Aloha Friends. Welcome back. Part 1 of 2.  Election, Finally

There are many strong and energy-filled conservatives and Republicans in Hawaii.  Thank you.  The Hawaii Republican Party can be better.

FINAL 2016 OPPORTUNITY

If you’re reading this in Hawaii, you have one chance to win the Presidential election, and likely win a targeted US Senate race.  In the next three days, call every one of your mainland family, friends and contacts.  Start with battleground states.  Must call, email or text is not good enough.  For Republicans and conservatives, remind them the election is about SCOTUS.  They must vote Trump.  For D friends (ugh) remind them why they should NOT vote Clinton.  You’ve sat out most this cycle.  Trump Hawaii is too little, too late.  We don’t rely on HRP’s corrupt ‘leadership’ to do anything.  Win the Presidency and the Senate.  Get on the phone, please.

– November 8 Election Day

– November 13 Hawaii Friends of NRA Banquet w NRA President Cors kailuadawn@gmail.com

– November 26 Hawaii Senior Olympics, UH markzeug@gmail.com

– January 15 NRA ballots mailed

– November 6, 2018 General Election (only 735 days)

Meetings – Finances – By the Numbers – Elections

-Nation’s Gun show. Chantilly VA at the Arsenal Attorney’s table.  Largest gun show on the east coast.  Local GOP large presence, six volunteers/shift.  Collecting signatures for NRA petition to gain ballot access, while Harvey Gerwig and team collected signatures in Honolulu at Hawaii’s largest gun show.

-Loudoun County FNRA dinner.  About 200 attend.  Many first time FNRA attendees.  Sat at Kyle Weaver table, Executive Director of NRA General Operations, and with Congressman Rob Wittman VA-1.

-Mighty American Task Force call.  This group organizes volunteer deployments from red states to blue.  Louie Gohmert opened “dead people have been voting for years.”  1,000+ volunteers deployed to 12 states.  Sponsors help fund food, lodging, transportation.  Thousands more are using Trump Talk.

-HRP FEC www.fec.gov  September is RED, AGAIN.  No evidence of Hellreich or Ward fundraising, Rohlfing STILL refuses to make phone appeals.  Receipts $4,955 = 1,955 contributions (least amount of the year) + 2,000 RNC + 0 from an empty state account, and a 1k in-kind donation.  FEC Sustaining Donors: 4/14 Exec Cmte (no Ward, no Rohlfing, only 1/4 county chair, 1/5 state vice chair), 3/51 District chairs, 1 party member.  When leaders don’t buy in, don’t expect others to do so.  Disbursements $13,970 = $3345 Tagavilla salary+1179 payroll tax+348 health insurance, 266 taxes, 1476 mortgage, 2752 building maintenance, 1528 accounting (they were calling this compliance) and another 988 in kind accounting, 253 phone, 152 cable, 734 copier, 150 MailChimp, 296 printing and 253 mailing, 867 email list rental for Ostrov, 876 email rent for Carroll.  Again, zero electioneering, staff hires, candidate support, communications.  CoH for operations about 1k + empty CSC + 5k counties. 29k mortgage account for 95k remaining mortgage.

No funds for 2016 campaigns & elections.  HRP red 29/45 past reports.  This cycle 16/23 months in the RED.  Since January 1, 2015 HRP is RED 38k i.e. living off the RNC funds Saiki did NOT use to elect 2014 Rs.  15 Rohlfing months, even with $30k from Presidential campaigns, CC event, LDD and National Convention, has Rohlfing/Hellreich/Ward (R/H/W) shortfall of 48.5k.  Last 7 months, receipts 80k, disbursements 121k for a net loss of 41k.  HRP is RED 9 of past 11 months.  Four months in a row underwater, red 3/3 under R/H/W.

MONEY NOTES

-Of the 5k receipts, 1k is an in-kind and 2k is an RNC handout.  Your STATE party push (Rohlfing’s ‘let’s raise 50k’ email?) raised 2k.  It is almost impossible for a state party to raise only 2k in a month especially at election when donors are most generous.

-The concept is to have sustaining donors cover routine monthly costs.  HQ receives $290/month (10 donors), which doesn’t cover their 15k/month expenses.

–RNC sent $2k this month, after none the previous two.  ALL resources should go to a Presidential battleground or a targeted US Senate race.  This is one reason less people contribute to RNC.

-Oops.  August 29 HQ transferred 5k+ into FEC account from CSC account, but there is no record of it leaving their CSC account.  Six months after cutting ties with IMS accounting, still reporting problems.

-R/H/W dipping into the kitty.  Most organizations require board members to contribute.  Most HRP Exec Cmte members have contributed ZERO this election cycle.  Before breaking Hellreich’s absolute guarantee that mortgage funds are for ONLY mortgage, the 14-member Exec Cmte should pony up.

-You elected them.  State convention delegates snowed by electing Ward and, again, Hellreich.  No evidence of either in our again upside-down finance report.

 

Conservatives’ Voter Guide

http://hira.hawaiideservesbetter.com/pdfs/2016-Voting-Recommendations-from-HIRA.pdf

 

-Someone spoofed a Rohlfing email to HRP members.  “Rohlfing” says the party has done great, is doing great and will be great on election day.  “Rohlfing” asks for 100 donors to give $1000 each in the next three weeks.  The parody is complete as HIRA exposures that Rohlfing, Hellreich and Ward have shrunk the party, is contesting only half the seats, and will get clobbered on election day.  Reason the email must be fake:  In September, HRP had 3 donors above 499, and no donor above 988.  i.e. not one 1000 donor.

-Add to that paragraph.  Rohlfing said he’d raise $50k the final three months, but in the two past he raised $15k which makes raising $35k this third month quite unlikely for a guy who won’t pick up the phone.  There is no evidence in the FEC report that Hellreich or Ward is helping to raise funds.  Only 15k in two months makes far-fetched their raising $100k in three weeks.

-While HRP is bankrupt, and provides NO support to races anywhere on the ticket, not all Republicans are incompetent.  Also, to dispel allegations that Trump is not assisting congressional races.  RNC press release excerpts:  RNC Raised $262.3M This Cycle.  RNC raised $39.4M in September and has $56.6M CoH.  RNC, with the Trump campaign, transferred $4.5M to NRSC and $1.85M to NRCC.  Total raised in September 2016: $39.4M.  Cycle raised to date: $262.3M.  Amount transferred to NRSC: $4.5M.  Amount transferred to NRCC: $1.9M.  Total cash on hand: $56.6M.  Donations $200.00 or less: 98%.  Avg. donation in September 2016: $63.  Debt: $7.7M

 

By the numbers

1.  IJR: Cruz Question Shows Why We Fear Losing Internet Control.  “Is ICANN bound by the First Amendment?”

5.  HRP lacks integrity to address Rs – Thielen (ACU 24), Carroll, McDermott (ACU 57), Pine, Fenton – who endorsed 2012 Ds against Rs. Add, 2014 Cheape (15), Fukumoto (43), Egge, and Hanneman’s ‘Rohlfing Rs.’  2016 Kaaihue, Pine, Combs.

6.  R legislators endorsed by HSTA teacher’s union: Ward (ACU 38), Fukumoto, Cheape, Pouha (ACU 18), Thielen (ACU 24). Not? Slom (ACU 100), Ds Kong (ACU 45), Oshiro (ACU 29).

7.  Days (as of November 1) to the Presidential election.

7.  Battleground. FL, NC, PA, OH, NV, NH.

8.6.  Not news.  CB: New (Lowball) Estimate for Rail

21.  HQ often jokes that we should tell Ds the election is a day after the actual date. Oops. On October 17 Hellreich’s mass email tells members to vote in 26 days. There were only 21 days until election day. The next week Ward gives the wrong date, missing the election by two days.

29.  out of 100. House R ACU 2016 average, down from a 2015 terrible 34.  Slom is highest at 63.  McDermott and Tupola barely score in mid-30s, Ward is lowest at 27.

43.  Months since Hellreich wrote “use massive voter registration drives to Increase our chances of winning.” 19 since she said “We need voter registration drives.”  No HRP voter reg drive in five+ years.

47.  Months since the ’12 required HRP financial audit was to be conducted. 35 since the ’13 audit was due. 24 since HRP chair promised. Donors don’t give when finances are in question.

 

Election News

-After AB began, only a week until early walk in, Honolulu GOP spends money on a candidate rally with ‘free’ food in Kailua, where they have no competitive races.  No candidate should leave their district for four hours on a Saturday afternoon three weeks before election day to go to a rally with NOT their voters.  HRP hours spent organizing + event expenses result in less than 80 attendees, many were party ‘leaders.’  Djou skipped, and his surrogate Marumoto stood them up.  Ready, on the agenda, blew it off.  So few speakers showed up they quit 45 minutes early.  HQ used the rally as an excuse to keep Trump Hawaii out of HQ (for phone bank), then the staff didn’t attend the rally to take the day off.

-HCRPAC.  2A PAC rates candidates’ responses, and voting if they have a record.  There are differences in what some say and how they vote e.g. HD22 Brower survey is B, but votes D, i.e. liar, and Djou survey is B but he votes C.  Slom (R), Har (D) and Ito (D) are the only A+ rated legislators.  A includes McKelvey(D), Tokioka(D), Say(D), Choy(D), Kong(D), Yamane(D), Aquino(D), Cullen(D), McDermott, Tupola, Oshiro(D).  B is Carroll, Fukumoto, Cheape, and Ward.  Pouha is C.  Thielen is D.  Ostrov, Kaaihue and many Rs didn’t do the survey exposing a flaw in their 2A support.  Donate to Hawaii Citizens Rights PAC HRA/hcr-pac. Ratings at HRA FB

–Rules-challenged HRP affects our candidates.  Rohlfing email says ‘HRP’ endorses Ostrov in the HI-1 Special, and Akina for OHA.  But, that belongs to the State Cmte (Section 303. Party Endorsement.  In a nonpartisan election or a special election for a federal or state office, the State Committee may make an endorsement.  Any such endorsement requires approval by a majority of all the committee members entitled to vote.) and the Cmte hasn’t met.  R/H/W don’t know their own rules, or, Clinton-like, the rules do not apply to them.  Candidates shouldn’t have to be embarrassed or burdened by a non-endorsement.

-With a week to deadline, HQ reports only 100 poll watchers for some 252 precincts, you’d like two/precinct.  19 DISTRICTS have zero, 25 more have less than 1/precinct.

-With an irrelevant state party (“party has zero” funds.), McDermott uses whiny voice to beg HIRA for help (for several candidates but specifically omits help for conservative Slom).  He won’t pitch in, but wants others to do so.  The guy who says HIRA has no impact, wants HIRA help.  He was conveniently absent on the Rap-Back anti-gun vote.  Same guy who voted to extend the GET increase.  Guy with a 2016 ACU 35.  This is the guy who makes personal public attacks against HIRA members and other conservatives.  This guy has multiple times been reported for using his legislative office facilities for personal projects and gain.  Same guy to support Hanneman over Aiona.  This guy won’t contribute to candidates (unlike Ds, none of our incumbents do) but wants others to do so.  He caps it with an insulting email.  Still childlike, this guy doesn’t have the ‘guts’ (or standing) to call HIRA boss Ryan, or to call me.

-HRP does nothing, and HIRA picks up the slack.  Only HIRA announces candidates’ sign waving, meetings raisers, and rallies – even for unknown or crappy Rs.  Only HIRA contributed to candidates’ campaigns, HRP has no funds.  Milner writes that politics is dead because of “[HRP], which no longer participates in political discourse.  The state’s GOP has gone silent. … conservatives like the Hawaii Republican Assembly call the state’s Republican leaders RINOs — Republicans in Name Only.  A better description of the state GOP is PINOS — Party In Name only.“   CB: GOP Silence Kills Politics.  HIRA “(HRP) has been pronounced DEAD by the news media.  HIRA completely agrees with this assessment.“

-Decide NOW to attend your district organizing meeting at the start of next year.  Hawaii Republicans can survive this year’s HRP disaster.

-HRP 2015-2016 Action Plan:  gain 4 house and 1 senate seat, maintain 51 district chairs with 2 precincts/each, monthly candidate training, all chairs GOPDC trained, quarterly Community service event, delegates from all districts at state convention, weekly press release, 2 FB post/week, 10% increase FB & Twitter, webmaster for website, fund programs, monthly Finance Cmte meeting, 7 direct mail pieces, 4 telemarketing projects, quarterly $ events, 4 hours/week chair calls … and they didn’t do any of it.  You decide if it is time for change from Hellreich, Rohlfing, Ward and the rest of the establishment.

-HQ announcement for State Cmte meeting includes words ‘confidential’ and ‘secret’.  They don’t do anything and they don’t want you to know about it.

-HNL County Exec Cmte, couldn’t gather enough for a quorum to appoint volunteers to fill district chair seats, scheduled last minute meetings in conjunction with the State Cmte meeting.  The surprise announced State meeting, and the even later announced county meeting, were hastily put together, neither on the GOP calendar.  Purpose is to ‘discuss GOTV’ only three weeks before election.  But, they have no GOTV plan, no identified voters, no consolidated lists, have not coordinated with campaigns.

-Chairs who are working hard in their districts challenged HQ over the late-scheduled, agenda-less State meeting which would pull them downtown for several prime hours.  Chairs simply asked the content of the meeting.  HQ, with only two-day’s notice, postponed the meeting until after the election.

-The hastily and too late called HNL County meeting to organize a GOTV effort was canceled 12 hours later.  “Is this the definition of LOL, or is this a LMAO?  I’m still mired in FUBAR.“

-HRP again out to oust conservative district chairs.  Without a chair for months, HD 45 found a committed volunteer to salvage the district.  HNL GOP screwed the pooch (see next about appointments).  After that faux pas, they appointed a (conservative) chair last month.  Then, Rohlfing recruited Kekuna and (improperly) scheduled an election.  In an embarrassing aborted ousting, Rohlfing’s agenda ‘do over’ deleted the election.  Meanwhile, the chair is organizing the district, planning a forum, finding volunteers and holding meetings.  As with Rohlfing, Hellreich, and Saiki taking Montes and Grey out of their offices (effectively leaving them empty), HRP focuses on intramural fights.

-“Hamada railing on HRP” texted a reader.  Hamada let loose on HRP ‘leaders’ calling out Mukk, etc by name.  Reader “Whoa!  Hamada just had a “come to Jesus” moment going off on HRP leadership, calling them “abysmal.”  HIRA: Hamada-Unloads-on-Hawaii-GOP  “conservative talk radio host Hamada couldn’t take it anymore.  With nearly two years of inaction, dysfunction, and silence from the RINO leaders of the HRP, Hamada melted his radio station microphone when he unloaded on the silent, feckless, neutral, and disorganized party ‘organization’ which is supposed to (but doesn’t) fight for Republican solutions and candidates.”  “He went to the website and noted the ‘leaders’ listed and went through by name asking if anyone had heard of or from them.  He noted the lack of press releases or information.  Quoting from HIRA’s postcard mailer he said “All the money is going to overhead.”  Hamada “Why should you even be a member of the party?”  Not one person called to give a reason or defend the party.  HIRA has history with Hamada. Reader “Who is he to bitch when he acts in the same way as the party when they hear the truth.  He should have been supporting HIRA all along, but chose to be a baby.“

-Thought we were immune to embarrassment by HQ.  Wrong.  Thursday night, HRP emailed their first ever political piece.  A hit on Caldwell.  Amateurish, poorly constructed.  Two-months old (Caldwell’s bank payoffs) info used the Pony Express (sorry, Express) to get from Honolulu Hale to GOP HQ.  They promise a Monday update, four days and about 12 news cycles after this first-ever political piece.  They ask for money to do more blasts (which costs nothing) to merely preach to party members rather than doing anything to reach hundreds of thousands of voters NOT on the tiny party email list.  Reader “Fritz is now giving lectures on ethics?  Wow.“   Not immune.  We’re embarrassed.

-Faux museum.  Daily Signal: Thomas Absent In Black Smithsonian “Thomas, the second black man to serve on the U.S. Supreme Court, is practically absent from the new National Museum of African American History and Culture.  Anita Hill, the woman who accused Thomas of sexual harassment, however, is given prominent billing in the museum.”

–ACU 2016 legislative ratings.   www.conservative.org.  0/76 Hawaii legislators receive an award i.e. not a one scored 80% or above.  Out of 100 points, R highest Slom 63, lowest Ward 27.  Highest D DeCoite 36.  R House average 29, only three points above D’s 26.  R 2016/lifetime:  Slom 63/84, McDermott 35/50, Tupola 33/39, Thielen 29/25, Pouha 29/25, Fukumoto 26/37, Cheape 26/18, Ward 24/33.

Notes:  Most rating organizations consider 80 the cutoff, anything less is not conservative.  ACU is considered a more generous score than Heritage Action or Conservative Review.  As you make a decision on whether to volunteer for or to contribute to a candidate, consider that every Hawaii R failed in 2016.  For lifetime scores, only Slom has a conservative rating.  For 2016, three R house members scored the same as the D average.  Dem DeCoite (ACU 36) voted more conservatively than any R house member.  Dems DeCoite 36, Har 33, Kong 33, Yamine 33, Aquino 32, Choy 32, Cullen 32, Jordan 32, McKelvey 32, Ohno 32, Tokioka 31, Say 30, Ito 29, and Oshiro 27 voted more conservatively than Fukumoto 26, Cheape 26, and Ward 24.  22 Ds are more conservative than your elected NCM Ward.

–Honored to be appointed to the National Rifle Association of America Military and Veterans Affairs Committee and the Outreach Committee for 2016-2017.  NEW Freedom’s Safest Place ads featuring several NRA friends  NRA: Freedom’s Safest Place Series.  Running for NRA Board of Directors at www.willeslee.com and finally broke down to a FB page www.facebook/willes.lee.5.

-Join Hawaii Rifle Association to protect our gun (civil) rights.

Veteran’s Day.  Doing time, US Army style.  My father served our country 50 years, 30 on active duty and 20 more with the DC National Guard and then National Guard Bureau.  My older brother enlisted and served 38 years on active duty.  The second brother is a West Pointer and then served 32 years.  I graduated from West Point and served 22 years.  142 years of service, 150 including USMA time.  My mother sent ‘her men’ to war nine times from WWII to Desert Storm.  One family.  I am proud, and privileged, to have been a Defender of Freedom.  And, blessed to serve with such incredibly brave and talented young men and women.

 

ARE YOU SATISFIED? HRP needs leadership focused on HRP.  Forward this – people need to know, you need to act. Part 2 coming.

 

Willes

Last five: Voting/ Again/ Trumpified/ “Thrilled”/ Embarrassing.  www.hawaiideservesbetter.com