Influence, years in Congress touted

By Derrick DePledge
Advertiser Capitol Bureau

Volunteers waving signs along South King Street on an evening last week were backing both U.S. Rep. Neil Abercrombie and U.S. Sen. Dan Inouye. It was no accident that some of the signs were stuck together, leaving little doubt for rush-hour drivers that the two men are a team.

An unrepentant liberal, Abercrombie believes he has adapted well to political reality. He is an outspoken critic of war who has become a determined advocate for the military.

"The competition for those defense dollars is fierce," said Abercrombie, a Democrat seeking an eighth full term in the U.S. House. "We have a triumvirate in the Hawai'i delegation that I think is second to none in the nation. It is extraordinarily advantageous for the state."

Dalton Tanonaka, his Republican challenger, said Abercrombie is on the political fringe of his party and out of step with his increasingly moderate urban Honolulu congressional district. The former television and newspaper journalist said the congressman is "always one-sided, always partisan."

"This district needs a congressman that is in touch with the people," Tanonaka said.

Gov. Linda Lingle and Lt. Gov. James "Duke" Aiona endorsed Tanonaka when he made his campaign announcement in June, but he has not been able to get much national GOP help and has raised $72,000 to Abercrombie's $1 million. He has also loaned his campaign $69,000.

Tanonaka was dealt a major setback in September when the former campaign manager of his unsuccessful 2002 race for lieutenant governor filed a complaint with the state Campaign Spending Commission alleging Tanonaka hid loans to his campaign two years ago. The commission voted last week to refer the complaint to the city prosecutor's office for investigation.

"All we can do is cooperate fully and hope that this is resolved so as not to alter the election," Tanonaka said.

Even before the complaint surfaced, Tanonaka was considered a longshot, since incumbents in Congress have had a nearly unblemished re-election record in Hawai'i since statehood.

Dan Boylan, a history professor at the University of Hawai'i-West O'ahu, said Tanonaka has some name recognition and other virtues as a candidate and could help Republicans draw voters in November. But he said there is no real potential for an upset.

"It was like stabbing a dead body," Boylan said of the complaint. "Dalton really doesn't have a chance."

Others view Tanonaka as a credible alternative. Dr. John McDonnell, the chairman of the Hawai'i Medical Association's political action committee, said the group endorsed Tanonaka for his support for medical liability reform and his opposition to "partial-birth" abortion. "But we also think that Dalton Tanonaka has more of a business background and would be better for business," he said.

Fred Barnes, the co-host of "The Beltway Boys" on Fox News, picked Tanonaka Sunday as an "out-of-the-blue" surprise. "Watch him," Barnes said. "He may win a big upset."

Abercrombie won a special election in 1986 to fill the final months of Cec Heftel's congressional term when Heftel ran unsuccessfully for governor. Aber-crombie lost the primary election for a full term, but recaptured the district in 1990 and has held it since. He was re-elected in 2002 with 68 percent of the vote.

The congressman has moved up the seniority ladder on the House Armed Services Committee, which oversees the military and authorizes military projects. Akaka is on the Senate Armed Services Committee, and Inouye is the ranking Democrat on the Senate Appropriations Committee's defense subcommittee, giving Hawai'i significant influence over military projects and spending.

Abercrombie also has taken a strong interest in issues of pay, healthcare and housing for soldiers and their families.

At the same time, the congressman has been a vocal opponent against the war in Iraq and has criticized the Bush administration, saying it has used the military for political purposes. He is one of several Democrats involved with "Iraq Watch," where lawmakers take to the House floor to chastise Bush's handling of the war.

Even though he would likely be among the first to protest the resumption of a military draft, he co-sponsored a draft bill that would have required all men and women to perform some type of military or homeland security service.

Abercrombie said it was an attempt to get the Bush administration to discuss whether there are enough soldiers for military commitments in Iraq and around the world. But it was also a way for Democrats to trigger debate on whether people would support the war if they knew that all young people could be drafted.

Many Democrats, including Sen. John Kerry, the Democratic presidential nominee, have suggested the possibility of a draft if Bush is re-elected, even though the president has said he is not considering a draft.

House Republicans forced the Democrats' hand and called for a vote this month on the draft, which was defeated in a lopsided 402-2 vote. Abercrombie voted against the bill he had co-sponsored, prompting Tanonaka to attack him for raising the draft as a political scare tactic.

Abercrombie said he has been able to cultivate relationships to advance legislation important to Hawai'i despite his ideological differences with House Republican leaders.

For example, working with Inouye, Abercrombie was able to get a federal exemption that allows Norwegian Cruise Line to use foreign-built ships under U.S. flags on interisland cruises. He struck a deal prohibiting Norwegian from using the ships off the coasts of Florida and Alaska to get support from key House lawmakers from those states, who feared the Norwegian ships would have an unfair market advantage outside Hawai'i. Under federal law, foreign cruise ships are not allowed to make port-to-port stops in the United States without a foreign stop.

He was also able to get a Native Hawaiian federal recognition bill through the House in 2000, the only time the bill has passed either chamber in five years of effort by Hawai'i lawmakers. He steered the bill through the House Resources Committee this year, while Inouye and Akaka reached an agreement with Senate Republicans — who have been the main obstacle — to hold a vote on the bill next year. The bill would recognize Hawaiians as an indigenous people and create a process for self-government.

"I feel that I have cultivated these votes over the years," Abercrombie said. "People vote for you for their reasons, not yours."

Tanonaka believes that Inouye, not Abercrombie, deserves the most credit for military spending in Hawai'i. He also said Lingle's outreach to the Bush administration and Republican lawmakers on the Native Hawaiian bill may have had more influence than Abercrombie on the progress made this year.

Although he has never held elected office, Tanonaka, a former anchor for CNN International, said he has extensive business contacts in Asia and would look to expand Hawai'i's link to Asian markets. He briefly led the Pacific Basin Economic Council, a group of business executives from around the Pacific, before he was ousted as the council prepared to move from Honolulu to Hong Kong last year. He was also the executive director of the city's Office of Economic Development.

As a Republican, he said, he would be valuable to Hawai'i in Congress because he could work more closely with House Republican leaders and, if Bush wins a second term, the White House.

"I would be an objective, reasonable voice that would act in the best interests of all the people of Hawai'i," Tanonaka said.

Reach Derrick DePledge at ddepledge@honoluluadvertiser.com or 525-8070.