“It is more important that our next Congressman fight to lower taxes and allow Hawaii families to keep more of their money than to elect a Congressman who wants to spend all of your money,” stated Djou.

Here is video from the March 23 rally at the Capitol. 

More anti-tax rallies are planned for Honolulu, Kona, and Hilo April 15.

• Honolulu Rally 4-7PM at Capitol
• Kona Rally 1-5PM along Queen K Hwy near Mormon Temple
• Hilo Rally 4-6PM along Bayfront at Kamehameha Statue

Today the House Finance Committee will be hearing a bill (SB 2124 SD2) that appropriates $86.1 M to end Furlough Fridays. Representative Finnegan will be offering an amendment to Finance Chair Marcus Oshiro, reflecting her proposal to decrease the appropriation to $77.5 M.

“We can refrain from raising taxes and get students back in school,” said Minority Leader Lynn Finnegan.

A "fix" to the Cadillac tax that actually makes it worse, not better. Under current law the exemption amount is indexed to CPI plus 1 percent. That is not enough to keep up with medical costs. The reconciliation bill delays the start of the tax by five years, from 2013 to 2018, but it cuts the inflation adjustment to plain CPI. The lower inflation adjustment means that once the tax starts it will hit more people faster.

The New York Times reports: "Administration officials describing the draft treaty said its preamble recognized the relationship between offensive weapons and missile defense, but that the language was not binding." But the Times goes on to quote retired major general Vladimir Dvorkin who says Moscow will scrap the treaty if the U.S. pursues missile defense: "If, for example, the U.S. unilaterally deploys considerable amounts of missile defense, then Russia has the right to withdraw from the agreement because the spirit of the preamble has been violated."

“With the 31% pay increase, our part-time legislators, who are in session for just four months in the year, are the highest paid part-time legislators in the nation.  In these tough economic times, when people are losing their jobs, businesses are shutting down and teachers and students are being furloughed, do we really want to elect someone who cares more about her own paycheck than what’s good for the people of Hawai'i?” said Hawai'i Republican Party Chairman Jonah Ka'auwai.

The Governor’s letter stated, “The explicit sovereign immunity and exemption from regulation provisions in the present bill allow the Native Hawaiian governing entity, and its leaders, to conduct activities anywhere in Hawai‘i (and potentially any other state) in a way that is inconsistent with State criminal statutes otherwise applicable to all citizens, and state laws governing narcotics and dangerous drugs; civil defense; alcohol and tobacco; fire and building codes necessary for public safety; traffic safety; landlord-tenant matters; clean air, clean water, hazardous waste (and other state pollution statutes); child welfare, child protection, and child safety; public health; food and drugs; and virtually every other conceivable law that serves to protect the public. It is not clear how the State could enforce its interests against unlawful or irresponsible actions by the governing entity or its elected leaders or employees."

With more than half of the 2010 legislative session gone and fewer than 30 business days to go, the Legislature should focus on enacting bills that will improve government operations and strengthen our economy — not increasing taxes.

Many key proposals that could save the state precious general funds have either stalled or not been heard in House and Senate committees. Instead of increasing the general excise tax, the Legislature should cut inefficiencies and spend within our means to ensure economic recovery for Hawaii.

Rumors of a possible Supreme Court retirement this summer have Washington buzzing with anticipation.  Adding to the intrigue is the controversial nomination of Goodwin Liu for the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.  Senate Republicans used a procedural move Wednesday to postpone Liu’s hearing....

For the current (2009-10) school year:  The agreement provides for the state to appropriate approximately $24.5 million to eliminate the four (4) remaining furlough days this school year. In return, students will be given an additional full day of instruction; and the last teacher work day of the year will be converted to a half day with students.

For the next (2010-11) school year: The agreement provides for the state to appropriate approximately $67.5 million to eliminate eleven (11) furlough days. The remaining six (6) furlough days will be scheduled on non-instructional days as follows: Two (2) days at the beginning of the school year (one administrator day and one teacher day); teacher institute day; three (3) planning collaboration/waiver days as scheduled by the Board of Education.

Funding would cover both the salaries and fringe benefits of teachers.  Release of the funds would be contingent upon legislative passage of a constitutional amendment to allow voters to determine if the next governor should appoint the school superintendent.

But the leftist majorities in Congress just do not care what the American people think. Today, the Senate will press forward with work on the proposed "fix-it" bill through the reconciliation process. You may have thought it was impossible to make the policy and process of Obamacare even worse, but that is exactly what this reconciliation bill does . . .

HONOLULU – In response to Senator Roz Baker's (South and West Maui) decision not to schedule a public hearing for House Bill 2311, veterans from across the state, will be delivering their military decorations ribbons and awards that honor their valor and service to the country out of protest to her tomorrow.   

Veterans will present the ribbons to Chair Baker and her Committee members of the Commerce and Consumer Protection (CPN) on Wednesday, March 24 in room 229 at 10 a.m.  Sen. Baker, who sponsored the clothesline bill last year, has chosen to pass an unenforceable resolution about the flag instead....  

What do Sen Roz Baker and Rep Rida Cabanilla have in common?  They both have employed convicted child molester Leon Rouse.

It is difficult to imagine the Ninth Circuit as any more radically liberal than it already is. Despite a few stellar judges, the Court is full of liberal activists who have earned it the reputation of having the highest Supreme Court reversal rate of any court in the nation.  But, with his latest judicial nominee, President Obama just may do what seemed impossible.

There are many red flags in the judicial record of Ninth Circuit nominee Goodwin Liu, who is Associate Dean at the University of California Berkeley Law School.  Here are just a few highlights....

New information is emerging about President Barack Obama's federal appeals court nominee Goodwin Liu.  If the Seante approves Liu's appointment to the 9th Circuit Court, Liu will be among the judges ruling on appeals of cases originating from Federal District Court in Honolulu.

…In 2007, Liu joined 17 other professors and submitted a friend of the court brief to the California Supreme Court, arguing that California's definition of marriage between a man and a woman violated the state constitution.

Real health care reform is the thing we’ve fought for from the start.  It is desperately needed. But this bill falls short on many levels, and hurts many people more than it helps.

Together Hee, Danner, and Ito propose to seize 20% of DHHL commercial lease revenues--meant to fund the development of new DHHL home sites--and hand them over to self-styled "cultural and community practitioners."

This is a sharp warning to any and all DHHL beneficiaries. The Akaka Tribe intends to gut the DHHL of its basic function. Instead of building homes, they intend to use DHHL as a cash cow to line the pockets of Akaka Tribe "practitioners".

The obvious question is whether Senate President Colleen Hanabusa has made a satisfactorily "Grace-ful" arrangement with DHHL to keep this kind of nonsense in check in her Chamber. Or does she think a deal with Kane doesn't carry over to Park?

This is why opposition to this bill will only grow. Supporters of this bill argue that popular hostility will recede upon its passage. But, rather than cementing our descent into a European-style welfare state, last night’s passage of Obamacare is best seen as a historic turning point, a true catalyst for real change.

I write to reassure our supporters, the conservative movement, and the American people at large that The Heritage Foundation will do all within its power to keep this issue alive in the public square and make the intellectual case for the repeal of this act. We will bring all our resources to bear on behalf of those who believe America is and will always remain the Land of the Free.

This, rest assured, can be done. The American people are never permanently thwarted. President Obama's health care legislation can and will be repealed.

The top tax rates on interest and rental income would rise to as high as about 44 percent...Starting in 2013, Americans under 65 won’t be able to deduct medical expenses until they exceed 10 percent of income, up from 7.5 percent now...those who buy devices such as wheelchairs would pay a 2.3 percent excise tax. Drugmakers may pass on a $3 billion annual fee.

The Medicare taxes superseded an earlier Senate proposal to tax high-value employer-provided insurance coverage, dubbed “Cadillac plans.” That 40 percent excise tax was delayed until 2018, when it would begin to apply ....

First, he said, the mandate to buy insurance or pay a fine amounts to "a tax on living." Unlike auto insurance or payroll taxes, McCollum said, the new fees would apply to people for not doing anything, not triggered by any status or activity on a citizen's part.

Secondly, he said, the bill imposes spending requirements on the states --amounting to more than $1.6 billion for Florida. McCollum said Congress can't legally do that.