Entries for 'Gov. Linda Lingle'

...we ignited a flame in many young Republicans across the state who are mobilizing to lead for future generations....

We may not have been successful at the ballot box, but I’m not done fighting for common sense, bipartisan solutions. There’s too much at stake for Hawaii and America as a whole!

I have set up a new email address at which you can reach me....

Civil Beat's pollster over samples Democrats, using 56% self-identified Democrats. Our nationally-recognized pollster believes this figure should be 42%....

I’ve run in ten separate elections beginning when I was first elected as Molokai’s Councilwoman in 1980. I’ve won all but one election....

"Together with the visa waiver status for Korea and some practical 'fixes' to the visa issuance process in China, Hawaii is poised to see and benefit from even more visitors from the Asia Pacific regions."

My opponent, Congresswoman Mazie Hirono, has missed 144 votes in the U.S. House of Representatives so far this year. That’s why our campaign has set the goal to raise $144,000 ....

Former Governor Linda Lingle, candidate for Hawaii's open U.S. Senate seat, released the following statement, recognizing the anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks....

Mazie Hirono has enabled this spending binge. She may be notorious for skipping votes—127 and counting so far this year—but she knows how to vote “aye” along party lines when it comes to more spending.

That's the number of American people who approve of the job that Congress is doing, and my opponent is one of the ‘12-percenters,’" Governor Lingle said.

"Remember, you don’t have to be a Republican to vote for me on the Republican ballot."

...death of one of ’Honolulu’s finest’ during a motorcycle training exercise in Mililani is a devastating loss for his family and for our entire community....

"Just as those of us in Hawaii know, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce recognizes that a healthy visitor industry plays an important role in our nation’s economic recovery. This is why my plan includes the creation of a standing sub-committee on tourism in the U.S. Senate,”

"Let us all continue to join with the rest of the nation as we hold the grieving families of Aurora close in our thoughts and spirit-filled prayers."

"President Obama's statements in Washington today are in sync with the STEM education programs and initiatives my team and I advocated and worked for during my term as Governor of Hawaii."

Lingle called on Senator Jeff Sessions (R-AL) and Senator Chuck Grassley (R-IA) to back off on their criticism of the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals' decision to hold its conference on the Island of Maui ....

As Hawaii’s next U.S. Senator, I commit to you that while the Jones Act issue is being fully studied, I will explore other ways to reduce the costs of living in the State of Hawaii.

America's independence must be 'celebrated by succeeding generations, as the great anniversary festival' and be 'solemnized with Pomp and Parade' and 'Illuminations from one end of this Continent to the other from this time forward forever more.'

...questionable policy judgments in the PPACA such as the decision to create unelected Independent Review Boards, the punitive tax on medical device manufacturers, and the elimination of Medicare Advantage programs deserve meaningful bipartisan discussion....

National Moment of Remembrance at 3:00 p.m. HST Memorial Day. 

 "On this day, we extend our sincere gratitude for their selfless dedication."

"I am encouraged that yesterday the Hawaii State Legislature passed SB 2785, which establishes a regulatory framework for the private investment in, and development of, an inter-island electricity transmission cable."

"The Ex-Im Bank is critical to help U.S. companies to access financing to support the exports of their goods and services abroad. In fact, 85% of Ex-Im Bank's transactions directly supported small businesses last year."

"Her comments on the atmosphere in Washington are sadly true and with the challenges America faces today, we can no longer afford political gamesmanship and partisan gridlock." -- Linda Lingle

"It is not the first time Officer Davis has put his own life in jeopardy to save someone else, and all Hawaii residents are indebted for his brave, unselfish service."

"As Senator, I would work to develop public-private cooperative efforts that address piracy and copyright infringement without the potential of government censorship that the current legislative proposals would permit."

"The President's plan to boost processing capacity for non-immigrant visas in major U.S. bound travel markets like China and Brazil and expand the Visa Waiver Program is a good policy for America and will benefit Hawaii's tourism industry."

"... the seals are doing better in the main islands without a habitat designation .... "

There are sensible proposals already available to cut federal spending, raise additional revenues and grow our economy. These include the balanced proposals offered by the Bipartisan Policy Center....

Even though I leave my official duties behind tomorrow, I look forward to staying involved in helping our state realize its full potential and reach its destiny.

You can learn more about our administration's accomplishments at www.GovernorLindaLingle.com 

“The fact is, the final EIS is not on my desk as some have incorrectly stated.  The EIS is currently being reviewed by the Office of Environmental Quality Control (OEQC), which is analyzing the EIS section by section to make certain that it meets the requirements of the state’s environmental law, Hawai‘i Revised Statutes Chapter 343."

“I am very pleased that the State Senate has voted unanimously to confirm Mark Recktenwald to be the fifth Chief Justice of the Hawai‘i State Supreme Court.

“The people of Hawai‘i can feel confident, as I am, that they will have a Chief Justice who will guide our courts with fairness and integrity in upholding the rule of law and our constitution.

“The team’s achievements clearly reflect the guidance of their parents, coaches and teachers.  I want to especially recognize Team Manager Brian Yoshii and coaches Kiha Akau and Jason Heleski for their leadership in mentoring these young athletes and providing them a strong foundation for success both on and off the field.

“The loss to Japan today in no way takes away from what the Waipio All-Stars have brought to our state: tremendous pride to their families, their community and the entire State of Hawai‘i."

HONOLULU – Governor Linda Lingle congratulated the Waipio All-Stars Little League team for winning the U.S. Championship Little League World Series title today, in a 10-0 shutout victory over the team from Pearland, Texas. ...

“I can’t wait for tomorrow’s championship where I know Waipio will continue to play at the highest level as they pursue their second Little League World Series championship. Special kudos to the coaches and volunteer staff who led by example.”

“Securing this grant is just a stepping stone.  We will now begin the hard work of implementing our education reform plan, which includes a common core curriculum tied to a new on-line state test while tracking student progress and rewarding teachers by linking 50 percent of their evaluation to student achievement.  I am especially excited about our pledge to have 100 percent of high school graduates ready for a career and college without the need for post secondary remediation programs,” the Governor added.

"... in order to pay for this latest $26 billion bailout of states, the Democrat-controlled Congress cut almost $12 billion from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (formerly known as food stamps), at a time when a record number of Americans – including almost 141,300 Hawai‘i residents – depend on this assistance to subsidize their food purchases.

“In addition, Congress rescinded $2.2 billion in unobligated highway funds, including an estimated $10 million that would have been used for Hawai‘i highway projects. 

“The 14 senators who voted down Judge Leonard’s confirmation represent the height of hypocrisy, given that earlier this year they all voted for a resolution calling on me to appoint more women to the bench.  Yet, when given the opportunity to confirm my nomination of a woman who is eminently qualified to serve in the highest judicial position in the state, these senators revealed their true colors that their so-called resolution was purely for show. 

“It’s also very telling that not one woman senator supported Judge Leonard’s confirmation, despite being so impassioned about getting more women on the bench.

“I commend Senators Espero, Gabbard, Galuteria, Green, Hemmings, Sakamoto, Slom and Tsutsui who recognized Judge Leonard was eminently qualified to be the next Chief Justice.

“To ignore the Hawai‘i State Bar Association’s rating for Judge To‘oto‘o, but not for Judge Leonard makes no sense and creates a double standard. 

“Judge Leonard is eminently qualified, as evidenced by the overwhelming testimony and support from the legal community. 

“Both the Honolulu Prosecutor’s Office and the State Public Defender’s Office – who take opposing sides in the courtroom – testified in her favor, saying she is fair.  That’s exactly the type of chief justice that should be on the bench – someone who both sides consider fair." 

“The Hawai‘i State Bar Association’s (HSBA) ‘unqualified’ ratings of Judge Katherine Leonard and Judge Faauuga To‘oto‘o are outrageous and are clearly not based on the legal experience and qualifications of these two highly qualified nominees,” said Governor Lingle.

“The State Bar Association’s review process was unfair, flawed, and conducted under a veil of secrecy, with no accountability to the public.  The HSBA has refused to state its reasons for its ratings.

“It is impossible to know whether there is political, gender or ethnic bias on the part of the HSBA, since they refuse to state their reasons. 

In the letter sent today, Governor Lingle said the agreed upon changes to the bill between her and Sens. Inouye and Akaka “return the bill to a form that protects health and safety in Hawaii, while providing explicit federal recognition to the only native people in the United States who lack that recognition – Native Hawaiians.”

The Governor also wrote that passage of the Akaka Bill will, “put Hawaii on an equal footing with its forty-nine sister states, and will recognize Native Hawaiians just as America recognizes it other indigenous groups.  It is fair and just – nothing more, nothing less.”

But in the end, it wasn’t the persuasiveness of public debates, the soundness of legal arguments, or the volume of letters and emails that convinced me to reach this decision. It was the depth of emotion felt by those on both sides of the issue that revealed to me how fundamental the institution of marriage is to our community. It is as fundamental to those who support marriage between two people of the same gender as it is to those who support marriage only between one man and one woman.

This is a decision that should not be made by one person sitting in her office or by members of the Majority Party behind closed doors in a legislative caucus, but by all the people of Hawaii behind the curtain of the voting booth.       

All of us in Hawai‘i have been deeply impacted by the global recession. We’ve had to make tough decisions and sacrifices– in government, in business and in our households – to deal with the impacts that began hitting our economy in mid-2008.

In true Hawai‘i fashion, our state pulled together to tackle these difficult issues.  It has not been an easy task, and there have been disagreements, even heated debate, along the way.  But for the most part, we have remained focused on being fiscally responsible, turning our economy around, getting our residents back to work, and setting the foundation for a stronger future.

Over the past few weeks, we have been seeing the positive results of this collaboration and sacrifice. ...

“With O‘ahu residents being the greatest beneficiaries of the Superferry, it is curious that Mayor Hannemann was noticeably absent from the discussion at the time.  Yet now, as is his nature, he wants to blame others. 

“The fact is that the decision to stop the Superferry was the result of a Supreme Court ruling which was a far-reaching interpretation that heretofore had never been applied to any new maritime operation in the state.”

“We are pleased that the Council on Revenues is now forecasting improved revenue collections. The latest projection reflects an improving economy and is an encouraging sign that Hawai‘i is headed in the right direction. 

“While the upward adjustment is positive, we need to remain focused on creating jobs, stimulating our economy and monitoring the state’s cash flow.”

Despite the continuing willingness of our residents to generously support our public education system, it has not produced meaningful improvements or demonstrable progress toward improved systemwide education outcomes.  The record is clear that the answer to the problem of an underperforming school system is not solely the amount of money being spent.  We have dramatically increased public education spending between the time I took office and the present, and our school system still fails to show meaningful improvement in national test scores.  We should not tolerate perpetuating a system that results in situations such as Nanakuli where only 14 percent of the children are proficient in arithmetic.

“Claims by a small group of people who are currently occupying the reception area of my office that I have not been personally involved in such discussions are patently false....  I am continuing to keep the lines of communication open with the DOE and BOE, and I strongly encourage the HSTA to reconsider its stand that it will no longer negotiate to end closing our schools for 21 more days.”

Have you seen more Republicans in the fall elections in office?

I do.  I think this is going to be a very good year to run for the State Legislature as a Republican, and I think it's because legislators have really ignored the major issue of the day, which is job creation, and we've given them a whole series of great proposals on how to stimulate the economy through job creation, and instead they have spent much too much time on things like cock fighting and marijuana stores and other issues that might be important to a small number of people.   It's not to say they are not important but a leader has to say, you know what, we're going through the worst fiscal crisis in state history, our economy needs to be rebuilt, we just can't take up cock fighting right now.

“The health care legislation approved by the House tonight will force Hawai‘i and all the other states into a one-size-fits-all program that is financially unsustainable.

“The $1.2 trillion government takeover of health care will cost Hawai‘i residents, conservatively, an estimated $300 million over five years in added costs to our Medicaid programs, which are already hemorrhaging red ink.

“The Legislature’s failure up to this point to focus on immediate measures that will reduce government spending and create jobs for our residents is putting the future economic well-being of our state in jeopardy,” said Governor Lingle.  “Instead of taking action that will help get people back to work, the Legislature is attempting to further burden our residents and businesses with a 25 percent increase in the general excise tax, a $1 tax on every barrel of oil shipped into the state that would raise the cost of living and doing business, a 30 percent tax increase on timeshares and numerous other unjustifiable fees on small businesses."

Today, we’re just about at the half-way point of the legislative session and we’ve done marijuana stores, gambling, foie gras and now is a great time to get re-focused on what this legislative session has to be about and that’s getting our economy back on track and creating new jobs all across the state.