January 23, 2025 News Read > Hawaii Free Press

Hawaii Daily News Read

Thursday, January 23, 2025

January 23, 2025 News Read
By Andrew Walden @ 5:13 PM :: 3807 Views

Navy can’t dodge Clean Water Act claims over Honolulu fuel storage facility

Hawaii K-12 Parent and School Expo to Highlight Learning Options and Family Fun

Report: Hawaii Jail Guards Under Extreme Stress Due to Mandatory OT, Understaffing

Trump Preparing to Dump Gabbard

S: … No one is conveying to Trump’s team yet that the former Democratic congresswoman has no path to confirmation. But Gabbard has not had the turnaround in fortunes seen by other presidential nominees once seen as too divisive to get through the Senate, such as FBI director pick Kash Patel or defense secretary pick Pete Hegseth, who’s expected to get confirmed this week despite a run of negative headlines and senatorial scrutiny of his personal behavior.

Two people close to the White House said top Trump advisers are still behind Gabbard, a military officer in the Army Reserve. Still, despite the lack of any internal push to spike Gabbard’s nomination inside Trump’s network, senior aides and allies are concerned.

“This is not people trying to put a knife in Tulsi … but there’s a problem, and nobody can figure it out,” one of the people close to the White House told Semafor.

(CLUE: “Chris Butler”)

Trump himself remains fully supportive of Gabbard, according to both White House sources. But the president has been less vocal about that support in recent days and has told people this is her time to step up: “She’s got to prove herself,” the first White House source said….

(TRANSLATION: She hasn't proven herself and Trump is ready to dump her.)

Gabbard does not have the public commitments to be confirmed by the Senate and has yet to undergo a confirmation hearing on the Intelligence Committee….

The Intelligence Committee, led by Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., is expected to schedule a confirmation hearing the moment her paperwork is complete. (Yup. ‘Paperwork’. That’s what we’ll tell ‘em.) The Senate is still waiting on her FBI background check, the only item that’s still outstanding before it can move forward….

(Preview of FBI Background Check on SIF: 1. LSD under H1 Freeway 2. Drug Running for Taliban 3. Worldwide Q-Net Ponzi Scheme 4. Parroting India’s pro-Russia foreign policy to win Modi’s support for Chris Butler.)

read … Tulsi Gabbard’s nomination on shaky ground | Semafor

Bye-Bye DEI: OHA Cronies object to Trump’s ‘race-blind’ actions

HNN: … During his inaugural speech after he was sworn in Monday, President Trump said, “We will forge a society that is color blind and merit based.”

Shortly after that speech, the AANHPI initiative did disappear, along with similar programs for Black and Hispanic American communities, which had been around for years.

“It’s kind of a shock and awe, to put it bluntly, in terms of the onslaught of what they are doing,” Crabbe said in an interview with Hawaii News Now.

The president does have some support in Hawaii’s Legislature. One of his biggest boosters is Republican Minority Leader Diamond Garcia.

“As of yesterday (Monday), America’s back on the merit system, which doesn’t judge someone based on how they look, where they come from, or their socioeconomic status, but what can they produce for the country? That’s the way it should be,” he said.

Asked whether minorities who have faced generation of discrimination are on an even playing field, he said, “It’s pretty simple. Stop talking about race.”

So far, all of the president’s actions to race-blind the federal government have been things he can through his executive power without Congress.

Many Hawaiian programs are established by law, so he will need the support of Congress if he tries to eliminate them….

HNN: Trump administration directs all federal diversity, equity and inclusion staff be put on leave

This is the price of allowing yourself to be labelled 'AANHPI'

read … Native Hawaiian leaders object to Trump’s ‘race-blind’ actions

How Honolulu Crime Boss Mike Miske Fed The Illegal Fireworks Market

CB: … Honolulu’s Grand Finale Fireworks Productions advertised fireworks shows for weddings and events — something to “add a little spark to your special day.”

It appeared to be a reputable business, with a state license and federal and local permits to import fireworks and shoot them off. But behind the scenes, it was overseen by Mike Miske, who was later convicted of a host of felonies related to organized crime. And it made the vast majority of its money not by shooting glowing comets into the air on special occasions, but by selling fireworks on O‘ahu’s black market.

The scheme — using a front company to import large quantities of fireworks directly from China and selling them illegally — was high-risk but lucrative. “More volume, more money,” Alfredo Cabael Jr., who sold fireworks for Miske, said in an interview with Civil Beat. “And it was cheaper from China than from anyone in the U.S.”

From 2008 through 2010, Cabael said, he delivered those imported fireworks to customers, many of whom he believed were involved in drug trafficking and cockfighting. Eventually those fireworks and firecrackers made it into the hands of people who used them to celebrate holidays or pop them off in what has become a widespread, controversial practice throughout the years in the islands.

Details of how Miske bought and sold fireworks were revealed in a six-month trial last year in which federal prosecutors alleged he oversaw a criminal enterprise that engaged in robberies, kidnappings, fraud and other crimes for more than two decades….

As prosecutors built their case, jurors heard about burner phones, cash wrapped in plastic, a mountainside bunker loaded with fireworks, fake break-ins to cover up paperwork discrepancies and mounting pressure as authorities grew suspicious. …

Using a permitted business to import his products gave Miske a competitive advantage. It also brought regulatory scrutiny, which Cabael said ultimately led to the venture’s downfall. In 2010, the Honolulu Fire Department and the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives started asking questions, and Miske’s team gave it up soon after.

That’s why retired Honolulu Police Deputy Chief John McCarthy believes the Miske operation was unusual. McCarthy said it’s much easier to smuggle fireworks onto the island by hiding them in shipping containers packed with other items. And most containers sent from the mainland can’t be inspected unless law enforcement has a reason.

Civil Beat found one other fireworks-related prosecution involving a licensed importer; it ended in an acquittal in 2012. …

SA: HPD, prosecutors detail obstacles to enforcing fireworks laws | Honolulu Star-Advertiser

read … How Honolulu Crime Boss Mike Miske Fed The Illegal Fireworks Market - Honolulu Civil Beat

It’s been 2+ years since a high-profile fireworks bust at OCCC. Where’s the accountability?

HNN: … Amid the government’s latest push to crack down on illegal fireworks, HNN Investigates wanted to know the status of a high-profile bust at Hawaii’s largest jail.

We were first tipped off to the story in December 2022, after a corrections officer was suspected of having boxes filled with illegal fireworks shipped to Oahu Community Correctional Center under inmates' names.

More than two years later, the government agencies that were said to be investigating at the time couldn’t tell us what happened to the case, or even if an investigation still exists.

The bust happened Dec. 6, 2022, inside the mail room at OCCC….

read … It’s been 2+ years since a high-profile fireworks bust at OCCC. Where’s the accountability?

Saiki returns to help control insurance coverage, costs

SA: … Former House Speaker Scott Saiki has returned to state government service following his 2024 election defeat — this time to help consumers obtain and afford homeowner’s insurance.

For the last several weeks, Saiki has served as a special assistant with the Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs, which has a mandate to protect Hawaii consumers….

Gov. Josh Green approached Saiki with an offer to help his administration get on top of Hawaii’s property insurance situation and help change the way insurance gets addressed in Hawaii.

Saiki finally agreed, joining DCCA as an employee last month….

He served in the House when Kilauea erupted in the Puna District of Hawaii island in 1990, wiped out over 100 homes and triggered the exodus of insurance companies willing to sell lava insurance.

In response, the Legislature in 1991 created the nonprofit Hawaii Property Insurance Association to provide insurance for property owners in what’s called Puna “Lava Zones 1 and 2” who were unable to buy insurance otherwise.

Then lava from Kilauea burst from the ground and streets again in 2018, destroying 723 structures, including an estimated 200 primary residences, causing an estimated $270 million in damage.

This year, state Rep. Greggor Ilagan (D, Hawaiian Paradise Park-Hawaiian Beaches-Leilani Estates) — whose district includes Lava Zones 1 and 2 — has introduced House Bill 20 that would establish a Lava Zone Insurance Fund to subsidize the cost of insurance premiums for properties in Lava Zones 1 and 2.

Saiki’s old District 25 House seat specifically saw condominium coverage fall, requiring owners to seek other insurance companies to make up for dropped coverage that ends up increasing everyone’s overall premiums — a phenomenon that’s happening to condo associations across the state.

Insurance companies that sell premiums to condos, Saiki said, “are reducing the scope of coverage for condos. If a building is valued at $400 million they might provide only $25 million for the building, which is creating the spike in insurance because the building has to seek other carriers. And there are increases in hurricane insurance.” ….

Green and lawyers representing insurance companies that have issued homeowners’ insurance payouts following the Maui wildfires remain tangled in a legal fight over the proposed $4.037 billion plan to settle claims against 650 plaintiffs in state and federal courts.

The issue of whether the insurance companies can seek reimbursement for their insurance payouts from defendants including the state will determine whether Hawaii’s nearly $800 million settlement cost could increase through future lawsuits….

read … Saiki returns to help control insurance coverage, costs

A quick look into the financial disclosures of Honolulu city officials

ILind: … I’ve been noodling around with the financial disclosures of Honolulu city officials, available online via the Honolulu City Clerk’s office, and thought I would take you along for a tour of their system.

These public financial disclosure reports have to be filed by candidates for elected city offices as they start their campaigns, and annually by elected city officials, along with top appointed officials (department directors and deputy directors)….

When you click on the link provided above, you’ll end up at a page that contains electronic versions of financial disclosures grouped by year, currently showing 2018 through 2024….

read … A quick look into the financial disclosures of Honolulu city officials | i L i n d

Buy HECO? Lose your Free Speech til 2040

IM: … Senator Keohokalole authored SB 137 in the current 2025 Hawai`i Legislative session, co-authorized by Senators Aquino, Chang, Decoite, Hashimoto, Rhoads, Richards, San Buenaventura, and Wakai.

In the event that the Hawaiian Electric Companies were acquired by another entity, the new entity would face a ban between now and 2040 to advocate or support any action that would negatively affect the renewable portfolio standards laws, the existing performance-based regulation framework, and harm any existing and valid power purchase agreement between the electric utility company and an independent power producer.

(REALLY TOUGH IQ TEST: Define ‘negatively.’)

(CLUE: Can’t do it? You are a genius! That’s why the test is so tough.)

If the acquiring entity is an investor-owned utility, “the public utilities commission shall, for a period of one hundred eighty days, suspend its review of the application… for the consideration of alternative applications from acquiring entities that operate under a non-investor-owned utilities ownership model.” The Commission would consolidate and jointly consider competing applications ….

IM: HECO Seeks Approval to Pay Compensation For Curtailed Energy | Ililani Media

read … Legislature and Hawaiian Electric Focusing on Utilities Financial Strength

SB217: New bill paves the way for toll roads in Hawaii

KHON: … Toll roads are a foreign concept to Hawaii drivers, but a new bill (SB217) could pave the way for them in the islands giving the Department of Transportation (DOT) tolling authority, focusing first on the Hana Highway on Maui….

SB217 passed its first meeting and is being referred to the Senate Transportation and Culture and Arts (TCA) Committee….

(IDEA: Toll tunnel under mouth of Pearl Harbor. Ewa residents could skip 20 miles of traffic twice a day.)

SB217: Text, Status

read … New bill paves the way for toll roads in Hawaii | KHON2

State’s 18th kauhale blessed in Waianae

SA: … A blessing was to be held today for an 18th kauhale “tiny home” village — in Waianae and in partnership with U.S. VETS — the newest kauhale aimed at helping people out of homelessness.

The state administration is seeking $50 million annually for kauhale development and investments in Housing First and rapid rehousing programs. Its goal: By 2026, 30 kauhale will have opened and homelessness will be cut in half….

read … Off the news: State’s 18th kauhale blessed in Waianae | Honolulu Star-Advertiser

Hawaii should count homeless population

AHN: … Did you hear? Hawaii has solved its homeless problem.

The solution was so obvious it’s amazing no one thought of it sooner. Just stop counting them!

That’s right, this year, when the Jan. 22 Point in Time Count rolls around, Hawaii agencies will count only those homeless already in shelters. The vast majority of our unhoused population – those living under storefront awnings, tents, umbrellas and tarps on the sidewalks, under and even in the trees – nah, no need to count ‘em.

And here I thought the purpose of the annual homeless population count was to assess the need for more shelters, more treatment options, more housing even. Well, guess what? No need! ….

ILind: Dimensions of Hawaii’s homeless problem? | i L i n d

read … Hawaii should count homeless population

Schatz denounces RFK Jr. nomination to head health department

HNN: … “Eighty-three people died because RFK Jr. decided to leave the East Coast of the continental United States and fly clear across the Pacific and tell people in Samoa not to take the measles vaccine,” said Schatz.

National and Hawaii Republicans insist RFK Jr. is not anti-vaccine.

“What he’s trying to do is bring transparency to the process. I think what most people in Hawaii would like to do is know what’s being put into their bodies,” said Hawaii Rep. Diamond Garcia, Minority Floor Leader.

Hawaii News Now was in Samoa during the measles outbreak. Then Lt. Gov. Josh Green and a team of medical professionals immunized tens of thousands of people.

After his State of the State address Tuesday, Gov. Green, who’s been on a national campaign against RFK Jr.’s confirmation, said he’d testify on Capitol Hill if asked.

That hearing is scheduled for next Wednesday….

read … Schatz denounces RFK Jr. nomination to head health department

Trump Should Develop A National Strategy For COFA Nations

CB: … Over five years ago, I published a set of novel arguments on the rapidly approaching renegotiations of the Compacts of Free Association, the agreements that the United States has with the Federated States of Micronesia, the Republic of Palau and the Republic of the Marshal Islands.

One of those arguments was for the U.S. government to develop a National Strategy on Free Association prior to formally entering the renegotiations.

Unfortunately, the Biden administration ignored that recommendation. Instead, they took the route of path dependency, charging forward with the COFA renegotiations without taking the time to think carefully about the social ontology of free association ….

read … Trump Should Develop A National Strategy For COFA Nations

The Eldercide Of The Pandemic

CB: … Nursing home Covid death rates were more than a hundred times greater than death rates outside. Among those over 65, death rates were 23 times higher in nursing homes than for those of the same age living elsewhere….

Eldercide, as, as Margaret Morganroth Gullette describes in her recent book “American Eldercide: How It Happened, How to Prevent it,” is “the abandonment of this concentrated and confined group of older adults to exposure and death, on a mass scale, by those responsible for their welfare.”….

read … Neal Milner: The Eldercide Of The Pandemic - Honolulu Civil Beat

"Discipline Will Be Forced" on Hawaiian, Says Alaska

BH: … While the airline highlighted extraordinary complementary strengths of both brands in today’s investor call, it also revealed a more pragmatic side to the integration process. Alaska made it clear that Hawaiian must evolve, with leadership stating specifically during today’s call that “discipline will be forced onto that network.”

Alaska Air Group, the parent company, presented its fourth-quarter financial results, offering a closer look at the merger’s financial realities and the logistical steps ahead. With Hawaiian’s network now under Alaska’s control, the company aims to optimize resources, realign routes, redeploy current and upcoming aircraft, and tackle long-standing inefficiencies. These changes will have major implications for Hawaii travelers, affecting everything from interisland service and reservation systems to loyalty programs and international expansion….

read … New Routes, "Discipline Will Be Forced" on Hawaiian, Says Alaska - Beat of Hawaii

Brothers wrongfully convicted in Dana Ireland murder case file new lawsuit citing ‘botched’ investigation

HNN: … Brothers Albert Ian and Shawn Schweitzer filed a federal lawsuit Tuesday afternoon alleging civil rights violations.

The Schweitzers said police “botched” the investigation using unreliable witnesses and ignoring DNA evidence.

They said law enforcement violated their due process rights and illegally detained them.

The lawsuit also alleges illegal detention and malicious prosecution, and the brothers claim law enforcement conspired to frame them for the 1991 rape and murder.

Alexander Silvert, a retired federal public defender, said the case belongs in federal court because eight of the ten counts alleged are constitutional rights.

The lawsuit includes officers who have since died but Silvert said that’s not unusual.

“It is important to name everybody individually,” Silvert said. Silvert said it’s also import to detail what they allegedly did in an attempt to show that the county allowed it to happen….

read … Brothers wrongfully convicted in Dana Ireland murder case file new lawsuit citing ‘botched’ investigation

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