Friday, January 02, 2009
Gap between Lingle and Obama remains
by Larry Geller
I was wondering whether Governor Lingle met up with Obama aide Valerie Jarrett during his vacation, as she said she would. The “tiki lounge détente” with Obama didn’t happen either, or most likely we’d have heard about it. [New York Times, Obama’s Vacation: A Test for Hawaii’s Governor?, 12/23/2008]
Lingle was widely criticized for her remark while away from Hawaii stumping for McCain in October:
At a rally in Nevada, Lingle said she had never met Obama and that most Hawai'i residents had not heard of him until he ran for president. She noted humorously that he visited on vacation. [Honolulu Advertiser, 10/18/2008]
Lingle famously was the only governor in the entire country to miss the governor’s conference with Obama in Washington, DC. (New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson had just been appointed Commerce Secretary).
Will this hurt Hawaii at all? Or just further tarnish Lingle’s reputation?
Where is Bob Awana when she needs him?
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