Hawaii Politicians, Contractors, Unlimited Beer, & $$$

[HereOnThePrimalEdge]

Readers of Punaweb will no doubt have the same reaction to this story as Captain Renault did in Casablanca, “I’m shocked! Shocked!

For the better part of a decade, some of Hawaii’s most powerful people huddled together at late-night parties in a cramped second-floor office where lobbyists and executives seeking government contracts lined up to drop cash and checks into a metal lockbox.
That was the entry fee for these extraordinary political fund-raisers. Inside the office, just a short walk from the State Capitol in downtown Honolulu, dozens of guests were served sushi prepared by professional chefs and unlimited beer and liquor. At the end of the night, Wesley Yonamine, the host and a high-ranking airport official, would, together with the politicians, pop open the box and dole out campaign contributions according to a list of pledges obtained before each event. As described by attendees, a typical party could bring in thousands of dollars in donations, giving some elected officials almost half their annual campaign haul in a single night.

https://www.nytimes.com/2024/04/17/us/ha...tions.html

[HiloJulie]

Yes, yes, I'm completely shocked!

I can't fathom that these parties were not held at a certain Hostess Bar!

At any event, I find it interesting that virtually each company officer who was interviewed all said not one donation had anything to do with favoritism in getting contract awards. So, in other words, these companies, some spending several hundreds of thousands of dollars, did so for nothing in return?

I'd like to see of these big construction firms who donated large sums "for nothing" stack up in regard to labor law compliance - fighting unionized trades, paying wages properly, no "wink wink" on overtime hours worked, as well as safety compliance like OSHA Recordables etc.

[TomK]

Readers of Punaweb will no doubt have the same reaction to this story as Captain Renault did in Casablanca, “I’m shocked! Shocked!

[...]

https://www.nytimes.com/2024/04/17/us/ha...tions.html

So, if I was a lobbyist I could just go there, put a couple of dollars in the box, and spend the rest of the evening eating sushi and getting free drinks? Where's my free hotel stay?

[HereOnThePrimalEdge]

I could just go there

You could probably just go there, but getting through the door might be another matter.
I have a feeling they know who is on the guest list.  Even without a guest list.
If Hawaiian Eye, Hawaii 5-0, and Magnum P.I. taught me anything, it’s that these kind of events have enough beefy greeters near the entryway to handle whatever situation might arise.

In the full article, they noted that a law was passed in 2006 (?) that outlawed contractors from donating directly to political campaigns.  But free beer, sushi, and a lockbox for thick envelopes must have been deemed an acceptable workaround, as long as no one talked.  And why would anyone on the inside talk?

[Obie]

But that's how we do it here.

https://the.honoluluadvertiser.com/artic...50376.html