“Gary, you broke my heart! That was cruel!”
This was just one of many messages I received after last week’s column (“Breaking news: Hawaii legislators reject pay raise, call for special session!”)
Other messages contained celebratory emojis and comments that made it clear that the reader had not read my piece to the end.
Clearly, some did not understand it was a spoof — a not-so-funny April Fools’ Day joke gone awry.
Some were angry at being fooled and responded with messages reading “NOT FUNNY!”
While the great majority “got it,” many did not.
So, to make it absolutely clear: The Hawaii House and Senate have, unfortunately, NOT rejected the generous 35% to 48% pay raises proposed by the Salary Commission.
They also have NOT agreed to begin meeting year-round or announced a Special Session to proactively address federal funding cuts impacting health care and public education.
Food and energy self-sufficiency have NOT been called out as top priorities. Legislative leadership does NOT seem particularly concerned about the mysterious $35,000 paid to a still-unknown “influential legislator” (per Civil Beat’s ongoing “Pay to Play” investigative reporting).
Unfortunately, there haven’t been any joint statements from the State House and Senate declaring Hawaii’s support for the principles of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, nor have our lawmakers offered any official support ensuring each person’s right to “due process” under the law, as provided by the U.S. Constitution.
What I wrote last week was, essentially, a “field of dreams” — a short list of meaningful actions the legislature could take if only it collectively had the political will to do so.
The lesson I learned from this “April Fools” joke gone awry is a profound one.
It seems that most readers — even those who appear, on the surface, to be cynical about politics and politicians — desperately want and need to believe in the government leaders they’ve elected to serve in public office.
Consequently, many were hugely disappointed when I revealed, at the end of my column, that it was all a bad joke. The leaders they wanted and needed so badly to believe in, the leaders they trusted to take us through these turbulent times, had once again fallen short.
I sincerely apologize to those of you whose hopes were raised so very high and then trashed upon the rocks.
Those 600 words I wrote on April 1 were intended to educate and inform readers about the tremendous potential our state legislature has yet to fulfill.
The good news: THERE’S STILL TIME. The legislative session is scheduled to end on May 2 sine die, without a definite date or period to resume. This gives us three solid weeks to push for the best outcome possible.
So I implore all of you — cynics and hopeful optimists alike — to contact your district State Representatives and Senators and share your expectations and hopes with them, even if just briefly.
If you believe, as I do, that this is an incredibly bad time for them to accept a 35% to 48% pay raise, please let them know.
Likewise, please share your thoughts with them on political corruption and the “pay to play” culture that seems to permeate our government.
Most of all, please impress upon them the need to support our public schools, Medicaid, Medicare, Social Security, the VA, and the many other critically important programs being defunded by the Trump administration.
Remind them it is their job to lead and that you are counting on them.
Have you ever raised hell when asked to accept the unacceptable?
Make the calls. Send the emails.
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Gary Hooser served eight years in the state Senate, where he was majority leader. He also served for eight years on the Kaua‘i County Council. He presently writes on Hawai‘i Policy and Politics at www.garyhooser.blog.
