Hirono takes pass on early face-offs

Democratic gubernatorial nominee Mazie Hirono is declining to participate in two forums with Republican nominee Linda Lingle this week, but she said yesterday that she will appear at other forums with Lingle over the next six weeks.

Hirono will not appear at tonight's Building Industry Association forum and tomorrow's forum sponsored by the Tax Foundation. Lingle is scheduled to appear at both, and has said Hirono doesn't want to debate her.

Hirono's campaign spokeswoman, Barbara Tanabe, said Hirono had already committed to a coffee hour when the campaign received the BIA's request last week. Tanabe also said Hirono already appeared at a Tax Foundation forum in which Lingle declined to participate before the primary.

"Prior to the primary as you all know, there are a number of forums that Linda was supposed to be at," Hirono told reporters at her campaign headquarters. "I appeared at every single one of these and she didn't, so for her to come up here now and start talking about forums and appearances, I think that's completely hypocritical of her.

Mazie Hirono said she will meet Linda Lingle at later forums. Advertiser library photo

Lingle made it a point to avoid the three Democratic candidates for governor before the primary and declined a variety of invitations to debate them. Lingle said it was pointless to debate the candidates until the primary settled the question of who would be the Democratic nominee.

Yesterday, Hirono stressed her message of "change" and said she will reach out to supporters of Democratic candidate D.G. "Andy" Anderson and Ed Case, whom she narrowly defeated in the primary. She said she will be working with Case, whose "change" platform had apparently appealed to a significant chunk of voters.

"We agreed that we need change, but change with a D," she said. "That means Democrats are going to effect big changes. I'll be talking with him to share my ideas, his ideas."

"How are we going to grow our economy, how are we going to improve education — I'll have some very specific ideas about that," Hirono said.

She said she would create a public-private "economic expansion council" to form ideas on how to boost the economy, and would push for the completion of a biomedical research center in Kaka'ako.

While both Lingle and Hirono are promising to change the way Hawai'i government is run, Hirono said she is the only one who can deliver because she expects the Legislature will remain under Democratic leadership.

"Any kind of program that the next governor is going to push is going to require not only the cooperation but really working with the Legislature," she said. "I have a relationship with many of them. ... I don't see how a Republican governor can work with a Democratic Legislature to bring about the kind of positive changes that we want."