GOVERNOR'S SUCCESS LIMITED IN WASHINGTON
The Honolulu Advertiser - Monday, June 21,2004
By Frank Oliveri - Advertiser Washington Bureau
WASHINGTON — Gov. Linda Lingle's 2002 challenge to herself — and promise to voters — was that she would increase Hawai'i's presence here and use her Republican credentials as entry to the White House to help Native Hawaiians gain recognition.
But although it is clear from Lingle's calendar that she and her staff have met frequently with the president, vice president and Cabinet officials, she has enjoyed only limited success in pushing the Native Hawaiian agenda. And the successes she can point to — as well as the potential failures — must be shared with the powerful Hawai'i delegation headed by Democratic Sen. Daniel Inouye.
Lingle has met with President Bush three times since October 2003, and with Vice President Dick Cheney once. She's also held dozens of meeting with Cabinet members, while her staff has held dozens more. "I have only one role, and that is to look out for the interests of my state," Lingle said. "That's what I was elected to do...."
The greatest impact Lingle might make would be by lobbying Washington on behalf of Native Hawaiian recognition. It is why in 2002 Lingle made it her top priority in Washington....
It was Lingle's mission to get the Bush administration to back off on challenges it might make to the bill and seek assistance from the Interior Department in updating the bill....
But the bill continues to be held up by Senator Jon Kyl, who refuses to lift a "hold" — or legislative block — on the measure, Lingle confirmed. Nor has Senator Bill Frist made space on the Senate calendar for the bill to be brought up. Lingle asked Kyl to lift his hold, but he refused. Kyl objects based on his belief that indigenous peoples should be treated no differently than other racial groups, Lingle said. Kyl's office did not answer requests for an interview.
Still, Lingle faces a more basic problem than the political maneuvering on Capitol Hill. Neal Milner, a political science professor at the University of Hawai'i, said that Native Hawaiian recognition is "not that important in Washington, and (Lingle) hasn't changed that in any significant way....
