While the news media cast Lingle in an emotional, sympathetic light, the discerning person might have noticed she gave no concession, no congratulatory remarks; she made no offer to set aside differences and work together for the common good. Instead she complained. (p. 427)
-Gov. Ben Cayetano, in his new book, as quoted by The Notebook blog, on Gov. Linda Lingle after the 1998 campaign
From that opening salvo on Gov. Lingle, I wonder if Gov. Cayetano will tell another story from 1998. I’ve heard him tell it before, and I sure hope he shares it in the book. Days before the election, so certain was the Lingle camp of their impending victory that they dispatched a team to the Governor’s office on the fifth floor of the Hawaii State Capitol to take measurements for when Gov. Lingle would be moving in. As “Gov” tells it, Ranette, one of his secretaries, had to tell him this newsm, which to put it lightly pissed him off.
Funny, I think the Cayetano staff just let the Lingle staff go ahead and do that. If you tried to do those same shenanigans today, I’m pretty sure the Lingle staff would have you arrested or minimally escorted from the office. This was in such poor taste by Lingle, but seeing as she’s too busy to meet with President-Elect Obama or the NFL Commissioner, is completely in line with her character.
I admit that because Gov. Cayetano appointed me to the University of Hawaii Board of Regents, perhaps I see him in a far more positive light than others. But you don’t win two state-wide elections in a small state as ours without doing something right. And anyone who says it’s the political machine of the Democratic Party obviously doesn’t know we Democrats very well. Often, it’s like herding cats, but that’s good for the democratic process.
Whatever you say about “Gov” you can never say he was dishonest. If anything it was his honesty that got him into so much political trouble. For example, telling the HSTA (the teacher’s union) that there just wasn’t enough money to pay for their raises, after they endorsed and campaigned for you, is a hard thing to do. Not backing down, he chose to deal with the HSTA and UHPA strike at the same time rather than saddling the State to pay for those raises.
That’s enough about my take on it. If you want the inside scoop from the man himself, you can buy his new book, Ben: A Memoir, From Streek Kid to Governor. An article in the Star-Bulletin lists the following schedule to meet with Gov. Cayetano for book signings and Q&A sessions:
Tomorrow, Saturday, February 21: 11 a.m. to noon, Barnes & Noble, Kahala Mall and from 2 to 3 p.m. at Borders, Ward Centre.
Sunday, February 22: 1 to 2 p.m. at Barnes & Noble, Ala Moana.
Saturday, March 7: 11 a.m. to noon at Borders, Pearlridge and from 2 to 3 p.m. at Borders, Waikele.
The book is about $20 for the softcover, and all profits are going to a charity. If you’d like to join me, I plan to go to the Kahala Mall signing tomorrow. It’ll be my birthday present to myself.
Mahalo!
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