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Anzai confirmed
Attorney General
The former Budget Director's
By Richard Borreca
integrity is praised
Star-BulletinEarl Anzai has gone from rejection to redemption in the eyes of the state Senate as he easily won confirmation as Attorney General.
The approval was given by the same Senate that last year refused to reconfirm him as budget director.
Yesterday, however, Anzai won his post on a vote of 22 to nothing, with Sen. Marshall Ige (D, Kaneohe), under indictment for campaign violations, declining to vote.
"He's honest, he's a straight shooter," said Matt Matsunaga, judiciary committee co-chairman, said.
Another senator used a sports analogy to explain that Anzai would not cheat.
"I played golf with Mr. Anzai," recalled Sen. Cal Kawamoto. "He's not a great golfer, but he plays the ball were it lays. That shows he has a great deal of integrity."
The senate last year also rejected then-Attorney General Margery Bronster, saying that she micromanaged the department, refused to expedite legal cases and didn't represent the state education department in special-education cases.
In contrast, legislators said Anzai, whom Cayetano named as acting attorney general eight months ago, has promised to work closely with all state departments.
Cayetano said yesterday Anzai had "seriously considered" the complaints leveled by the senators against Bronster and worked to address their concerns.
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