Presidential Politics Wreaks Havoc

The 2020 election cycle is likely to be a dramatic one. Nationally, the GOP will fight to hold on to the White House, maintain their majority control of the U.S. Senate and generally try to stop the bleeding of support they’ve been experiencing since Trump was sworn in. On the other side of the aisle, Democrats, while trying to make gains across the country (not to mention the White House), are facing their own challenges.

Theirs, for better or worse, is mostly internal. Though the Party establishment is hell-bent on excising the orange baboon from the Oval Office, they are almost equally interested in maintaining the current economic and political power structures; those same structures and political dynamics that allowed Trump to defeat the DNC’s dynastic standard-bearer in 2016.

The loss was embarrassing for almost everyone involved: Democrats, Clinton, the GOP, mainstream new media, and voters. Only Trump believed in the inevitability of his assent to the Presidency.

Learning valuable lessons from both the Primary and General Elections, the DNC made changes to their structure and procedures in the Presidential Primary and the National Convention. I leave it to others to decide how dramatic said changes have actually been. And despite these changes, it would seem at least at a cursory glance, that neither the Democratic Party nor Primary voters have learned the lesson. Against Trump, you don’t bring the same tired moderate faces and talking points.

When Joe Biden officially announced his own bid for the Democratic Nomination, he jumped to the top of nearly every single poll that’s since been conducted. With far too many Democrats (in my opinion) trumpeting Biden as the only reasonable choice to defeat Trump, I fear we’re headed for a repeat of 2016.

The Local Scene

While much and increasing attention is being paid to calamitous national politics, we’ve got serious problems right here at home that need attention.

Our elected officials, from County Councils all the way up to the Governor, are not doing nearly enough to address Hawaii’s very serious issues. Climate change, sea level rise, public education, teacher shortages and low pay, highest national cost of living, highest per capita homeless population, stagnate wages, illegal vacation rentals, protection of natural resources. The list goes on and on. And on virtually all of them, our government officials continue to fail.

“Slow and incremental” should be the official motto of the Hawaii State Legislature. Sadly, while big and bold steps are necessary to address a myriad of issues, our Democratic-majority-controlled Legislature does little more than nibble around the edges. Unless, of course, a construction boondoggle or corporate powerhouse is under threat.

People are fed up. It’s long since time for a change and in Hawaii, we should expect progressives to lead the way.

Where to Focus Our Resources

History shows us that national elections, particularly the Presidential, draw a lot of attention, resources, and energy. And while I expect it will be the same between now and Election Day next year, I’m making a plea here for my progressive brothers and sisters not to ignore local elections this year.

Last year progressive individuals and organizations began an effort to work together to support good candidates who challenged entrenched establishment incumbents. And while we had some success, we’re looking to expand those efforts for the 2020 elections.

We intend to send a clear and unambiguous message to our elected officials. You’ve had plenty of opportunities to address the serious issues we face. Your time is up and we’re coming to replace you. Over the course of the next few months, challengers will begin to appear and the landscape of our efforts will begin coming into focus. During this time, it will be important that we begin collectively to build an army of volunteers and donors.

The Early Bird Gets the Worm

I encourage you to get involved in one or more of these local campaigns. Whether it’s with your money, your time, or both. Our effort to continue transforming the Legislature will not succeed without real and substantial commitments from progressives across the state.

I understand it’s a bit early and there isn’t much, if any, campaigning taking place at this stage. But that will change before too long. If you want to stay updated on what’s happening politically, please consider subscribing to my blog; you’ll receive regular updates via email about goings on with elections and more.

If you can, please also consider donating to the Initiative for a Pono Hawaii’s PAC. While we aren’t spending any money quite yet, it’s never too early to begin building a war chest. With your help, we can change the landscape of politics in Hawaii.