Campaign spending reform lets Watada shine
By Bob Dye
Jan. 15 will be yet another show-and-tell day for Jeremy Harris contributors before the state Campaign Spending Commission. The first five overly generous donors to Harris were fined in November, and three more were fined last month.
Richard Ambo • The Honolulu Advertiser
The Harris forces would have us think that their candidate is unfairly targeted by the commission. There's been an angry accusation from them that Bob Watada, the commission's executive director, played politics by leaking tidbits of information about Harris donors to the media. And they've filed a complaint against him for doing that with the state ethics commission.
Robert Watada, executive director of the state Campaign Spending Commission, says his probe is focused on corporate contributions.
"Bob Watada is a fair-minded guy," says Rep. Galen Fox, R-21st (Waikiki-Ala Wai).
Like others at the state Capitol, Fox doesn't understand why the Harris folks are trying to demonize the man.
"Watada is doing his job" says Rep. Marcus Oshiro, D-40th (Wahiawa-Whitmore). "It's risky to attack him for that."
Watada says his probe is focused on corporate campaign contributors, not any particular political candidate. He lists other recipients of questionable corporate contributions as Gov. Ben Cayetano, Lt. Gov. Mazie Hirono, Maui Mayor James "Kimo" Apana, and former Honolulu Councilman Mufi Hannemann. Except for Cayetano, all are seeking elective office.
With so many political luminaries under scrutiny, why is the Harris campaign calling attention to itself by trouncing Watada?
Damage control, maybe.
As Oshiro points out, though Harris backers may not like it, no one can blame Watada for enforcing the campaign spending laws. That's the job he's sworn to do.
Nevertheless, respected Adver-tiser columnist David Shapiro recently faulted him for revealing bits and pieces of what he has discovered.
"How do you leak public information?" Watada asks. He credits the revelations to the enterprise of good reporters who read what's in the open files in his office.
The commission's office is indeed a model of open government, thanks in part to investigative reporter Ian Lind, who sued to make it so.
The flap over Watada's alleged ethical lapses will evaporate after he details his latest findings. From news reports and my look into campaign records, I expect them to be extraordinary. If they indicate other laws may have been broken, the commission can refer them to prosecutors.
If there are any charges, federal or state, all bets are off in the governor's race. Harris may never file nominating papers, and instead finish out his mayoral term.
Who is this guy Watada?
Robert Yoichi Watada holds a doctorate in agricultural economics and is a former Peace Corps volunteer in Peru. Before his appointment to head the commission, he worked for the state Department of Labor for many years. During that time, he was politically active in Gov. George Ariyoshi's political campaigns, and those of other Democratic candidates.
A protege of Bob Oshiro, the legendary campaign strategist, Watada in no stranger to politics. He knows what to look for.
About a year ago, he began to look into political contributions made by firms that do business with the state and its counties. The period studied was Jan. 1, 1996, to June 30, 2001.
What he found "alarmed" him. He investigated further and found much to take before the Campaign Spending Commission, the body that regulates campaign contributions and expenditures.
In the next few months the results of Watada's investigation of some 60 companies will continue to be brought before the commission. Its five members were appointed by Cayetano from a list of nominees submitted to him by the state Judicial Council. The chairman is A. Duane Black, a community volunteer and former Castle & Cooke executive.
The other commissioners are Della W.L. Au Belatti, a law school student with a Princeton degree; Mona K.O. Chock, a UH system administrator; Richard B.F. Choy, a retired optometrist and Korean War veteran; and Clifford S. Muraoka, a naval intelligence analyst and liquor investigator with a master's degree from the University of Hawai'i-Manoa.
While the commission is hearing the cases brought against the corporate contributors, Watada will be lobbying the Senate to ban corporations and labor unions from contributing to political candidates, as is the case under federal law. The Hawai'i House passed such a bill last session.
"The bill has strong bipartisan support," Oshiro says. He says he hopes it becomes law in the coming session.
Tales of corporate wrongdoing emanating from the commission should be strong enough testimony to get the reform passed. Besides, it's a good idea to bring our law in line with a federal law.
Prohibiting corporations from donating to candidates might bring voters back into elections. Increasingly, us nickel-and-dime contributors have been squeezed out of power by big buckeroos. If folks feel empowered, I think they'll make an effort to vote.
My two cents on reform:
• If you can't vote for a candidate, you shouldn't be able to give that person money. As a resident of Kailua, I can't vote for Fox or Oshiro, so I shouldn't be allowed to contribute to their campaigns, either. Winning candidates should be beholden to their constituents, not to out-of-district contributors. And never to out-of-state donors.
• Politicians shouldn't be able to collect until they file. Only those folks who file nominating papers, and are duly certified as candidates, should be able to solicit campaign contributions. This also is an easy and fair way to shorten the time of campaign fund-raising.
Because politicians find it difficult to regulate their own behavior, help legislators out by phoning them your campaign reform suggestions.
Robert Dye is a Kailua-based historian and writer.
