National News

To turn out their vote this fall, Hawaii Democrats are claiming that Hawaii will decide the balance of power in the US Senate. But in reality Hawaii's Senate election will determine whether the Aloha State will have a voice on the majority side of the aisle or will suffer decades of obscurity with low-seniority Senators of the minority party .... 

The Hawaii harassment statute, which Fisher had violated ... includes not just violent touching but “any slight touching of another person in a manner which is known to be offensive to that person.”

"If there is an issue under water, you literally have to pull the whole cable up, and that's very expensive."

the true cause of what burst America's housing bubble is still debated, two of the culprits -- housing finance giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac -- are still going strong ....

...many of the protections put in place to help shield our nation’s heroes—specifically the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA) and the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act (SCRA)— have been violated in a disturbing number of cases within the past several years....

The case arose from allegations of theft and fraud at a now-defunct nonprofit legal services corporation in American Samoa called the U’una’i Legal Services Corporation (ULSC). ULSC was the only nonprofit organization in American Samoa that was dedicated to providing free legal services to victims of domestic violence, dating violence, stalking, and sexual abuse.

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"I'm glad to see this small business bill pass the House, with the support of 18 Democrats, and disappointed that Congresswoman Hanabusa voted against it," stated Former Congressman Charles K. Djou....

...government waste, fraud and abuse isn't limited to just one agency. Look no further than the Department of Energy (DOE) whose inspector general said yesterday that he's overseeing 250 to 300 open criminal investigations....

U.S. and British officials were deeply suspicious of this outfit, observing that the AASF – though backed by singer (ands Communist Party member) Harry Belafonte and actor Sidney Poitier – had links to a Kenyan nationalist leader….

High gas prices are not a president's friend, especially in an election year, so it's not surprising that President Barack Obama is trying his darndest to shift the blame for record-high fuel prices onto something other than his failed energy policies....

American households can expect to face an average tax increase of $3,800 ... 70 percent of Taxmageddon's impact will fall directly on low-income and middle-income families, leaving them with $346 billion less to spend.

Bishops from California, Hawaii, Nevada and Utah began their "ad limina" visits to the Vatican with prayers for courage in defending religious freedom and in sharing faith in the risen Lord.

Tibet's spiritual leader says China's 'totalitarian' policies sparked Tibetan self-immolations....

Forty-eight years after President Johnson declared war on poverty, the number of poor people in the United States remains stubbornly high....

The U.S. Senate could vote today on the gimmicky distraction known as the Buffett Rule ....

I will advocate for meaningful, comprehensive tax reform that brings down the rate for all taxpayers while retaining the most important deductions such as the mortgage interest and charitable contributions. Through these reforms, we will actually collect more revenue with a much broader tax base ....

In the same week that Gov. Linda Lingle hosted Sen. Susan Collins, one of the nation’s most bipartisan leaders, Mazie Hirono has opted to campaign with Congressman Barney Frank - the poster child for the hyper-partisanship in Washington, D.C....

The annual Rich States Poor States report is out. Hawaii ranks 15^th for economic performance and 46^th for economic outlook.

Jong-un "is more likely than his father Kim Jong-il to miscalculate during a crisis, unaware that Seoul is more likely to retaliate to a military clash than in the past."

Immediately after the launch, South Korea issued an order urging residents near the inter-Korean border to seek shelter to protect themselves from any debris that might fall from the rocket, Yonhap said....

US Army retiree Rosie Fualaau Tago Lancaster, who will be making a second bid, and Aumua Amata Radewagen, who has entered numerous times, will be challenging the incumbent congressman Faleomavaega Eni Hunkin....

No one except Faleomavaega knows which demands had been 'met,' as Bahrain today remains governed by an undemocratic monarchy which tortures and imprisons its citizens with impunity....

Blas's resolution asks Congresswoman Madeline Bordallo to introduce legislation exempting the non-contiguous states and territories from the provisions of the Jones Act....

... a Supreme Court decision protected out-of-state businesses from revenue-hungry states. But a new bill working its way through Congress would change all that ....

The national yearly cost for assisted living has increased 5.7 percent a year over the past five years, while long term care costs in Hawaii have increased 13.4 percent a year....

President Obama traveled to Florida yesterday to distract the nation from its real problems by laying out his case for the Buffett Rule, a plan to drastically raise taxes on successful Americans and small businesses....

“Horizon Lines moves forward today from a stronger financial position that will enable us to better focus on customers in our core Jones Act trades and to invest in the future of our business....

Sen. Rick Santorum announced from Gettysburg, PA that he is suspending his Presidential campaign. He did not make an endorsement.

Think fueling up your car at $4 a gallon is rough? How would you feel about paying more than $6.50? Add on top of that massive job losses and a drastic drop in U.S. economic productivity....

United Against Nuclear Iran (UANI) applauded the State of Maryland for unanimously passing legislation this weekend to bar companies active in Iran from doing business with the State of Maryland.

As of the end of February, the Hawaii GOP had $29,000 in the bank in federal funds and was carrying over $100,000 in debt.

An investigation by the inspector general of the General Services Administration found rampant abuse of an employee awards program of the agency’s Pacific Rim region, the same region that has come under fire for spending more than $800,000 on a Las Vegas training conference for 300 employees. 

From 2005 to 2009, median household wealth among Hispanics fell by 66%, compared with a drop of 53% among blacks and 16% among non-Hispanic whites....

"... S1409, the Improper Payments Elimination and Recovery Improvement Act, would create greater oversight and accountability in federal spending .... "

A zero score would indicate that the Member of Congress approved every spending proposal and opposed every pro-taxpayer reform....

We are left to guess the initial refining partner – though it is not difficult to surmise that Tesoro has been the test partner to date, and presumably would be the first to license and deploy the process....

Under the accounting rules mandated in the Federal Credit Reform Act of 1990 (FCRA), the Bank is allowed to treat its loan guarantees as risk-free in consideration of potential losses.  

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The Hawaii State House, with 17 ‘no’ votes has transmitted to the Senate a resolution calling for convening of a US Constitutional Convention....

Today's jobs report shows that two years into recovery the U.S. economy is still woefully underperforming, adding only 120,000 new jobs in March, about half the rate of job growth of the previous three months which were, themselves, somewhat disappointing for this stage of recovery.

The combined effect of these regulations and grant requirements are that a state would have to agree to surrender any last vestiges of meaningful control over how Obamacare is implemented. Thus, a state would now have no more real control over an exchange it set up than over one HHS established....

Brace yourself. In a mere 271 days, you and your fellow Americans will be hit with a tax hike the likes of which this country has never seen....

Senator Blas introduced a resolution that requests Guam’s Delegate to the U.S. House of Representatives to introduce legislation to exempt Guam, Puerto Rico, Hawaii, and Alaska from the U.S. Build provision of the Jones Act....

Former Governor Linda Lingle, candidate for Hawaii's open U.S. Senate seat, will host U.S. Senator Susan Collins at a special luncheon at the Sheraton Waikiki on Wednesday, April 11 from 12:00 - 1:30 p.m....

If you're looking for an iron-clad indictment of Barack Obama's failed fiscal policies, you don't have to look much farther than the President's own words in a speech he delivered yesterday at the Associated Press luncheon in Washington, D.C....

...even the most basic attempts at experimentation have to wait endlessly for federal approval and many are rejected....

Last year, as the government of Bahrain violently suppressed an Arab Spring protest movement, an unlikely champion of the small Gulf nation emerged on Capitol Hill in Washington: Democratic Rep. Eni Faleomavaega, the delegate from American Samoa....

Private health insurers generally don’t limit hospital coverage ....