This is the first in a series of primers describing how good people just like you have had huge success in getting their hands on significant amounts of $6.5 trillion in TARP, government stimulus, omnibus, annual budget spending, etc.* You can too!
But it’s going to cost you. No, not the $39.95 you see on the late night infomercials when you get up in the middle of the night to go mimi or get a drink of water. You know, the ones with Billy Mays wannabes who guarantee they can show you how to get big government money, but their booklets only contain a list of government websites that end up telling you that you don’t qualify.
We are talking huge money. And all you need to do to get your share is to make a hefty campaign contribution to Representative Mazie Hirono or one of your U.S. Senators. Just ask Mr. Jonathan Starr and his lovely bride Helen Nielsen of Maui. Starr, a self-employed real estate developer and Chairman of the Maui Planning Commission and Helen were able to parley some $6150 in campaign contributions into $469,000 in stimulus funds to implement a honeybee protection program. (And they helped sink the Hawaii SuperFerry in the bargain!)
But that’s chicken feed. Dr. Patrick Sullivan, CEO of Hoana Medical and Founder and Chairman of Oceanit, one of Hawaii’s largest and most diversified science and engineering companies was able to get (according to the Oceanit website) “some of the $111 billion in stimulus money dispersed to large science and tech companies nationwide.” He received this windfall for campaign contributions of nearly $50,000. Of course, the entire $50,000 didn’t come from Dr. Sullivan alone nor all at one time -- that would be against the law! In this case, the money came from members of his family and other officers at Oceanit including Jan Sullivan, Dr. Christopher Sullivan, Mr. David Takeyama, and Mr. Roy Takeyama (Chairman, U. of H. Regents Advisory Council) who donated to Mrs. Hirono, Mr. Abercrombie, and Senators Akaka and Inouye over a few years. I’d call it a pretty good return on your investment, Doc.
Then we have the value of the week. Nan, Inc./Ocean House Builders has received a whopping $250 million in government contracts since Mrs. Hirono took office in 2006 including a recently awarded $21 million contract to build a Sea Animal Research Center. These lucrative contracts were awarded in return for $11,500 in campaign contributions to Mrs. Hirono and Senator Inouye. By the way, for those who remember, this is the same Nan Inc. whose owner Patrick Shin was convicted for government contract bid irregularities.
Donating to a political candidate is perfectly legal and a vital part of the political process. Quid pro quo (or you scratch my kua and I’ll scratch yours) is not. One need look no farther than the Federal Elections Commission campaign contribution website to see that our representatives have become political dupes of the radical left, special interest groups, and the extreme liberal congressional leadership. It does not take someone with a Ph.D. in Ocean Engineering to recognize that our current representatives have not only taken their eyes off the ball, they have rigged the game and left the stadium with their pockets stuffed.
And speaking of Mrs. Hirono’s page on the FEC website, would someone please explain to me how a political candidate who raised over a million dollars, yet ran virtually unopposed in the 2008 general election, could be $131,708 in debt? No wonder our nation is nearly bankrupt and our children and grandchildren’s future is mortgaged to the hilt.
Thirty-five years ago this Saturday a U.S. President resigned for the first time in our nation’s history. That significant event resulted from the dogged persistence of two reporters who earned a Pulitzer Prize for pursuing a simple mantra: “Follow the money.” We have seen recently in Illinois and New York that it’s no different today. Political favor still commands a price.
Here at home, our representatives have put their political ambitions and personal interests above Hawaii’s. This is no longer acceptable. Hawaii needs representatives who are driven by what is right, guided by the Constitution, loyal to the people of Hawaii, and committed to personal integrity and unconditional accountability.
The People of Hawaii are ready for new representatives -- true representatives of the people who will work tirelessly every day to ensure Washington knows that Hawaii’s hopes and dreams, her values and principles, and her virtuous desires are not for sale at any price. We must have real, measurable, and verifiable change in Washington. It’s as simple as that.
Next time we’ll look at a few mainland companies that have benefited financially from sweetheart relationships with our representatives such as Forest City Residential Group, Saltchuk Resources, Inc. and Alexander&Baldwin/Matson Navigation.
*Author’s footnote: All names contained herein were obtained from sources and websites paid for by U.S. taxpayers. If you desire to have your name removed, tuff – take it up with your benefactor.
LCDR John W. Willoughby, USNR-Retired, is a resident of Honolulu, Hawaii. Reach him at mailto:jw076@hawaii.rr.com
