-Harris Transition Team and previously served as Senior Advisor on the Biden-Harris Campaign. Before that, she was a Spring 2020 resident fellow at the Institute of Politics at the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University. Kosoglu has a dedicated career in public service and was the first South Asian American woman to serve as Chief of Staff in the United States Senate. She served as Vice-President Elect Harris’ Chief of Staff for her Senate office and later for her presidential campaign. Before that, she was Policy Director for U.S. Senator Michael Bennet of Colorado, where she oversaw economic, health care and budget issues. She has negotiated several bipartisan bills into law and served as a senior health care advisor during the drafting and passage of the Affordable Care Act. She also previously served as a legislative aide to U.S. Senator Debbie Stabenow of Michigan. Originally from New Jersey, Kosoglu is a graduate of the University of Michigan and George Washington University and is a mother to three young children.
 
 
  • Published in Politics

2020 Election Results for Candidates from the Turkish American Community : Four Winners!

The Turkish American community witnessed the highest number of candidates running for public office in 2020 with 13 members of the community declaring their candidacy for federal, state, and local positions. California led in the most candidates with five followed by New Jersey with two. The following six states had one candidate each—Arizona, Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, and Wisconsin.

The scoreboard for the year was four wins and nine losses. Here are the winners:

Aycha Sirvanci Sawa was elected on April 7 as Milwaukee’s City Comptroller (nonpartisan position) in Wisconsin. She is the first Turkish American elected as a chief financial officer for a major American city and the second woman elected to a city office in Milwaukee.

Tayfun Selen (R), was reelected on November 3 as a Freeholder (County Commissioner) of the Morris County Board of Chosen Freeholders (County Commissioners) in New Jersey.

Ben Bartlett, spouse of Yelda Mesbah Bartlett, was reelected on November 3 as Council member (nonpartisan position) of the Berkeley City Council in California.

Leah Ersoylu, spouse of Sarp Ersoylu, was elected on November 3 as Trustee (nonpartisan position) of the Newport Mesa United School District in Orange County, California.

Our thanks and appreciation to the following candidates who were courageous to run for public office and gave a good fight but did not win their elections. We applaud their efforts and strongly encourage them to consider running for public office again.

Aylin Acikalin (D), candidate for Judge of New Orleans First City Court in Louisiana.

John Alpay, ran for Councilmember (nonpartisan position) of the San Jan Capistrano City Council in California.

Onur Arugaslan, ran for Trustee (nonpartisan position) of the Mattawan Consolidated Schools Board of Education in Michigan.

Alp Basaran (D), candidate for the U.S. House of Representatives, New Jersey 9th congressional district.

Zarina Kiziloglu, spouse of Kursad Kiziloglu, ran for Councilmember (nonpartisan position) of the Pleasanton City Council in California.

Ajlan Kurdoglu (D), candidate for the Arizona State Senate in Legislative District 17.

Sezin Palmer, ran for Board Member (nonpartisan position) of the Howard County Public Schools Board of Education District 4 in Maryland.

Ceylan Rowe (D), candidate for the Massachusetts House of Representatives, 12th Worcester District.

Cenk Uygur (D), candidate for the U.S. House of Representatives, California 25th congressional district. 

* Derya Taskin is  selected for  State of NJ electoral college delegate from Democratic Party.

Reference: Ten Thousand Turks Campaign

GameChanger Author Gunasti: "Trump will win the Presidential Election."

Erbil Gunasti, a Republican Party 2020 Presidential Council delegate and who works actively in American politics, is one of the rare Turkish-Americans who come together with President Trump at events from time to time. Gunasti, who presented a copy of his book GameChanger to President Trump, made a statement to the Turk of America about the upcoming  November 3rd Presidential elections.

There are less than two weeks until the election. Your thoughts? Does Trump have a chance to lose? What are your thoughts?
 
In my opinion, the result of the election had become assured after everything that happened during the first three years of Trump. On the other hand, when we look at what has happened since the coronavirus, I don't think that will change the result. It will increase it in Trump's favor.
 
Long story short, it is Trump to win the election in 2020 by a large margin. There are three reasons for this.
 
1) Trump will not increase taxes for the rich and companies. As is well-known, America "worships" money. In this sense, the wealthy Democrats in America are either not going to vote for Biden, or they are going to vote for Trump.
2) Trump showed the Blacks and Hispanics how beneficial he was in his first three years. They became wealthier to a great degree. When we consider that Trump received 10 percent from this section of the electorate in 2016, and it seems certain that his percentage of the votes from this section will increase this time around, Trump is guaranteed to be re-elected. As we know, a Republican Party presidential candidate may not be elected unless they get the votes of at least five percent of the Hispanic and Black people. If he does, the probability that he will be elected will be around 90 percent.
3) As is well-known, the people who own guns in the U.S. are an influential group. They do not always vote in great numbers. They let the chips fall where they may and have faith in their guns. However, for the first time, this group voted in significant numbers when Trump ran for President. That's why Wisconsin, Michigan, and Pennsylvania, known to be the Democratic Party's strongholds, voted for Trump in 2016 and will do so in 2020.
 
When you think about the damage the Democrats will do to the "Supreme Court," if they win, this shows that Trump will win this election by a large margin. I haven't changed my estimates in this respect. It has only become more robust.
 
As for the Coronavirus. Trump being admitted into the hospital and discharged after just a couple of days has also ensured that wealthy Democrats, in particular, they now see specific facts clearer on the matter of the cards played by the Democrats until now.

 
- What would be the course of the relations between Turkey and the U.S. if Trump won the election? What would happen if Biden won?

 
Even if Trump loses the election, the relations between Turkey and the U.S. are to be built upon "power."
 
If Trump wins, he will consider bilateral relations important. He will work together with influential leaders, such as President Erdoğan. That does not mean he will do what they say or that he will force them to do what he says. He will negotiate with reason and get results. Long story short, international competition and co-operation will gain momentum.
 
As I wrote in GameChanger, Turkey has taken the game from "Catch-22" to the "Chicken Game" and let the world know where it will play the "Zero-Sum Game." Everyone knows this now, whether they like it or not. Trump and Biden realize it as well. Trump is aware that he shouldn't play the "Zero-Sum Game" against Turkey. And that nor should Turkey cause trouble about this for Trump.
 
However, the situation is not the same on Biden's side. Biden will continue to underestimate Turkey, just like the EU is doing, and turn the world into a riskier place. Biden is pushed into this as the Democrats are the puppets of EU, Russia, China, and India, the external sources of power seeking to weaken the U.S. From this point of view, if Biden is elected President, it won't be good for the U.S. and not suitable for Turkey. However, it will be the U.S. that will lose out from this more.
 
But I don't expect such a possibility. I think Trump will win.

NYPD Goes Purple on Domestic Violence Awareness Month

New York Police Headquarters was lit up in purple to show the support for domestic violence awareness and remind the victims of domestic violence that NYP officers in every precinct work hard to bring these suspects to justice. NYPD responds to over 2o0,000 domestic incidents annually, or almost 600 calls a day. DVP police officers face unpredictable, potentially volatile situations, and therefore police officers are trained to help ensure victims' safety and their own. Every NYPD Precinct has a Domestic Violence Team. Over 400 NYPD officers and investigators assist victims of domestic violence in precincts and Housing Bureau Police serving areas in 5 boroughs. 

New York City First Lady Chirlane also tweeted the following post" #GoPurpleNYC draws attention to the bravery and strength of survivors of domestic violence, but also the work we all must do to support them and stand by them. I encourage everyone to go to http://NYC.Gov/NYCHope to learn how you can be a better ally to those who need them."

There were 87,512 Domestic Violence Complaints by Precinct, and 1972 Chronic Domestic Violence Complaints by Borough 320 people have been murdered in NYC so far this year.

There are many forms of violence against women, including sexual, physical, or emotional abuse by an intimate partner; physical or sexual abuse by family members or others; sexual harassment and abuse by authority figures (such as teachers, police officers or employers); trafficking for forced labor or sex; and such traditional practices as forced or child marriages, dowry-related violence; and honor killings, when women are murdered in the name of family honor. Systematic sexual abuse in conflict situations is another form of violence against women.

Violence against women is a major public health problem and a violation of human rights. A lack of access to education and opportunity,and low social status in communities are linked to violence against womenViolence by an intimate partner is one of the most common forms of violence against women. A wide range of physical, mental, sexual and reproductive, and maternal health problems can result from violence against women. Many women do not seek help or report their experiences when violence occurs.

New York City Domestic Violence Hotline

The City's Domestic Violence Hotline provides safety planning, referrals, and connections to emergency housing for domestic violence victims. This assistance is available to both male and female victims—the hotline assists in over 150 languages.

Call 1-800-621-HOPE for the New York City Domestic Violence Hotline, or call 311 and ask for the Domestic Violence Hotline.

If you are in immediate danger, call 911.  

The Hearing Impaired 24-Hour Hotline is TDD: 1-800-810-7444

311 Online: You can also access information regarding domestic violence services by visiting www.nyc.gov/311. 311 in New York City's primary source of government information and non-emergency services.

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