IN some ways, Nancy Bey Little of Mililani and Janice Judd of Kahala are very much alike. They were both born and raised on the mainland, married twice, had no children, moved to Hawaii because they always wanted to live here, are widows past the venerable age of 65, and love writing letters to the editor. Two women, two
views, one presidentBut on the political spectrum ranging from liberal Democrat to conservative Republican, Nancy is way to the left, Jan is way to the right, and most of us fall somewhere in between.
Both women have been active in their respective local parties (Nancy campaigned for Cayetano/Jan was a party delegate for 10 years) and aren't afraid to share their civic-minded gospel -- loudly, if necessary. Imagine, then, the emotional upheaval these antithetical gals are going through as President Clinton is put on trial by the Senate after impeachment by the House.
Nancy thinks the shenanigans in Washington are insane and the "worst example of partisan politics" ever. The former R.N. from the San Francisco Bay area says it's ironic that Reagan "got a pass on Iran-Contra" while the Republican Congress attempts to exaggerate what Clinton did into an impeachable offense.
"He had an affair -- a short affair. He didn't go out and announce it to the world. It's an invasion of privacy to have him pursued by a permanent spy paid for by us," says Nancy of Kenneth Starr, whom she calls the "special persecutor."
This is incredibly troubling, says Nancy, because Clinton "is doing such a good job -- look at the nation's economy." Asked why the president is being attacked so fervently, Nancy says, "It's envy and jealousy. He's darn good at what he does but, you know, the real superstar is Hillary. The Republicans are such hypocrites to talk about family values, but Hillary's marriage and role as a parent are so important to her, she is going to keep it together no matter what."
Nancy says her dream ticket would be Al Gore as president with Hillary as his running mate. "Hopefully, the voters will remember the impeachment two years from now, resulting in a Democratic sweep in the year 2000," she envisions.
Meanwhile, the main character that Jan wants swept out immediately is Clinton. "He's not being charged for adultery; it's perjury. If everybody lies before the grand jury, we'll have no government anymore," says the former Gulf Oil executive secretary from New York.
Jan contemptuously calls the incumbent "anti-family" in philosophy, a "traitor" who sold his country's secrets for Chinese money and a despicable misogynist. "He denigrates women -- Monica, Paula Jones, Hillary -- he has no respect for them," says Jan.
SHE says Linda Tripp is getting a bum rap for her role in bringing out the Monica revelations ("Maybe she betrayed a friend but she did not betray her country"); believes Reagan was the best president ever, especially because he strengthened the military; and says society is in trouble because the Democrats "try anything," regardless of the consequences. "Do you know why the Social Security system is in trouble?," Jan asks rhetorically. "What do you expect when you kill off 35 million workers through abortion? Democrats don't look down the road."
Miraculously, both women do agree on one thing -- Clinton won't be thrown out of office. Says Nancy, "He'll have a successful final two years." Or, as Jan puts it, "He'll wiggle out of it -- as usual."
Diane Yukihiro Chang's column runs Monday and Friday.
She can be reached by phone at 525-8607, via e-mail at
DianeChang@aol.com, or by fax at 523-7863.