Posted on: Thursday, April 11, 2002

EDITORIAL
Watada drops charge, squanders credibility

Credibility is a fragile thing — especially in the case of the state Campaign Spending Commission and its executive director, Robert Watada.

The gubernatorial campaign of Honolulu Mayor Jeremy Harris is virtually on the ropes, in large part because of a series of accusations the commission has made about Harris fund-raising.

Harris has vigorously and bitterly complained that he hasn't done anything wrong, or at least nothing that other candidates don't do, and that Watada is doing the dirty work for gray eminences who are "out to get" him.

Until this week, Watada's charges carried considerable weight; Harris was sounding like a kid caught with his hand in the cookie jar.

Watada has been eliciting confessions by construction companies that they have "bundled" contributions to Harris, and he has fined those companies. The city prosecutor's office is looking into allegations that the campaign solicited those contributions.

Watada also accused the Harris campaign of improperly donating $100,000 to the Democratic National Committee in 2000.

The complaint that put Harris' campaign "on hold" didn't come from Watada, but from former judge and lawmaker Russell Blair, who has obtained a Circuit Court ruling that Harris should already have resigned as mayor to run for governor. The state Supreme Court is to rule soon on Harris' appeal.

But the weight of all of the commission charges has helped rob the Harris campaign of momentum and sparked trial balloons of new candidates to replace Harris.

But inexplicably, Watada suddenly has withdrawn one of his major complaints, the one about the $100,000 contribution to the DNC. His explanation that he has other fish to fry and that his office is too busy is frankly outrageous. His proposal to leave the charge on the table in case he finds time to reopen it is unacceptable. The commission must either dismiss the complaint outright or insist that it be resolved.

There can be no tolerance for political game-playing — or even the appearance of it — in a position such as Watada's. Credibility is his stock in trade, and on this one he appears to be coming up empty.