Hawaii Dems face tough battles for gov, Senate

HONOLULU (AP) — As the final days of campaigning drew to a close in Hawaii's dramatic primary races, a pair of hurricanes thrashed toward the islands.
The storms posed considerable risk, but for Gov. Neil Abercrombie, they also represented an opportunity to cast himself as a steady leader with a strong emotional connection to people in the state.
He hugged military response personnel, emphasized his national network of contacts and, even as forecasters predicted the storms would weaken and veer away, Abercrombie reminded everyone to remain vigilant. "The full brunt of the storm is still to come," he said Friday morning.

Whether this final image will be decisive for voters casting ballots Saturday remains to be seen. The incumbent governor faces a surprisingly strong challenge from a fellow Democrat and early voting was heavily encouraged.
It's not the only race splitting the Democratic Party establishment. Rep. Colleen Hanabusa is challenging U.S. Sen. Brian Schatz to determine who will fill the shoes of the beloved Sen. Daniel Inouye.
The winners of each race will face Republicans and independent candidates in the November general election, but such campaigns are longshots in heavily Democratic Hawaii.
Schatz has outspent Hanabusa by more than $1 million, and his ads dominated the airwaves. But Hanabusa has attracted many of Inouye's supporters, who felt it was disrespectful for Abercrombie to disregard the political icon's dying wish. Before his death, Inouye told Abercrombie to appoint Hanabusa as his successor. Abercrombie, however, chose Schatz, his lieutenant governor.

Hanabusa evoked Inouye's name throughout the campaign, aligning herself with the traditional Hawaii political establishment, while Schatz touted his endorsement from President Barack Obama.
"I feel as though both candidates are equally qualified," said voter Paul Pollock, 60, who works in the maritime industry and voted for Schatz. "But I'd like to shed the old guard, as it were, and give someone who wasn't an Inouye designate a chance."
As the storm winds died down Friday, election officials assessed the impact and decided to press on with Saturday's scheduled primary.
Abercrombie's calm demeanor as Hurricane Iselle thrust through the islands was a contrast to just days earlier, when at a campaign rally he defended his record— fists raised — after a poll was released that showed him trailing his opponent, state Sen. David Ige, by 18 points.
"Somebody said to me today, 'What do you think about the fact that some people are upset with you because of the decisions that you made?'" Abercrombie said to the crowd, practically shouting. "Every decision I made was on behalf of Hawaii, and every decision I made I said at the time, 'Let's see what the results are of facing the tough choices and making the tough decisions.' And the results are in, and the results are that Hawaii is in a better position today than it has ever been."
Ige has mounted his challenge despite being outspent by about 10 to 1. While Abercrombie tore through $4.9 million through July 25, Ige spent just $447,000, according to Hawaii's Campaign Spending Commission.
Challenging the incumbent Democrat may have hurt Ige's ability to fundraise. But Ige, a respected state senator who served in the Legislature for 28 years, felt Hawaii was headed in the wrong direction, and that too many of the governor's decisions were dividing communities, he said.
"There were many in the party that did not want me to run," Ige said in a recent interview. "They felt like the incumbent should be supported."
Many Ige voters said they weren't necessarily taken in by Ige; they just didn't like Abercrombie.
"Hawaii is such a small place that you have to be really careful about what bridges you burn," said voter Carrie Shoda-Sutherland, 39, a Honolulu education researcher who voted for Ige. "I think there's an overall sense that he's not as relationship-based as you have to be in Hawaii."
Voters who cast their ballots for Ige ahead of the Aug. 9 primary cited disappointment with the way Abercrombie handled contract negotiations with teachers and his past support for a plan to tax pensions.
Others credited Abercrombie for making tough choices to get the state out of a recession.
"I think it's sad that his reputation is being tarnished by a group that thinks he short-shrifted them," said Allen Hoe, 67, a lawyer who voted for Abercrombie.
Former Gov. John Waihee, another Abercrombie supporter, questioned the accuracy of the recent poll, and said that just before he was elected, a poll was released saying he trailed his opponent by 18 points.
"We don't need to win by 25 points, by 10 points," Waihee said at Abercrombie's rally. "We need to win by one vote."

 

California governor reverses parole for Charles Manson associate Bruce Davis

 

California Gov. Jerry Brown has reversed a parole board decision and denied the release of Bruce Davis -- a former associate of Charles Manson and a convicted murderer himself.

"I find the evidence shows that he currently poses an unreasonable danger to society if released from prison," Brown said in his decision released Friday night. "Therefore, I reverse the decision to parole Davis."

Davis was sent to state prison for life on April 21, 1972, for the first-degree murders of musician Gary Hinman and stuntman Donald "Shorty" Shea in 1969.

 

In March, the state Board of Parole Hearings granted parole for the 71-year-old Davis following his 28th parole suitability hearing.

 

Brown had up to 150 days to nullify or modify the decision.

 

In reversing the board, Brown cited the viciousness of the killing.

"The exceptional brutality of these crimes and the terror the Manson Family inflicted on the Los Angeles community 45 years ago still resonate," he said.

It is the third time a California governor has refused to release Davis.

In January 2010 and October 2012, the parole board granted him parole. In the second case, the board explained it made such a recommendation because of Davis' "positive adjustment, record of no recent disciplinary problems, and for successfully completing academic and vocational education and self-help programs."

Both times, the sitting governors -- first Arnold Schwarzenegger and later Brown -- reversed that decision.

"When considered as a whole, I find the evidence ... shows why he currently poses a danger to society if released from prison," Brown wrote in 2013 to explain his reversal.

No Manson "family" member has been freed solely for good behavior.

The group's gruesome killings inspired the best-selling book "Helter Skelter" and made their undisputed ringleader Manson a cult figure.

The 1969 spree ensnared several victims, including 8-months-pregnant actress Sharon Tate.

Manson is serving a life sentence for his role in nine murders. He was denied parole for the 12th time in 2012; his next such hearing is set for 2027, at which time he'd be age 92.

 

 

 

Agnieszka Radwanska responds to Body Issue controversy

The Polish tennis star was dropped by a Catholic youth group.

 

Tennis star Agnieszka Radwanska broke her silence about the uproar in her native Poland about her nude photo shoot for ESPN The Magazine’s Body Issue. Earlier this week, Radwanska was dropped from a Catholic youth group for her “immoral behavior.”

The following statement was posted Friday on her Facebook page.

    “For those that are not familiar with the magazine, ESPN The Body Issue is a celebration of the beauty of the bodies of the best athletes in the world. It includes both men and women of all ages and all shapes and sizes. Other athletes photographed include San Francisco quarterback Colin Kaepernick, 77-year-old golf legend Gary Player, and Olympic volleyball gold medalist Kerri Walsh Jennings – during and after her pregnancy. My tennis colleagues Serena Williams, Daniela Hantuchova and Vera Zvonareva have all participated in the past.

    The pictures are certainly not meant to cause offense and to brand them as immoral clearly does not take into account the context of the magazine. Moreover, they do not contain any explicit imagery whatsoever. I train extremely hard to keep my body in shape and that’s what the article and the magazine is all about. If you read the interview, it only discusses my job as an athlete and what I have to do physically to be able to participate at the highest level of sport.

    It has been suggested by some members of the press (among others) that I was paid for the photo shoot. This is absolutely not the case. Neither I nor any of the other athletes were paid. I agreed to participate to help encourage young people, and especially girls, to exercise, stay in shape and be healthy.”

This was the right tone for a statement. Note that she doesn’t apologize, nor show contrition. She explains her thought process and intentions.

Radwanska could have been stronger in her rebuke of the morality police who insinuated she was a bad role model for young women, but given the outrage in Poland, she played it well.

Norwegian convicted over rape report issues Gulf caution

Interior designer appealing 'very harsh' sentence for illicit sex after she reported being raped by a co-worker.

The Norwegian interior designer convicted in Dubai of having illegal sex after she reported being raped is appealing her jail sentence and alerting Western women to the Islam-based legal system of the United Arab Emirates.

"I just want to get fair treatment," Marte Deborah Dalelv, 24, told the AFP news agency Friday. She called her 16-month sentence Tuesday — for extramarital sex, perjury and illegal alcohol consumption — "very harsh," saying she had appealed immediately. A hearing is set for Sept. 5.
Since the Norwegian government secured Dalelv's conditional release after she was charged in March, she has been living under the protection of the Norwegian Seamens' Center, a church in Dubai. But now that she has been sentenced, she told Norway's NRK News that she is officially wanted by the authorities, the BBC reported.

"I should have been imprisoned since Tuesday," she said. "But I have been told they are not searching for me."

She told AFP she was "very nervous and tense."

"I hope for the best, and I take one day at a time," she said by telephone. "I just have to get through this."

Nonetheless, Dalelv stressed she did not want to criticize the UAE government.

"They have their legal system," she said.

Under United Arab Emirates law, sex outside of marriage is illegal, and a rape conviction requires either a confession or four adult male witnesses to the attack. Similar convictions involving foreigners and Emirati women have occurred over the past several years, although the law on extramarital sex is not generally enforced for tourists or several hundred thousand Westerners and others living there on resident visas.

Marte Dalelv was sentenced to 16 months in jail for extramarital sex, perjury and consuming alcohol without a license. She was charged after reporting in March that a co-worker had raped her in a Dubai hotel where she was attending a business conference.

In an interview with the Associated Press, Dalelv said she wanted to "spread the word" about significant differences in the emirates' legal code compared with Western legal systems.

"After my sentence we thought, 'How can it get worse?'" she said from the church. She has been in regular contact with her family, who live outside of Oslo.

Explaining the March 6 attack at a hotel where she was attending a business conference, Dalelv said she awoke to find a co-worker raping her. She fled to the lobby to report the assault, and said the staff questioned whether she wanted to involve the police.

After questioning and a medical examination, she wound up being jailed for four days, charged and having her passport confiscated.

Dalelv said her attacker was sentenced to 13 months for extramarital sex and consuming alcohol without a license.

She also revealed that she was suspended by Qatar-based home-furnishings company The One after her arrest, according to media in Norway, where her case has dominated the news and sparked outrage.

She told NRK that her suspension letter cited "gross misconduct on the job in direct violation of the company's policy" and the firm wants to fire her.

In response, Norwegian colleges cut their ties with The One, which has recruited students from across Scandinavia to come work in the Gulf, The Local reported.

Dubai authorities have not responded or issued any public statements about her case.

Foreign Minister Espen Barth Eide said was trying to reach his counterpart in the Gulf nation, but communications were slowed by Ramadan and Friday, Islam's holy day.

Thursday, the Norwegian Department of Foreign Affairs said the verdict "flies in the face of our notion of justice" and was "highly problematic" in terms of Western human rights.

Westerners often misunderstand Dubai, a cosmopolitan Arabian Gulf city-state boasting the tallest building in the world and glamorous malls.

"It can seem modern here, and the comfort level is high," one Norwegian resident told NRK. "But it's a Muslim country, and folks must realize that before they travel."

Noting the influence of Sharia law, he added, "In reality, there are completely different rules that apply, completely shocking rules."

Legal battle brews over Detroit bankruptcy filing

The city's emergency manager says that pension and health care benefits are safe for at least the next six months.

The city's emergency manager says that pension and health care benefits are safe for at least the next six months.

DETROIT -- While Detroit emergency manager Kevyn Orr on Friday was offering short-term reassurances to thousands of city pensioners whose benefits are in jeopardy, his lawyers were waging a whirlwind legal battle over the constitutionality of the bankruptcy filing that could land both sides before a federal judge early next week.

On Friday, Michigan Attorney General Bill Schuette said he will appeal an Ingham County judge's ruling that Detroit's bankruptcy filing must be withdrawn because it violates the Michigan Constitution and state law.

However, the order from Ingham County Circuit Judge Rosemarie Aquilina ultimately could have little effect because the bankruptcy case already was filed in federal court, and federal law generally trumps state law. The city filed a motion requesting to include the state as a party in the bankruptcy code's provisions that put on hold all lawsuits against the city, a clear attempt to fight the Ingham County ruling by preventing the state from being sued in similar fashion. The city is asking U.S. District Judge Steven Rhodes to hold a hearing on Tuesday, or earlier, to decide this and other matters.

Friday's legal wrangling marks the beginning of what is expected to be a lengthy bankruptcy process that will involve more than 100,000 creditors, which include the Police and Fire Retirement System and the General Retirement System and its 20,000 retirees.

Orr provided retirees some temporary relief Friday, telling the Detroit Free Press that pension and health care benefits are safe for at least the next six months.

"We have made a decision that for the balance of this year, the next six months, we're not touching pension or health care," Orr said in an interview with Free Press editors and reporters. "So all pensioners, all employees you should understand: It's status quo for the next six months."

The announcement was welcome news to Thomas Berry of Livonia, who retired from the Detroit Police Department six years ago after more than 34 years on the job.

"I think that's huge," Berry said. "You've given me five months to evaluate. We're going to sock away more and maybe spend a lot less."

Orr has not yet specified the cuts to pensions he will seek through the bankruptcy process. He has proposed freezing pensions and moving workers to a 401(k)-style plan to help alleviate the pension systems' unfunded liabilities of $3.5 billion. He also wants to move retirees to Medicare or health care exchanges being set up through the Affordable Care Act.

Orr, alongside Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder, spent Friday in a series of public appearances and meetings explaining why it was necessary for Detroit to file for bankruptcy protection and how the lengthy process is likely to affect the city's residents, workers and retirees. The duo stressed bankruptcy was long overdue, and is the best path to resolve the city's liabilities of about $18.5 billion. They said services to residents will improve.

Orr said the lawsuits from pension boards and others didn't spur the filing. He said he was simply running out of time.

"We're dealing with 60 years of deferred maintenance in 18 months," Orr said during a news conference at Wayne State University, referring to the length of time in which he'll oversee the city.

Still, Orr singled out retirees and pension fund lawsuits filed in recent days to try to stop the state-approved bankruptcy filing, based on the argument that the state's constitution prevents the city or state from cutting protected pension benefits for retirees. Orr deflected criticism from union leaders and pension officials that he wasn't bargaining in good faith in recent weeks, citing lawsuits opponents filed.

"That's the very thing I had pleaded for not to happen," said Orr, standing next to Snyder. "Anyone who thinks I wasn't negotiating in good faith, when they're suing me, look at that context."

In a spate of orders out of Ingham County Circuit Court arising from three separate lawsuits, Aquilina said Snyder and Orr must take no further actions that threaten to diminish the pension benefits of city of Detroit retirees.

"I have some very serious concerns because there was this rush to bankruptcy court that didn't have to occur and shouldn't have occurred," Aquilina said.

Lawyers representing pensioners and two city pension funds got an emergency hearing with Aquilina on Thursday at which she said she planned to issue an order to block the bankruptcy filing. But lawyers and the judge learned Orr filed the bankruptcy petition in Detroit five minutes before the hearing began.

Aquilina said the Michigan Constitution prohibits actions that will lessen the pension benefits of public employees, including those in the city of Detroit. Snyder and Orr violated the constitution by going ahead with the bankruptcy filing, because they know reductions in those benefits will result, Aquilina said.

"We can't speculate what the bankruptcy court might order," said Assistant Attorney General Brian Devlin, representing the governor and other state defendants.

"It's a certainty, sir," Aquilina replied. "That's why you filed for bankruptcy."

Devlin said Snyder has to follow both the Michigan Constitution and the U.S. Constitution.

Report: Statistician, blogger Nate Silver to join ESPN

The Times is reporting Silver is taking his FiveThirtyEight franchise to ESPN.

The New York Times is reporting that Nate Silver is leaving The Times to join ESPN.

Silver, 35, is the statistician who gained notoriety for devising algorithms which accurately predicted the 2008 and 2012 presidential races. Silver is taking his FiveThirtyEight franchise to ESPN, where he will have a prominent role on the new Keith Olbermann show. Silver will also appear on ABC News during election cycles, according to Brian Stelter at the New York Times.

The Times brought in Silver and FiveThirtyEight in August 2010, but that contract is expiring, allowing ESPN to pick up the franchise and giving Silver an on-air platform in addition to his popular blog. There are reports that Silver may also have a role with ABC News during election years.

Silver's blog was a big traffic driver for The Times. New Republic reported in November that just before the 2012 presidential election FiveThirtyEight accounted for about 20% of the overall visits to the New York Times website.

Silver made his mark as a baseball statistician before joining The Times.

Indiana halts vanity license program

A lawsuit challenged the program after the state Bureau of Motor Vehicles rejected a police officer's request to renew his plate that read "0INK."

INDIANAPOLIS -- Indiana motorists who want a vanity plate will have to put their plans on idle until a lawsuit over an "0INK" plate is settled.

State Bureau of Motor Vehicles Commissioner Scott Waddell said late Friday that the personalized license plate program will be temporarily suspended, pending the outcome of the legal case.

Those who already have personalized plates can keep them, and even renew them. But anyone else who fancies a plate that tells the world "IMGR8" or "UR2CLOS" will just have to "W8."

Waddell, in a statement, blamed the suspension of the plate program on the legal challenge, saying it is necessary "in order to protect Hoosier taxpayers from the considerable expense that these types of lawsuits bring."

It's the latest in a series of legal complications for the BMV. Earlier this month, it had to agree to repay Hoosiers after overcharging for driver's licenses. Last month, after an extended legal battle, it agreed to restore the specialty plate for the Indiana Youth Group, which supports gay, bisexual, transgender and sexually questioning youth.

The lawsuit that prompted the BMV to park the vanity plate program was filed in Marion County Superior Court in May by the American Civil Liberties Union of Indiana on behalf of a Greenfield policeman, Rodney Vawter.

For three years, Vawter had a license plate that read "0INK" — with a zero in place of the O — but when he tried to renew it in March, it was rejected.

The lawsuit says Vawter considers the plate's verbal pig snort "an ironic statement of pride in his profession."

"Corporal Vawter selected the phrase 'oink' for his license plate because, as a police officer who has been called 'pig' by arrestees, he thought it was both humorous and also a label that he wears with some degree of pride," the lawsuit states.

The BMV this year told Vawter the plate was inappropriate, and cited a state statute that allows the BMV to refuse to issue a plate that officials believe carries "a connotation offensive to good taste and decency" or "would be misleading."

Ken Falk, legal director for the ACLU, said that statute should be deemed an unconstitutionally vague infringement on free speech. And he called Friday's suspension of the BMV program "curious."

"I don't understand that," Falk said. "This (suspension) in no way affects the lawsuit, so I'm not sure what the BMV is saving in expenses. The lawsuit that we have challenges not the PLP program; it challenges the standards by which plates are assessed and the fact that apparently the BMV is using standards" which are not spelled out in law or code.

Waddell, in his statement, said the personalized plate program is one of the BMV's oldest.

"Indiana is not the first state to see its PLP statutes challenged, as this has become a widespread topic of debate across the nation," he said.