October 7, 2006 - Saturday

Democratic gubernatorial candidate Randy Iwase came across remarkably well in last night's debate for someone who has been out of the public spotlight for years. He made quite a respectable showing against the very media-savvy Linda Lingle, and did a good job of identifying issues while staying pretty positive. He projected quite a good image.

But the hair people had a real thing for bangs. Lingle's spidery bangs reached down to her eyes and I found them quite distracting. Apologies in advance to moderator Gerry Kato, whose look, with a thick flop of hair down the right side of his face, reminded me of Austin Powers. I kept waiting for Gerry to look at the camera and let loose with a "Groovy, Baby". Iwase, of course, doesn't have to worry about hair.

The debate, by the way, is available for replay.

One credit caught my eye. The studio space for the debate was provided by KITV but the equipment came from KHET, and the debate was broadcast on KITV. That's an interesting mix of the profit and nonprofit media worlds. Is there a story there?

In response to the Case request for feedback, one reader offered this story:

...here's an incident that certainly didn't help: During a public meeting someone stood up and pointed out that Case supports anti-fishing legislation. The person said that fishing was an important hobby to him. Case replied, "Then maybe you'd better start looking for another hobby."

A recent poll indicated that one out of four households participate in some sort of fishing activity. When word of something like this gets out to a group that large, it certainly isn't going to help win any votes.

Another reader shared the advice he gave Case after the primary:

"Ed,

You may want to play a role in the General Election by campaigning for Randy Iwase. The Democrats need a person to knock back Lingle in the General, a little. This would enhance your position as a Democrat and put to rest those in the Democratic Party who say that you are really a Republican. Making the differences between you and Lingle clear would be helpful to you in the long run, because you will be facing her as an opponent in some future election.

Also, to stay in DC during the next six weeks will look like a convenient excuse for many of your supporters who may want to see you take a leadership role in the future. As historical note, Tom Gill in 1970 was so pissed off when he lost that he went hikiing on Round Top and ran into a tree branch that nearly took out his eye. He did nothing to support the Democrats in the General Election that year and never had a chance after that.

In 1972, his supporters started the Citizens for Hawaii and tried to take over the Democratic Party, again. The only thing they got was votes at the national convention for McGovern. So much for history.

If you want to continue to serve the people of Hawaii as you say, I would strongly suggest you come back to Hawaii and go on the attack against Lingle. You will get a lot of respect and future support from the party regulars for your next run.

Here's a small slice of Kaaawa life. School was out this week, so kids were out and about in the early morning instead of heading for class. I caught these youngsters in a candid moment.

October 6, 2006 - Friday

Ed Case sent out an email to all who had been receiving his campaign newsletter. There was the standard "mahalo for all your support" and expressions of commitment to public service. But there was also this rather unusual "request for guidance":

No campaign, win or lose, is fully complete unless one reflects on and learns from it, not just to understand what happened and why but to apply its lessons to the future. We have certainly been doing just that, but I would especially appreciate your own input and guidance in this regard. From your perspective, what accounted for the result? What did we do right and wrong? Did you vote for or against me and why? Would you support me under other conditions? Your complete candor is all I ask for. If you reply here, I will protect your confidentiality. If you wish to remain fully anonymous, please mail me a brief note at PO Box 4618, Kaneohe, HI 96744. Thanks!

That's a very interesting move. The perspectives from outside the campaign could be quite valuable to Case in considering future campaign strategies. It would be interesting to check back in a month or two and see whether he gets genuine feedback.

I spent time yesterday afternoon browsing through the state campaign spending reports filed by companies and political action committees. Not enough time for anything systematic, but enough for some general impressions and a few specific examples. The bottom line is that there's a lot less money coming into local elections from these sources. Of course, the general election is still a month away, but overall reported contributions appear to be down from previous election cycles, and down significantly from the heyday of the pay-to-play procurement system of the 1980s and early 1990s.

At the same time, the Realtors Pac of Hawaii has emerged as one of the top campaign contributors, reporting $101,593.77 spent this year through September 8. The Realtors reported raising $144,331.74, and claimed that 83 % of the total, or $119,789.10, came in amounts under $100 per person. That's an astounding accomplishment, if true, and the result will be considerable political clout, especially in the face of declining funds available for campaign use by other traditionally active groups.

Unlike most other political action committees, who restricted contributions to legislative campaigns to a few hundred dollars, the Realtors gave out many checks for $1,000 and a few for the maximum of $4,000 allowed in Senate races, including $4K each to Shan Tsutsui, Sam Slom, and Les Ihara.

Some perennial players moved large sums into their campaign coffers before the end of last year, when the Campaign Spending Commission began enforcing a $1,000 limit on company funds going to campaigns. For example, A&B's Hawaii Pac has $435,014.87 sitting in the bank, although it gave out only $31,450 between January and early September of this year.

Similarly, the Castle & Cooke PAC reported $724,200 in the bank, with spending this year of just $26,950, including $2,000 to Mike Gabbard and $3,000 to Mayor Hannemann. During the 2-year election cycle, C&C has given $25,000 to the Republican Party and $11,000 to the Dems.

Bank of Hawaii reported spending $41,410 with $21,211.30 in the bank going into the general election. BOH reported giving $10,000 to the GOP, and $7,000 to the Democratic Party, $8,200 to Rep. Neil Abercrombie, $5,000 to Ed Case, and $3,000 to Hannemann. Most legislators received contributions of $500 or less.

COPE, the AFL-CIO's PAC, spent just $23,175.52 and had $148,646.82 in the bank. COPE reported spending $9,374.94. The Hawaii Government Employees Association reported spending $24,185.07 and ended with an empty bank account.

It's really too soon for another round of Kaaawa dogs, but I wanted to introduce this beautiful collie (well, mostly collie). She only recently arrived in Kaaawa, but along with her people has quickly joined the morning walkers on the beach. Now if I could just get her name, which has gone past me on two occasions already.

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October 5, 2006 - Thursday

A reader called attention to an innovative but controversial ad that appeared in the Star-Bulletin's print edition on Tuesday (pages A12-13). The ad includes free-floating, almost cloud-like graphics that float between unrelated news stories on both pages, and then link to an ad across the bottom of A-13 for a retirement development, 15 Craigside.

 Note the insidious ad for a Nuuanu retirement home in the Tuesday, Oct. 3, Star-Bulletin, pages A12 and A13. The ad floats among stories and photo without any ad designation on A12 and then continues on Page A13.

I believed in ads, but this is an unhealthy intrusion into the news.

The floating elements even displace text, with print of adjacent news stories moved to make way for the irregular shaped ad.

Nurses at Kauai's Wilcox Hospital are still on strike, the longest nursing strike in state history. Their negotiating team explained the union's position in a column posted on their web site over the weekend.

Three months ago, 80% of the nurses voted to strike, spurred on by the issue of patient safety. This past week, in spite of all they have given up already, nurses still voted to reject HPH’s “last, best and final” offer - that included no movement on the safety
issues and a significant number of additional, punitive measures – by an overwhelming 87%.

But things got worse for the nurses, and for other workers across the country, when the National Labor Relations Board issued a decision redefining and expanding the class of "supervisory" workers who can be denied the right to join a union.

One reader familiar with the situation at Wilcox Hospital called the decision "a major step in the complete dismantling of RN organized labor in hospitals……more importantly it is the triumph of corporate managed medicine."

No more will the nurse be able to report issues regarding patient safety, free from retaliation….now there will be “at will” guidelines, and the Charge RN will be terminated without recourse of a collective bargaining agreement. 

Those millionaire Bush Pioneers in the medical fields must have thought that they had died and gone to heaven today!! This gift from Bush’s NLRB compliments George’s earlier complete financial give-away to the pharmaceutical industries with his Medicare prescription drug “benefit”. When average Joe American becomes a patient, their nurse will now think twice before noting inadequacies of care, they will be asking themselves “is it worth losing my job?”….

The Newspaper Guild got somewhat better news when the National Labor Relations Board dismissed charges against the union filed by management of the Hawaii Tribune-Herald. The NLRB determined there was no evidence to support the charges.

The union's national newspaper, The Guild Reporter, also carried a recent story on the state of negotiations at the Hilo paper.

October 4, 2006 - Wednesday

I assume, from the lack of news, that Senator McCain was a no-show for yesterday's Lingle fundraisers. Despite earlier notices of his participation in the events, McCain's name didn't appear in yesterday's Advertiser story by Johnny Brannon. Brannon also called attention to the newly available disclosures by local political action committees, which have now been scanned and available online.

One reader calling himself "Keoki from Hawaii Kai" responded last week to my comments on the apparent "disappearance" of Republican candidate Nolan Kido:

I (and many other Republicans in this district) am glad that you "outed" the demise of Nolan Kido's campaign. The district leadership tried very hard to get another candidate to content for the H18 seat, but Kido seems to be in with party leadership....

FYI, Kido couldn't raise any money (no one wants to give money to a social-liberal RINO) so rumor is that's the reason he quit the campaign. He even missed the Hawai Kai Neighborhood Board debate with Lyla this Tuesday!

I can't bring myself to vote for liberal Lyla, but I will certainly leave my ballot blank in the general. Lots of other true Republicans will as well.

According to reports filed with the Campaign Spending Commission, Kido raised $8,291 during the first half of 2006, but only five contributors (who gave more than $100 and so were reported individually) had addresses in the district. Between July 1 and September 8, Kido took in just $150, all reportedly in small amounts of less than $100.

I omitted several negative references to City Council member Charles Djou, apparently too much a "social liberal" for Keoki's tastes. I don't have any idea if that's reflective of the views of other GOP voters, as the writer claims, but it's interesting nonetheless. There might be a bit of a bias, though, as Keoki ends his missive with this: "P.S. George Bush will go down as the greatest President in history."

Another reader had this to say about my comments yesterday on the "machine":

Maybe not a machine, but certainly an "old guard."

Some--John Waihee, Chuck Friedman and Neil Abercrombie--showed up at the primary eve rally in Hilo to support their candidate, who wasn't there. Abercrombie flew directly from Washington to speak on behalf of Akaka.

Agreed, but an "old guard" does not a machine make.

October 3, 2006 - Tuesday

There's an eager city garbage crew working in Kaaawa this morning. I could hear the truck starting its rounds just a few minutes after 5 a.m., well before what I think is the authorized 5:30 start. But I suppose its okay if no one complains.

Speaking of complaining...It was a great piece of campaign art, listed on eBay as the "Hawaii Signgate sign, autographed by Ed Case."

It was the sign that became famous when it was removed from its spot in Manoa by Nancie Caraway, wife of Congressman Neil Abercrombie. The lengthy description continued.

"A sign of our times? Here's your chance to own a piece of Hawaii's Political History! Yes, this is the very "Ed Case Senate" sign that Rep. Neil Abercrombie's wife, Nancie, took and crumpled from a Honolulu Community Garden on Sept. 5, 2006. The sign was eventually returned to its rightful owner and Ed Case supporter. Now it can be yours! Signgate happened during a heated senate campaign that pitted Rep. Ed Case against incumbent Sen. Dan Akaka. Abercrombie and wife are supporters of Dan Akaka. Dubbed "Signgate" it was one of the most talked about events of Hawaii's 2006 election season. It could be a first in Hawaii Political History. The famous sign comes in its original, unrepaired condition with Rep. Ed Case's autograph. Nancie has not autographed this historical item, but it does have her fingerprints on it! Winning bid to be donated to Community Gardens.

So I bid $15.25 (why not?) and won the eBay auction, but now the sad part...when I tried to arrange to pick up the sign or pay for postage, the seller--using the name "casevolunteer"--disappeared. I've sent three or four emails which have all gone unanswered and the sign remains somewhere in eBay limbo.

Here's another post-primary thought. I've gotten very tired of hearing or reading commentaries on the primary election that see Dan Akaka's win as evidence of the continuing dominance of a Democratic Party "machine" along with the heavy controlling hand of "THE" senator, the other Dan, Dan Inouye.

What machine? Machine politics are built around patronage and power, the ability to reward friends and punish political enemies, things that have been in short supply for Democrats now that there's a Republican in the governor's seat. If you've been to Democratic precinct meetings anytime recently, there's no machine there. In fact, the party's been hurting for years.

In fact, although I talked with a lot of people before the primary, Democrats, independents, and even some Republicans, who were wrestling with the Akaka-Case choice, not one ever mentioned Inouye or their debt to the "machine" as a factor in how their vote would be cast. That isn't to discount Inouye's political influence, which is considerable. But there were real issues in this campaign reflecting real concerns of Democrats and others, issues from Iraq and the weight of the Bush presidency to labor rights, constitutional rights, economics, education and more. Age and experience were issues I heard fought over, as was personal "style" perceived through an island gaze. There were voting records being considered, strengths and weaknesses weighed.

Such debates are not signs of a party machine working its magic, despite the desire of some pundits. They are signs that, despite the myth of the machine, common principles and beliefs have kept increasingly independent Democrats and follow-travelers within the party tent in great enough numbers to retain a majority edge. That's not a machine. That's just politics.

Still on politics...what's happened to Sen. John McCain's trip to Hawaii to raise money for island Republicans? There hasn't been much news about it, and it's not mentioned on either the GOP web site nor McCain's own schedule. The fundraisers aren't listed yet by the Campaign Spending Commission, although that doesn't necessarily mean the paperwork hasn't been submitted. Even on Governor Lingle's campaign web site, you've got to dig past the front page before reaching any information on the fundraisers scheduled today on Maui and this evening in Honolulu.

October 2, 2006 - Monday

The continuing revelations in the case of now disgraced lobbyist Jack Abramoff prompted me to take another look at how lobbyists are treated and regulated in Hawaii.

Although I'm not a newbie when it comes to working with the various parts of the state's ethics laws, I was surprised to find a huge loophole that leaves most contacts between lobbyists and officials in the executive branch both undisclosed and unregulated. Anyone who attempt to impact public policy by influencing legislators must register as a lobbyist or as a group that employs a lobbyist, and is required to regularly disclose lobbying activities, including how much is spent and and what individual lobbyists are paid, as well as any spending on particular legislators that exceeds a nominal level.

I've always thought that lobbying activities targeting the governor or other executive branch officials, such as department heads or key staff, were also covered. Why? Because the law seems quite explicit (Chapter 97 HRS). Here's the definition of lobbying.

"Lobbying" means communicating directly or through an agent, or soliciting others to communicate, with any official in the legislative or executive branch, for the purpose of attempting to influence legislative or administrative action or a ballot issue.

That seems straight forward. Lobbying appears to include all communications with both the legislative and executive branch.

But wait. There's a huge loophole created by the statute's related definition of administrative action:

"Administrative action" means the proposal, drafting, consideration, amendment, enactment, or defeat by any administrative agency of any rule, regulation, or other action governed by section 91-3.

All other efforts by lobbyists fall outside the scope of the present law, including efforts to influence the interpretation, application, or enforcement of rules, lobbying for contracts or other business, etc. It's a huge loophole.

Ethics Commission executive director Dan Mollway confirmed that most lobbying of administration officials is unregulated. Mollway said the issue of executive branch lobbying has not come up, and the commisison has never proposed extending the existing law to cover these types of lobbying activities.

Other states have been amending their own laws in this direction, though. Idaho, for example, recently adopted an amendment that "expands the definition of lobbying to cover attempts to influence various members of the executive branch regarding rulemakings, procurements, contracts, bids, bid processes, financial service agreements and bonds," according to one summary prepared by a Washington D.C. law firm. Pennsylvania and New Hampshire are also mentioned as recently regulating executive lobbying.

Florida adopted a new law at the end of 2005 with similar provisions. According to the Florida Bar:

The new law provides that lobbying before the executive branch is “seeking, on behalf of another person, to influence an agency with respect to a decision of the agency in the area of policy or procurement or an attempt to obtain the goodwill of an agency official or employee.” The term “agency” includes the Governor, the Cabinet, and any department, division, bureau, board, commission, or authority of the executive branch.

Suffice it to say that Hawaii has, in the past, been a leader in the field of government ethics. Here's one area where our state law lags much of the rest of the country and needs to be strengthened.

October 1, 2006 - Sunday

Sunday a.m., and I've been randomly grazing through campaign spending reports.

Rep. Scott Saiki must be supremely confident. The rep from McCully-Moiliili raised just $4,100 or so this year and had spent, as of early September, a grand total of just $599.76 since the beginning of 2006. Not much campaigning except person to person stuff gets done for $599.76. That's just about as close as one can get to a no-money campaign, although he does have some money left in the bank in case of emergency, although a Republican uprising in Saiki's district seems a lot less than likely.

Then I happened to check out Mayor Hannemann report for the first half of this year, and spotted these contributions, each for the maximum amount allowed ($4,000), and all dated June 5, 2006:

Fisher Adam $4000.00 Los Angeles, CA 90024

Fisher Denise Ms $4000.00 Los Angeles, CA 90024

Fisher Diane Ms $4000.00 Bayside, WI 53217-1414

Fisher Haley Ms $4000.00 Los Angeles, CA 90024

Fisher Richard Y. Mr. $4000.00 Milwaukee, WI 53217

Grosfeld James Mr. $4000.00
Southfield, MI 48076 ($8000.00)
Grosfeld Jason Mr. $4000.00
Los Angeles, CA 90024

Grosfeld Jenna Ms $4000.00
Los Angeles, CA 90024

Grosfeld Nancy E. Ms $4000.00
Bloomfield Hills, MI 48 ($8000.00)

James and Nancy Grosfeld were also gave a similar amount last year at about the same time, apparently putting them well over the contribution limit.

So what do these people have in common? A quick google check found that Jason Grosfeld and Adam Fisher were founders of Irongate Capital Partners, which is partnered with Donald Trump for the Trump hotel in Waikiki. Aha.

Okay, it's Sunday, and time to coast along with a few more of our Kaaawa morning dogs.

This is Ms. Lola, who recently moved in with Lucy, the cute Shih Tzu who lives down by the beach. Lola moved in with one of our friends' sons, and stayed when son moved out. It remains to be seen whether she stays (she seems like a good watchdog, meaning she barks when we approach) or goes (Lucy has remained pretty standoffish). In either case, Lola is a real nice dog. As usual, click for more photos.