Senate confirms U.S. attorney

By Curtis Lum
Advertiser Staff Writer

The nomination of Honolulu attorney Ed Kubo Jr. as U.S. attorney for Hawai'i was unanimously confirmed by the Senate last week.

Kubo, 47, is a career prosecutor and has served as assistant U.S. attorney in Honolulu since 1990. From 1980 to 1990, Kubo was a deputy Honolulu city prosecutor.

President Bush nominated Kubo in September to replace Steven Alm, who resigned in April. Alm, a Democrat, is now a judge in Hawai'i's 1st Circuit.

Kubo could not be reached for comment yesterday.

Kubo has handled many high-profile cases as a prosecutor during the past 21 years. He has been involved in crackdowns on massage parlors, crystal methamphetamine labs and murders, as well as cockfighting.

The Honolulu native is a graduate of the University of San Diego. His nomination was supported by many local Republicans.

"The president made a good choice in nominating him. A lot of names went in to the president, and I think Ed was very well qualified," said state Rep. Barbara Marumoto, R-17th (Kahala, Wai'alae Iki). Marumoto served as Bush's Hawai'i campaign chairwoman.