Political ‘culture
of fear’ stifles
our potential

Once the champion of equality
and opportunity, Hawaii's
Democratic Party has lost its way

"Today's Democratic Party is ... ruled by an out-of-touch elite and elected officials motivated only by personal gain." --Ted Hong, Hilo attorney, former chief labor negotiator for the Lingle administration

Hawaii politics and the Democratic Party have always been an important part of my life. I owe the Democratic Party and its former leaders a great deal for the opportunities that have come my way. The former generation of leaders, including my parents, made Hawaii a dynamic place to live and grow. I am proud of my parents, their accomplishments and the role they played in that movement.

My introduction to the Democratic Party occurred on a rainy evening at the Wahiawa Elementary School cafeteria. I was in grade school and my parents took me, my brother and sister there to a Democratic Party rally. The featured speakers were Spark Matsunaga, Dan Inouye, Patsy Mink and Bob Oshiro. They had a powerful message. It was an electric and galvanizing moment for everyone in the room.

Back then, the Democratic Party had a clear mission and strong sense of purpose. The party, its leaders and members sought to increase opportunities for all the sons and daughters of Hawaii, diversify all parts of our society and make sure our public schools gave students the foundation they would need to succeed. That is not the Democratic Party of today.

Today's Democratic Party is a party controlled by special interests, a party ruled by an out-of-touch elite and elected officials motivated only by personal gain.

Their lack of vision and leadership exhibited during the past 18 years -- from the Waihee and Cayetano administrations, through the last two years as the majority in the Legislature -- has brought us to a critical point in our statewide elections.

The Democrats have failed to recognize the need to change in order to meet the needs of our time. Instead of addressing the needs of the community, such as the ice epidemic, the Democrats allow lax drug laws to stay on the books even though addiction and crime rates have overwhelmed all sectors of our society.

Instead of working with the business community to broaden and diversify our economy, the Democrats' lack of leadership left us with a 10-year recession.

Instead of strengthening ethics and campaign-spending laws, the Democrats shook down people who engaged in business with the state and counties. More elected Democrats have been convicted, pled no contest to, and been charged with campaign spending violations than any other political party in the history of our state.

An attorney representing a local businessman who pleaded no contest to making illegal campaign contributions admitted in open court to a well- established practice of making campaign contributions to insure his business got more government contracts. The party that used to lead by example, the party that brought about important changes in our society, has become the party shaking people down for "loose change."

A few months ago, I spoke about the Democratic Party and its "culture of fear." This culture of fear is the only thing keeping the Democrats in power. It works in two ways.

» First, the Democrats threaten a person's or businesses' livelihood by tying state and county contracts to campaign contributions. Throughout the state, all of us have seen the shoddy workmanship in state and county projects simply because those contractors, consultants, engineers and architects were chosen based on the amount of their campaign contributions instead of the quality of their work. You only have to read the newspapers to see how many good, young professionals and their families were trapped by the Democratic Party threat.

» Second, the Democrats perpetuate this culture of fear by punishing anyone who questions or challenges their authority. People lose jobs, are denied opportunities and excluded from participating in the political process because they have challenged the status quo. The result is that different perspectives and points of view are ignored and discouraged.

As a Democrat, I will not support these greedy and narcissistic Democrats. These Democrats, their cronies and their privileged special interests such as the Hawaii Government Employees Association, have a stranglehold on our government and communities.

In November's election, voters like me face a more important crossroad than in the 2002 election. We have the opportunity to fundamentally change our government. We have the opportunity to put new faces and new voices into government, people who are free to speak their minds and have different points of view, free from the control of special-interest groups. We can elect officials who actually consider and weigh the merits of proposals instead of deciding an issue based on campaign contributions and endorsements.

I deeply believe in the same message I heard long ago at the Wahiawa Elementary School cafeteria. That message was that we, the sons and daughters of Hawaii, can make a positive difference in changing our society. Today, the Democrats are only interested in keeping everything the same.

If we are to succeed as a state, if our children are to succeed, we must take back our government. We have to break from and bury this culture of fear. The general election is that opportunity.

Take a close look at the members of the Hawaii Republican Party. They are more ethnically, culturally, socially and economically diverse than the Democrats. The Hawaii Republicans welcome different points of view and different voices. The Hawaii GOP is fielding a great group of candidates who understand that Hawaii needs to change to meet the challenges of today and tomorrow. They are candidates who deserve to be heard and who want a more efficient and responsive state government, a broad-based state economy and an education system that we all can be proud of. They will bring our voices to a building that only hears the behind-closed-doors whispers of Democrats and special-interest groups.

We should give these new candidates a chance. Those candidates happen to be Republicans, but we must move beyond labels, stereotypes and myths. Governor Lingle has remade the Hawaii GOP into a party of new ideas, a party that embraces change, a party that welcomes diverse opinions, a party of clear goals and objectives for a better Hawaii. That's why I'm a Democrat for Lingle and support the Hawaii GOP candidates. They have the courage, optimism and hope that the Democrats used to possess.

Together, we can change our state and our lives for the better. Together, we can have the courage to take that step and vote for someone different, from a different political party. Together, we can have the courage to vote for someone who has new ideas and will carry our voices into the Legislature's hallways. Together, we can, as fellow Democrats, support a group of individuals, Hawaii Republicans, who will always strive to keep Hawaii a special place.