Meet the Asian American ready to take Trump's job

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Andrew Yang is a first generation born American entrepreneur and author who will seek the Democratic Party nomination in 2020.

“One of the things I’m very confident about is most Americans are hungry for new solutions that will improve their lives,” he told CGTN Digital referring to his campaign.

Yang is presenting himself as the candidate ready to address automation’s impact on the US.

“I started digging into solutions and I asked around, ‘hey who is going to be proposing these solutions?’ And I heard nobody...That’s terrifying,” he said. “By my estimation, we don’t have that much time.”

Automation nation

Yang said that automation will continue to eliminate thousands of jobs for many of the less skilled American workers.

‍Andrew Yang, is a New York businessman who wants to be the Democrats' next presidential candidate, believes that automation is the reason Donal Trump won his election. / Andrew Yang Campaign ‍

He even blamed automation for the current president’s win.

“The more I dug into it, the more I concluded that Donald Trump is president today because we’ve automated away so many jobs particularly in the manufacturing sector.

The Ivy-leagued educated lawyer turned businessman wants to tax companies benefiting most from automation and offer every American adult between the ages of 18 and 64 1,000 US dollars a month, no strings attached.

“UBI is a great transition step because it will help people move into their new opportunities,” Yang said.

Ordinary aspirations

The former tech executive started Venture for America, a nonprofit organization that helps entrepreneurs launch companies and create jobs across the country.

Andrew Yang, is a New York businessman who wants to be the Democrats' next presidential candidate, believes that automation is the reason Donal Trump won his election. / Andrew Yang Campaign

In recognition of his work with VFA, the Obama White House named him a Champion of Change in 2012, and a Presidential Ambassador for Global Entrepreneurship in 2015.

Yang’s parents immigrated to the US from Taiwan. He was born in upstate New York and admits his parents had reservations about his decision to enter a political campaign.

“My father had anxieties about it in part because I think it’s not an ordinary aspiration for many immigrants to think that their children would go into politics. I think politics have something of a bad wrap among Asian immigrants in particular,” he said. “But now they are very proud of me.”

Optimistic outcome

That same pride stretches well beyond Yang’s parents. His announcement is already garnering attention and could be heading for a historic campaign and election. If Yang is selected as the Democratic party presidential nomination it would be the first time an Asian has ever been a nominee for the US's highest job. Prior to former President Barack Obama, the US has only elected white men to serve as the country’s leader.

“I believe that Asian Americans have a lot to offer and that includes at the highest levels of government, Yang told CGTN Digital. “We can step up and lead.”

However, he did make it clear that race is not the focal point of his campaign.

‍Andrew Yang, is a New York businessman who wants to be the Democrats' next presidential candidate, believes that automation is the reason Donal Trump won his election. / Andrew Yang Campaign ‍

“There is such a hunger and thirst for new thinking and new solutions, I think that my race is frankly completely irrelevant to most Americans,” Yang said. “Most Americans are just trying to figure out who’s going to help improve their lives from day to day.”

While there are many Democrats vying for the party’s nomination, Yang is making a historic bid with an unconventional platform and is pretty optimistic about the outcome.

“I have experienced nothing but enthusiasm from Americans around the country,” Yang said.