Anh Cao is about to miss his flight because of me.

It’s halfway through our conversation on a rainy afternoon in March, and the freshman representative from Louisiana is scheduled to leave for a flight home in ten minutes. But when I ask him about it, he merely shrugs. “It’s not a problem,” he says with a smile.

It’s not surprising that Cao, who represents New Orleans and the surrounding district, doesn’t have a lot of time on his hands these days. Despite his recent arrival, he’s landed berths on two hugely influential committees – Homeland Security and Transportation and Infrastructure. What is surprising, however, is the fact that he’s willing to spend his last ten minutes in his office talking to a reporter instead of tending to more personal matters. It’s an attention to detail and the needs of others that speaks volumes about his popularity – and his unlikely journey to his current position.

There’s a lot about Anh Cao that doesn’t conform to expectations. Coming from a district that’s both heavily Democratic and heavily African-American, Cao is neither. His family emigrated from Vietnam in 1975, making him the first Vietnamese congressman elected in the United States. He’s a Republican in a district that hasn’t elected one since 1891. And he’s not a career politician – before this election, he was an immigration lawyer and community organizer in New Orleans, professions that have at times put him at odds with his own party. Yet somehow he has not only secured a position representing one of the best-known districts in the country, but has been hailed as “the future of the GOP” by no less than House Minority Leader John Boehner.

So what does Anh Cao himself think of all this?

“Our main concern, our main focus, is the rebuilding of the District,” he says. “That’s the reason we chose to be on those two committees [Homeland Security and Transportation]…In the next couple of years, they will have a lot of connection with the recovery business we are trying to do down there. That’s what we’re hoping to do.”

Cao’s election in the fall, in which he defeated longtime representative William Jefferson, was hailed by both parties as one of the greatest political upsets of the year. Despite this praise, the congressman has made a noticeable effort to stay out of partisan squabbles – of the recent Michael Steele/Rush Limbaugh flare-up, he says, “I’m pretty sure they’re adult enough to resolve those issues themselves” – and he’s failed to conform to the GOP’s general positions on more than one issue, most notably immigration. But while his attempts to focus on problem-solving rather than party lines have won him some votes in his home district, he’s still learning how difficult it can be to escape the world of political maneuvering.

Most notable is his attempt to join the Congressional Black Caucus, an organization that has historically been composed of congressional representatives who are both black and Democratic. (See Alex Laska’s related article.) Cao’s election was marred by low voter turnout: many of his constituents found themselves unwilling to vote Republican but unable to support an incumbent so marked by corruption. Joining an African-American advocacy organization is one way for the congressman to connect with the people he represents. The CBC, however, hasn’t taken to his efforts, largely because he fits neither of its two major qualifications.

“There is no bloc…I can join,” he says. “But they let me know that sometimes, in certain meetings, they will keep me out. Because of party issues.” He pauses and adds, “At this point, I haven’t decided. I want to serve my constituents to the best of my ability.”

Cao has also struggled with his own party, especially given his stance on immigration policy. While he’s joined in his support of more open standards by other dissidents within the GOP – most notably Senator John McCain and former RNC chair Jim Nicholson – he’s the first to admit that his position, shaped by his work as an immigration lawyer and his own experiences as a new arrival, isn’t exactly popular with many of his fellow Republicans.

“I think I would have a more open policy, a more…” He winces over the next word. “Possibly a more liberal policy.” He and his staff, he explains, are looking at ways to take the lead on reform of the Immigration and Naturalization Act. But when asked how he squares away his position with his overall conservative philosophy, he almost willfully downplays any conflict.

“I don’t look at immigration as a Republican issue or a Democratic issue. I’m looking at it as – for example, with immigration – a way to solve a problem. We have a problem and what is the best way to solve the problem. The problem is not Democratic or Republican.”

Whether or not this bipartisan approach will work for Cao in the long run remains to be seen. Despite his office’s organization of outreach programming designed to connect the congressman with his less enthusiastic constituents, tensions remain high and odds long: as recently as March, two major African-American leaders in New Orleans were calling for his recall because of his opposition to Obama’s stimulus package. He currently lags behind every other Louisiana congressperson in terms of fundraising for 2010.

Nonetheless, Cao is making inroads, in part because of his acknowledgment of the challenges he faces. The response teams he’s created, designed to address the needs of various constituent demographics, serve to support his assertions of bipartisanship. His criticism of FEMA – a favorite target of Katrina survivors – hasn’t hurt him, either.

But with the Republican party at a crossroads and Democrats still learning how to handle the intoxication of majority rule, where does an avowed pragmatist like Anh Cao fit, and can he survive to serve another term in Congress? As is typical for Cao, his actions say more than his words do. “I do really hope that the Republican Party can come together and look at these issues,” he says. “I’d like to see us work together in a unified way.” At this point, finally, he seems antsy. After our goodbyes, he hurries out the door, back to his constituents – Democrat, Republican, black, white, Asian – in their shared, ruined city.

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