Umumnya pemimpin BN tidak menyukai Al Gore menang. Kisah tahun 1998 itu disifatkan sebagai parut luka yang tidak dapat dilupakan. Mahathir dan Rafidah tidak senang dengan Al Gore disebabkan karenah ucapan Gore di majlis makan yang lama dulu. Tetapi pemimpin tua umno berdua ini cuma pandai hentam sahaja.

Apakah Rafidah sendiri tidak sedar beliau menang ketua Wanita pun dengan sedikit undi juga. Malah Mahathir sendiri "menang" melawan Ku Li dengan undi yang "negatif" sehingga Ku Li keluar daripada UMNO kerana tidak menyangka Mahathir sanggup menang dengan apa pun cara.

Rencana BT menarik perhatian kita:

Tetapi, apakah presiden Gore atau Bush mempengaruhi pelaburan A.S. di Malaysia? Tidak mungkin. Seperti pelabur asing lain, peniaga A.S. mengambil keputusan pelaburan berdasarkan faktor domestik ekonomi dan politik. Mereka tidak komplen walaupun Mahathir asyik mengkritik A.S., memgenakan kawalan-kawalan modal ataupun sebarang perubahan senario politik.

Malah warga industri A.S. menyatakan karenah birokrasi dan kekerapan pertukaran polisi sebagai sebab utama merudumnya FDI dari Amerika. Namun begitu A.S. tetap merupakan sumber terbesar FDI di Malaysia. "

A.S. lebih banyak berminat di Asia Utara, dan Asian hanyalah satu budak kecil yang asyik meragam. Budak kecil inilah yang mengupah golongan Yahudi untuk melobi di A.S. supaya membeli bon tajaannya satu waktu dulu. Tetapi budak itu kemudiannya berpeluk dengan Castro di bumi A.S., padahal dia tahu itu akan menyebabkan kemarahan rakyat Amerika kerana kes budak pelarian Cuba masih segar.

Mahathir dan Rafidah boleh bermain seribu kata, tetapi mereka berdua tetap terbang jua. Dan Amerika tetap masih menjadi bumi persinggahan mereka!

From Asian Wall Street Journal
13th November 2000

INTERVIEW: Malaysia's Rafidah Lashes Out At Al Gore

By NETTY ISMAIL Of DOW JONES NEWSWIRES

BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN, Brunei -- Despite lambasting Democrat Al Gore, Malaysian Trade and Industry Rafidah Aziz said Sunday her government has no preference over the choice of the new U.S. president, provided whoever is chosen doesn't meddle in the affairs of other countries.

The minister said in an interview with Dow Jones Newswires that Gore's backing for the supporters of jailed former deputy prime minister Anwar Ibrahim's "reformasi" movement two years ago remains etched in Malaysians' minds.

"Once you are rude and abrasive people don't forget you," Rafidah said.

"You want to choose a president with a margin of two votes, that's your problem. If you want to have a president that has not got the support of half the population, that's your problem," Rafidah said.

"We won't interfere. We have to live with it whoever comes in. What we expect is that the president of the U.S. should have the interests of all countries at heart and not try to push their views around, not to become the great policeman of the world and push the U.S. democracy concept down everybody's throats...and don't interfere in internal affairs of countries," she said.

In 1998, Rafidah publicly called U.S. Vice President Al Gore "disgusting" after an APEC meeting in Malaysia where he praised protesters who were demanding that its host, Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamed, step down.

"That's because of his busybody attitude. He and his big mouth. He doesn't know what's happening, he just reads a speech that was probably prepared for him. Maybe he means it, I dont know, but it's sheer stupidity to try and commment on something that first of all, it's not correct and secondly, that irritates a whole lot of Malaysians, excluding our own detractors who constitute a minority," she said.

A week ago, Mahathir was quoted as saying by the local media he would be sorry if Gore won the Nov. 7 presidential election.

"We know Al Gore - he's the only man who can go to a country and tell the people to rise against the government in front of the government," Mahathir was quoted as saying.

Election officials in a Florida county on Sunday ordered a laborious hand recount of hundreds of thousands of votes after a week of unprecedented political turmoil in the U.S..

Earlier, George W. Bush's Republican Party sent the presidential race into the courts, requesting that a judge block the manual recount of the improbably close vote in Florida - a state whose winner will take the presidency. A federal judge set a hearing for Monday in Miami.

The Texas Governor Bush holds a narrow lead after an unofficial Florida recount, with an unknown number of overseas ballots yet to be counted.

From The Business Times, Singapore

13th November 2000

Malaysians are rooting for Bush

Americans' presidential choice may alter complexion of US-Malaysia bilateral ties

MALAYSIA may cross swords with the United States occasionally, but the outcome of the US presidential race is not expected to have much impact on Malaysia. The victory of either Governor George Bush or Vice-President Al Gore will not result in any major shift in US policy towards Malaysia.

The fact is that Malaysia is too small to feature prominently on the superpower's radar screen. Moreover, the new US leader will continue to be more pre-occupied with developments in North Asia rather than Asean, in which Malaysia plays a pivotal role.

But Americans' choice of president may alter the complexion of bilateral ties between Malaysia and the US. Many Malaysians -- political leaders included -- are openly rooting for Mr Bush due to their dislike of Mr Gore.

They will never forget or forgive Mr Gore's behaviour during the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (Apec) summit hosted by Malaysia in 1998. Instead of being a graceful guest, [NOTE,he committed the indiscretion of praising anti-government protesters in the presence of key government leaders at the height of the Anwar saga. He then skipped the dinner hosted by Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohammad.

In the event that Mr Gore is picked as the next American president, ties between the two countries are therefore likely to be chilly. Even before the votes were cast, Dr Mahathir said that he would be sorry if Mr Gore becomes the US president.

But will a Gore or Bush presidency affect US investments in Malaysia? Unlikely. Like other foreign investors, US businessmen base their investment decisions on a myriad of domestic economic and political factors. They have not complained about Dr Mahathir's frequent criticisms of the US, capital controls or even the changed political landscape. Instead, US industrialists have cited the Malaysian bureaucracy and frequent policy changes as the main reason for the dip in American foreign direct investments (FDIs) in recent years. Nevertheless, the US has remained the largest source of FDIs in Malaysia.

Nor is the Malaysian stock market likely to take the cue from the outcome of the US presidential race.

The new president, whoever he may be, is expected to continue the American crusade for globalisation in services and trade. And despite the Malaysian government's apprehensions towards globalisation, it maintains a liberal policy towards foreign investors.

In fact, lately, it has been opening up the economy even more. For instance, it has allowed foreign investors to own stakes and manage the country's ports for the first time. And it recently raised the foreign shareholding cap in Malaysia Airlines to 45 per cent from 30 per cent.

Furthermore, the Malaysian government has gradually relaxed its regime of capital controls since September 1998 to placate foreign portfolio managers. They are no longer barred from taking their money out within one year. And the exit levy of 30 per cent of the principal amount has been scrapped. Foreigners now have to pay only a flat 10 per cent capital gains tax if they repatriate their proceeds within one year -- a common feature in many countries. So despite uneasy ties with the US leadership if Mr Gore ends up in the White House, Malaysia will continue to open its economy and its capital markets to woo American investors. Just don't expect Dr Mahathir to lay down the red carpet for Mr Gore.