Posted on: Saturday, July 26, 2008
Obama's Isle visit should be profitable
By David Shapiro
flASHback — Whew. With presidential fluffs and local candidates filing madly, it's all politics as we "flASHback" on the week's news that amused and confused:
Barack Obama's coming home for a Honolulu fundraiser that will cost $2,300 to attend — $10,000 if you want to go to a private reception. Ah, the politics of change. You shake his hand, he shakes you down.
John McCain is getting grief about his age after gaffes that included confusing Russia's Vladimir Putin with the German president. Give the guy a break. He can't help it if he doesn't remember what he forgot.
Councilwoman Ann Kobayashi stirred city politics with her late decision to run against Mayor Mufi Hannemann.
After three years of snarling between these two, it seems more like a fight for alpha dog than chief executive.
Duke Bainum, who lost to Hannemann in 2004, will run for Kobayashi's council seat after spending much of the last four years out of state tending to "family business." I didn't know sulking was his family's business.
When Rep. Kirk Caldwell came up a signature short on his nomination papers filed with the city clerk to run against Bainum, a worker in the clerk's office signed for him. Isn't it comforting that our election overseers are so scrupulous about not showing favoritism?
Election officials let Democratic House candidate Chrystn Eads take her nomination papers out of the office to get signatures, then re-enter after closing time to file. If the LPGA operated that way, Michelle Wie would be hoisting a trophy instead of explaining a disqualification.
GOP chairman Willes Lee said the party fielded candidates in only 29 of the 51 House districts because he's more interested in quality than quantity.
You can never be too careful about the quality of your losers.
Gov. Linda Lingle skipped the filing frenzy for an energy conservation meeting in the Bahamas.
Typical. She's never wasted energy on anybody's political fortunes but her own.
Leaders of the anti-rail initiative say they'll accept the will of the voters if they get on the ballot and lose. I'm sure that'll be gracious, like Dick Tuck after he lost a California election: "The people have spoken — the bastards."
And the quote of the week ... from Democratic chairman Brian Schatz on the filing disputes: "Hawai'i Republicans have already dragged these elections into the mud." They'll find plenty of Democrats waiting.
David Shapiro has covered Hawai'i and national news for four decades as a reporter, editor and columnist. Read his blog, Volcanic Ash, at www.HonoluluAdvertiser.com/Blogs.
Reach David Shapiro at dave@volcanicash.net.
