Left to right: U.S. Rep Colleen Hanabusa, Sen Daniel Inouye, Rep Mazie Hirono (now Senator), Oct 2012, campaign rally at Waimalu Elementary School / photo: HPI
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Hawaii Political Info introduction: Congresswoman Colleen Hanabusa (D) is running for U.S. Senator, a statewide office. Her major opponent in the primary is incumbent Senator Brian Schatz (D). One or the other of them will be knocked out of the race then, with the winner going on to most likely easily win in the general election in November.
Schatz, then lieutenant governor, was appointed to his position as Senator after Senator Daniel Inouye passed away in December 2012. There was controversy leading up to Schatz's appointment because of a letter from Inouye to Governor Neil Abercrombie expressing his "last wish" that Hanabusa be appointed to succeed him. In spite of the well-publicized letter, Governor Abercrombie appointed Lieutenant Governor Schatz as U.S. Senator.
There has since been some doubt expressed publicly that Senator Inouye actually wrote the letter by such as former Governor Ben Cayetano and Governor Abercrombie. Inouye's widow Irene publicly weighed in on Abercrombie's expressed doubts and said they were "hurtful." She's backing Hanabusa.
After Mrs. Inouye's comments, Abercrombie quickly issued an apology.
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Huffington Post
By Colleen Hanabusa (D), Congresswoman from Hawaii
June 24, 2014
The news and images coming from Iraq are disturbing. ISIL, a militant force intent on deposing the country's elected government and imposing Islamic rule, has captured the major city of Mosul, moved south across the country, and is threatening Baghdad. Along the way, reports are that it has conducted waves of mass killings. The country appears to be on the brink of civil war.
It is easy to imagine why there is a significant temptation to intervene. Some make a humanitarian argument, that we need to end the killing. Some focus on the political picture, that we must support a duly elected government against rebels. And for some it is primarily a military matter, the danger of a destabilized Iraq alongside Syria, threatening the entire region.
President Obama has announced, under an invocation of the War Powers Resolution, that he has sent 275 American troops and plans to send an additional 300 military advisers to Iraq in a non-combat role. However, what we have yet to hear in the president's announcement -- and the reason I cannot support it -- was a clear outline of how further involvement in Iraq would serve America's national security interests. After a decade of war, people are weary and suspicious of any further involvement abroad. They want an answer to the fundamental question of how this serves their interests. What do we intend to accomplish? How do we plan to accomplish it? And what is our exit strategy?
Read more . . .
Link:
Senator Daniel Inouye, WWII vet, on why many veterans are troubled by their war experiences, but keep it to themselves. [YouTube] Oct 27, 2012
