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Lingle vs Higa:Catfight!

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  • Lingle vs Higa:Catfight!

    You knew that when Gov. Lingle called Marion Higa's audit of the state Budget and Finance Dept. "dowright shoddy," that the report was going to be bad. And surely enough,....

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    $1 billion in state funds funneled into risky student loan securities, which has lost $254 million in value when the market went belly-up.

    As if that wasn't bad enough, the state auditor is claiming that this whole investment scheme violated state law.

    Even in the best of times with no fiscal crisis and furlough days, $254 million is not chump change. IMNSHO, there needs to be an investigation into this, with prosecution for anyone found guilty of breaking the law. And because the administration's conduct is being called into question, the AG's office can't be the one to conduct the investigation. Looks like a special investigator/prosecutor may have to be appointed by the legislature to get to the bottom of this.

    Stay tuned.
    This post may contain an opinion that may conflict with your opinion. Do not take it personal. Polite discussion of difference of opinion is welcome.

  • #2
    Re: Lingle vs Higa:Catfight!

    My guess would be that if there were laws broken it's due to lazy/incompetent gov employees, not any malicious/fraudulent actions. But yes, those responsible certainly need to be held accountable.
    What can be asserted without proof can be dismissed without proof. – Christopher Hitchens

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    • #3
      Re: Lingle vs Higa:Catfight!

      Originally posted by StinkyTheGrump View Post
      My guess would be that if there were laws broken it's due to lazy/incompetent gov employees, not any malicious/fraudulent actions. But yes, those responsible certainly need to be held accountable.
      Lazy? No. Incompetent? Well, I guess at some level. Then again, there are many State economists that I deem wholly incompetent when it comes to reporting the true state of the economy, locally nationally and worldwide.

      Even though the economists the State is using weren't smart enough to see the recession/depression coming in late 2007/mid 2008, they're still using these clowns to make future analysis. Now that's stupid, if not incompetent.

      This is the result of politics and the inner drive that pushes politicians to accomplish as much as they can during their terms and leave the crap for the next administrations to handle. I know, it stinks, because it's not so much about serving the people, but themselves and their own legacy.

      It worked for Frank Fasi, but it certainly caved in on Harris. Lingle may have gotten away with it, but the economy had other things in store. Rod Tam is just plain stupid.

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      • #4
        Re: Lingle vs Higa:Catfight!

        Dear Bob - FINALLY something we can agree on!!! Rod Tam IS Stupid.
        "Democracy is the only system that persists in asking the powers that be whether they are the powers that ought to be."
        – Sydney J. Harris

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        • #5
          Re: Lingle vs Higa:Catfight!

          Originally posted by StinkyTheGrump View Post
          My guess would be that if there were laws broken it's due to lazy/incompetent gov employees, not any malicious/fraudulent actions.
          I don't think this is a matter of laziness. This is a matter of state law being broken, or at the very least, being flouted. As the auditor report states, the investments have to have maturity dates of 5 years or less from the time they were purchased. As we can now see, that law exists for a very good reason!

          One thing that has me curious. You were pretty adamant about Rod Tam going to prison for misuse of city council discretionary funds. Now, don't get me wrong. I think Tam deserves far more in the way of punishment than the censure he's getting. And AFAIAC, the sooner he is out of politics, the better.

          But with all that said, how much money did he misuse in meals not related to council business? I've seen estimates as high as $22,000. In the case of the Budget/Finance Dept.'s utilization of state funds, we're talking about a billion dollars that were questionably invested.

          Now if Tam's deserves to go to prison for his abuse of city council discretionary funds going into the tens of thousands, does the party(s) responsible for a billion dollars of taxpayer money being tied up in an illiquidable status deserve any less? Remember, this happened because state laws that have been in place weren't followed.

          Yeah, I know. A local politician hosting meals to his family/friends and trying to pass it off as "city business" is easy to comprehend and translates well into editorial cartoon ridicule. But the state's foray into auction-rate securities that were riskier than what the law allows has been far, FAR more damaging to the people of Hawaii.
          This post may contain an opinion that may conflict with your opinion. Do not take it personal. Polite discussion of difference of opinion is welcome.

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          • #6
            Re: Lingle vs Higa:Catfight!

            Originally posted by Bobinator View Post
            there are many State economists that I deem wholly incompetent when it comes to reporting the true state of the economy, locally nationally and worldwide.
            Names would be good, Bob — especially if you’re going to make a scathing indictment like this. I know the sum of your knowledge has been extracted from “Natural News” and wnd.com, but indulge me for a second.

            Even though the economists the State is using weren't smart enough to see the recession/depression coming in late 2007/mid 2008, they're still using these clowns to make future analysis. Now that's stupid, if not incompetent.
            This is an absurd statement, Bob. I agree with a lot of the stuff you post, but it’s negated when you post this garbage. There are only few dozen economists in the WORLD who predicted the recession, and most of those people are internationally-acclaimed consultants, best-selling authors, and others who would laugh in your face if you asked them to even consider settling in to a full-time position in the banana republic we call Hawai‘i. Besides, our state economists are supposed to focus on state variables (tourism, real-estate, etc.) rather than national variables (liquidity in U.S. banking system, etc.) for which they are supposed to defer to national experts.

            We can’t be so fixated on our desire to preserve the rights of ordinary Americans.

            — U.S. President Bill Clinton
            USA TODAY, page 2A
            11 March 1993

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            • #7
              Re: Lingle vs Higa:Catfight!

              The Star Bulletin has issued an editorial, calling for "a legal and financial evaluation of the dispute far away from the politics of Hawaii." And notice I put "legal" in boldface. Contrary to what some people are claiming, this isn't a mere accounting goof/oversight. An independent and authoratative legal assessment needs to be consulted here in order to determine if any laws were broken. And if there were, then the guilty parties had better be ready for the consequences.

              I'm all in favor of a independent legal and financial investigation of the matter. But will the da' Governor's men and women be? Haha! We'll see.
              Last edited by Frankie's Market; March 20, 2010, 10:48 AM.
              This post may contain an opinion that may conflict with your opinion. Do not take it personal. Polite discussion of difference of opinion is welcome.

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              • #8
                Re: Lingle vs Higa:Catfight!

                Originally posted by TuNnL View Post
                Names would be good, Bob — especially if you’re going to make a scathing indictment like this. I know the sum of your knowledge has been extracted from “Natural News” and wnd.com, but indulge me for a second.

                This is an absurd statement, Bob. I agree with a lot of the stuff you post, but it’s negated when you post this garbage. There are only few dozen economists in the WORLD who predicted the recession, and most of those people are internationally-acclaimed consultants, best-selling authors, and others who would laugh in your face if you asked them to even consider settling in to a full-time position in the banana republic we call Hawai‘i. Besides, our state economists are supposed to focus on state variables (tourism, real-estate, etc.) rather than national variables (liquidity in U.S. banking system, etc.) for which they are supposed to defer to national experts.
                I don't think names of local economists are important. I think we more or less no who they are, or at can at least make general reference. But for your sake, his last name starts with a "B". I distinctly recall an article in the Advertiser in December 2007 in which he stated the economy is strong, there will be a small speed bump, but he otherwise forecasts continued economic growth. In the meantime, economists with proven track records were warning us of the greatest collapse in history, and things started happening as they said it would.

                Most economists can only state what did happen, rather than say what will happen because of this and that.

                TunNL, please explain to me why it's absurd to state facts. Their track records are only a little better than Ben Bernanke's. Bernanke has never been right since he became Fed Chairman. 2 Months before the Fannie Mae Freddie Mac collapse, he said the housing market was sound and that everything was fine. Not much difference than our local economists track records.

                Listen to guys like Peter Schiff, Marc Faber, Jim Rogers and Gerald Celente. They're all on youtube, and their forecasts are all dated for the world to see. You may ridicule my sources, but more than likely you'll just end up with pie in your face, because they have amazing track records. I don't rely on just one source for my news like most people.

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                • #9
                  Re: Lingle vs Higa:Catfight!

                  Which one suggested a lie detector test? Why stop there and go on to waterboarding to make Dick Cheney proud?

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