Armenian political organizations around the United States are all excited: “the first Armenian caucus member will be the next House Speaker,” they write.

The next House Speaker is Nancy Pelosi, D-San Francisco, who is known for being “pro-Armenian.” Armenian groups expect her to put the genocide recognition on the floor (literally).

The Senate leadership is also Armenian-friendly, hails an e-mail from the Armenian Assembly. “One day after winning majority control in the House of Representatives, Democrats took back the U.S. Senate, with Armenian issues supporters Senators Harry Reid (D-NV) and Richard Durbin (D-IL) positioned to serve as Majority Leader and Majority Whip respectively, in the 110th Congress. Senator Joseph Biden, Jr. (D-DE), also a staunch supporter, is expected to chair the powerful Senate Foreign Relations Committee, which oversees policy concerning Armenia and Nagorno Karabakh.”

(Turkish groups have been concerned about this for a while.)

The Armenian enthusiasm is so apparent it has made news in the Los Angeles Daily news, where Lisa Friedman writes, “The e-mail early Wednesday from the Armenian National Committee of America was positively enthusiastic.

‘It's just past 1:30 a.m. on election night and I'm wide awake,’ Chairman Ken Hachikian wrote to the organization's members as news networks projected the Democratic Party takeover in the U.S. House.”
I had received Hachikian’s e-mail as well (in my Bulk folder). He was asking for money, as always (seriously, I have received no one e-mail from Mr. Hachikian where he doesn’t ask me for money; I even wrote him back once asking him not to ask for money in every single letter). Not having donated any money to ANCA, Hachikian makes me feel guilty for not having contribution in the genocide recognition.

Now more serious stuff. I went to Nancy Pelosi’s website yesterday and there was no word that she is a member of the Armenian caucus (as most members don’t mention). She had a huge list of bills she supports and there was nothing about Armenia. Armenian activists have confessed before in private the ridiculousness of the “Armenian caucus.” A leader from Los Angeles told me how the workers of the “Armenian Caucus” co-chair were lobbying caucus members not to vote for the genocide recognition bill introduced by Rep. Schiff.

Only Representatives Adam Schiff (Democrat from California), Joe Knollenberg (Republican from Michigan), Thadeus McCotter (Republican from Michigan), George Radanovich (Republican from California), Frank Pallone (Democrat from New Jersey) and Curt Weldon (Republican from Pennsylvania) have listed in their websites as being members of the Armenian caucus. This is six people out of the “over 200-member strong Armenian caucus,” let alone the fact that Curt Weldon is also a member of Azerbaijan caucus (yes, yes…). I am not sure if all of these gentlemen are in office right now, but even if all of them are, we can say there are 6 proud members of the Armenian caucus, one of them also a proud member and an officer of the Azerbaijani caucus! (Results from Google search of “ ‘Armenian caucus’ site:gov”).

The observance, I guess, is that Armenian issues have very minor significance in American politics. Most, if not all, “powerful Armenian supporters” don’t mention a word about Armenia in their websites. On the other hand, Armenians are excited again like they were when both Clinton and Bush got elected…

Particular solutions and alternatives? Not at this minute. But something deep in my mind says we need to think about Armenia’s feature; and that feature does not lie on the U.S. Capitol Hill.

May feature prove me wrong.