She believes that it is no coincidence.<\/p>\n
The race between Matsui, a pillar of the local Democratic establishment, and Vang, Matsui\u2019s toughest primary challenger in the past two decades, has heated up in the final weeks<\/a> before the June 2 primary \u2014 especially as polls have indicated the possibility that only of them may move onto the general election in November alongside the sole Republican candidate.<\/p>\n Vang and her campaign, who blasted Matsui last week for \u201cboosting a MAGA Republican\u201d to \u201ctee up a weaker Republican opponent for November,\u201d believe that the sudden uproar over the pledge is a part of the same effort.<\/p>\n \u201cDays before the upcoming primary, Matsui loaned herself $1.4 million and steered her aligned super PACs to bankroll and boost a MAGA Republican by any means necessary,\u201d Vang said to The Sacramento Bee when asked about the controversy. \u201cThese disgusting and deceptive tactics fuel the worst of our politics, undermine trust in our institutions and distract from the issues impacting everyday people.\u201d<\/p>\n Matsui\u2019s media page on her website<\/a> features a blog post about candidate Zachariah Wooden, a Republican college student who has a \u201crecord of serving the community\u201d and \u201cfighting to advance Trump\u2019s policies,\u201d according to the entry.<\/p>\n Kevin Liao, spokesperson for the Matsui campaign, previously told The Bee that the post was meant to contrast Matsui with \u201cextreme Republican ideas,\u201d but Vang\u2019s camp sees the move as a means to elevate Wooden, who is unlikely to succeed in the solidly blue congressional district, so she doesn\u2019t have to face a fellow Democrat in November.<\/p>\n Matsui\u2019s campaign declined to comment on Vang\u2019s allegation regarding the media firestorm over the Pledge of Allegiance.<\/p>\n Why Vang doesn\u2019t say the Pledge of Allegiance<\/p>\n When asked about Vang\u2019s practice of abstaining from saluting the flag, her campaign spokesperson said that her past statements on the matter speak for themselves.<\/p>\n Vang has previously spoken to this choice at least twice. In a post responding to President Donald Trump\u2019s proposal to take over the Gaza Strip and displace its Palestinian inhabitants, she wrote on Facebook that she chooses not to recite the pledge and instead uses that moment to reflect on the \u201cinjustices and harm that continue to affect so many, both locally and across the globe, under this nation\u2019s influence.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWe must not tune out \u2014 they want us to become numb to the realities we see in the news \u2014 it\u2019s part of the plan to keep us complacent,\u201d she wrote. \u201cBut instead, we resist.\u201d<\/p>\n Vang has served in public office since 2016 when she was elected to the Sacramento City Unified School District board of trustees. In 2019, she commended a group of Luther Burbank High School students being honored for their public service when they declined to lead the pledge at a school board meeting, citing their belief that the United States does not support Black youth.<\/p>\n \u201cI also just want to put on public record that for the past two years, every time we do the Pledge of Allegiance I\u2019ve stood up in solidarity with students, but I have not recited the Pledge of Allegiance just because of my beliefs about what the flag stands for in terms of all the injustices happening in the United States,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n \u201cSo I find it very courageous that you guys came up today to really speak your truth.\u201d<\/p>\n
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