Akaka and Case to face off tonight
Both sides view the event as pivotal for their campaigns
U.S. Rep. Ed Case and U.S. Sen. Daniel Akaka put it on the line tonight before a live statewide television audience.
Democrats Akaka and Case have built up the 7:30 p.m. forum on PBS Hawaii as pivotal for their campaigns for the U.S. Senate, and both have spent much of the week preparing for tonight's broadcast.
"It's a great thing because it has really energized me. I've gone back to study and to look at the issues, and it's something that I'm looking forward to," incumbent Akaka said.
"We're going to use that time as best we can to crystallize the choice that voters face in just 25 days and to make sure that people are not the victims of misinformation coming out of Sen. Akaka's campaign," says challenger Case.
The two Democrats are matched up in an unusual primary race. Incumbent U.S. senators rarely face a fellow party member, with the challengers winning only about 5 percent of the time.
Case, 53, hopes to use the television time to press his No. 1 issue: Akaka at 81 should be retiring, not running again.
"We are going to talk, and I am going to talk about the next generation -- how do we provide that transition, how do we go forward into the future -- and I'm going to basically put the choice squarely on the table with the voters," Case said.
Akaka said he has received a clearance from his doctors for another campaign -- he has had medical problems before, including both hip and knee replacement surgery -- and he is downplaying the debate.
"I'm not one that is there for confrontation. I'm not there to argue pro and con; I just want to show our constituents where I am and why I'm there for whatever issue it is," Akaka said.
Akaka's team has worked all this week prepping him, including staging mock debates with practice opponents firing tough questions at the 30-year congressional veteran.
Elisa Yadao, Akaka's spokeswoman, says Akaka is not a skilled debater, but thinks that viewers will see that Akaka is "courageous in his actions."
Akaka himself points to his votes against the Iraq war and renewing the Patriot Act as issues that were politically dangerous.
"He holds government to high standards, and he has a strong sense of government accountability," Yadao said.
In contrast, University of Hawaii political scientist Ira Rohter says Case has a real skill in developing issues and presenting them clearly to an audience.
In a speech at the University of Hawaii, Rohter said, Case "was quite charming."
"Although I am more leftist than he is, I can only say Case gives serious and well-thought-out answers. And he's pretty blunt. He makes convincing or plausible arguments that refute the stereotypes used by the Akaka people to frame the election," Rohter said.
Tonight, Rohter said, both men will have to extend themselves. Akaka "needs to answer questions in a way that shows he's on top of issues, while demonstrating that he has worked on tons of bills."
And Case should relax, according to Rohter.
"He should be at ease in addressing hard issues with thoughtful answers ... that do not come off as wooden, nor too aggressive," Rohter said.
Case said he is not thinking about changing his style for the debate.
"I am not doctoring myself up for this campaign. I'm not paying high-priced media experts to tell me what to say. I'm going to be Ed Case," he said.
Akaka says he will work on showing that there is more to working in Washington than debating.
"I'm a schoolteacher by trade, and so for me, communicating with others, and certainly to my students back then, was all about listening and dialogue. Confrontation is the least effective method of persuasion in the classroom and, I would contend, with any other relationship you are trying to nurture. Influence and effectiveness is all about building bridges, not burning them," Akaka said.
The meeting is far from a no-holds-barred debate. Neither man is allowed to pose a question for the other to answer. They will first be given five minutes to make an opening presentation and then will have questions posed by Gerald Kato, chairman of the university's school of communications. The order of speaking will be determined by a coin toss before the debate starts.
Star-Bulletin reporter B.J. Reyes contributed to this report.
