COMMENTARY
Heen blames Harris for slip of Democrats
By Bob Dye
A crack in the Hawai'i Democratic Party appeared after the victory of Honolulu Mayor Jeremy Harris in September 1998, and widened when Democrats lost Legislature seats to the GOP —seven in the house and one in the senate — in the general election several weeks later.
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Then-state Democratic Party Chairman Walter Heen laid those defeats at the feet of Harris.
In happier days, Jeremy Harris walked with supporters July 25, 2000, to Honolulu Hale to sign nomination papers for mayor.
If Harris had worked as hard to raise significant amounts of money for the state party as he did for the national party, Hawai'i Democrats would still have overwhelming control of the house, Heen contended.
Although his party kept a majority, that could be in jeopardy in the next election, he thought. Worse for Democrats, the erosion of party power could lose them the governorship and congressional seats in 2002, Heen said.
The Heen-Harris fracture shows no sign of healing. Quite the opposite. Heen is now a top campaigner for D.G. "Andy" Anderson, the former Republican who is running second to Harris in the run-up to the Democratic primary for governor.
A chronological recap of the rift:
After Harris won re-election as mayor outright in a primary election, and having no race of his own to run in the general election, he and his top campaign workers solicited money for the 2000 campaign of the Democratic national candidates Al Gore and Joseph Lieberman.
"During our brief visit to Washington, D.C., this past week, the Democratic National Committee asked the mayor to raise $100,000 in 'soft' money," wrote lawyer R. Brian "Rick" Tsujimura, now chairman of the 2002 Harris campaign committee. The letter, dated Oct. 25, 2000, was sent to the head of a Hawai'i labor union.
"We are asking your kokua in helping the party and its candidates, Al Gore and Joseph Lieberman, raise the necessary funds to meet the onslaught of unbridled spending by the Republican Party. ... The mayor has asked that I send this personal note to you asking for the (blacked out) and its affiliates and supporters to once again step forward and make a statement about the stance of working men and women for the Democratic ticket."
Tsujimura instructed the prospective donor: "Please make your check out to the Democratic National Committee (Tax I.D. No. 52-0958906). Your organization can contribute up to $20,000. The check needs to be sent to me by Friday, Oct. 27 ..."
Copies were sent to Harris and lawyer Peter C.P. Char, a chief fund-raiser for Harris.
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On Harris 2000 Campaign Committee stationery, Harris wrote a cover letter dated Nov. 3, 2000, transmitting $100,250 to the Democratic National Committee: "Enclosed please find checks from businesses, labor organizations, and residents of Honolulu totaling $100,250.00. It is our pleasure to have assisted the national coordinated campaign for the 2000 election. We appreciate the assistance of Secretary Norman Mineta and Ambassador Alan Blinken."
State Democratic Party leaders say a campaign contribution from Harris to the Al Gore national campaign hurt the state party.
The Harris campaign committee itself wrote a check to the DNC, as did several of its major supporters now under investigation by the state Campaign Spending Commission.
A week later, on Nov. 9, 2000, Heen wrote a letter to Joe Andrew, national chairman of the DNC, protesting the DNC's role in raising political money in Hawai'i:
"The contribution, and the procedure followed, completely undermines the authority, integrity and credibility of the Democratic Party of Hawai'i with respect to the conduct of the coordinated campaign. It also casts in doubt the future viability of the Hawai'i Democrats' ability to manage its own affairs without interference from the DNC or an individual candidate ...
"The Hawai'i coordinated campaign was extremely handicapped by a lack of resources in this election with which to reach the voters with our message and to deliver victories for more of our local candidates. $100,000 more in the coordinated campaign account could have made a difference in the state senate and seven state house races previously held by Democrats that were lost to Hawai'i Republicans. The lack of support for the local party displayed by the DNC in this matter could result in an erosion of the already weakened Democratic base in Hawai'i and result in the loss of the governorship, the Legislature and even some congressional seats in 2002."
Heen concluded: "I consider this incident an egregious insult and slap in the face to me, as party chair, and to the Democratic Party of Hawai'i."
The DNC, of course, can raise money wherever and through whomever in the United States it chooses. But usually, the DNC works with the titular head of the party in each state. It is unusual, except in the case of a New York City or a Los Angeles, for the DNC to ask a mayor — instead of a governor — to raise major money.
Sometimes Hawai'i's fund-raising for the DNC has been relatively small, once as little as $20,000, I'm told. But other times it's been far in excess of what Harris raised for Gore/Lieberman. For example, Gov. John Waihee raised about $250,000 for the campaign of Bill Clinton. No one was unhappy with Waihee because, unlike Harris, he raised a far larger sum for the state coordinated campaign that same year.
Even Lt. Gov. Mazie Hirono, who headed the Hawai'i Gore campaign, said she wished Harris had worked as hard for state and local candidates: "At least that money would have been spent here."
If Democrats are to beat the GOP's front-running Linda Lingle in November, party faithful know that the festering split needs healing or excising. "Democrats always come together when it's needed," Waihee assures me. "There is always a mechanism."
