Donna Mercado Kim Fakes Environmentalism

After a dismal performance in the July 23 KITV debate where CD1 hopeful, Donna Mercado Kim, told us that the solution to improving the economy is to remove regulations (a statement that made both environmentalists and labor supporters cringe) and a stunningly uninformed interview with the Hawaii Independent, Kim must have felt she needed to improve her image.

What better way than to tell us all about how environmental she is!

Never mind that environmental organizations endorsed Mark Takai instead.  Apparently that was some oversight because they didn’t realize what a terrific environmentalist Donna is.  That was the bad ol’ Donna Kim from the past who  was relentlessly anti-environment during her state legislature tenure.  Now she’s changed her spots!   She shows us this in what looks like an…er…artificially enhanced ad.

The Ad:
First we get a photo of what looks to be the garbage that has washed up on Kanapou Bay on Kahoolawe which catches all the marine debris from the Pacific Ocean.

Kanapou Bay is known as a “catcher’s mitt” for marine debris from the Pacific Ocean – See more at: http://mauiweekly.com/page/content.detail/id/510112/Kaho-olawe-Cleanup-Reveals-the-Truth-About-Trash.html?nav=13#sthash.SPt9AJJv.dpuf
Kanapou Bay is known as a “catcher’s mitt” for marine debris from the Pacific Ocean – See more at: http://mauiweekly.com/page/content.detail/id/510112/Kaho-olawe-Cleanup-Reveals-the-Truth-About-Trash.html?nav=13#sthash.SPt9AJJv.dpuf
Kanapou Bay is known as a “catcher’s mitt” for marine debris from the Pacific Ocean – See more at: http://mauiweekly.com/page/content.detail/id/510112/Kaho-olawe-Cleanup-Reveals-the-Truth-About-Trash.html?nav=13#sthash.SPt9AJJv.dpuf

Then shots that look like her crew has strewn trash in the ocean. Then we cut to Donna picking up clear plastic bags which just serendipitously appear in the nearshore waters to surround her.  She tells us she supported the plastic bag ban.

Did Kim support the plastic bag ban?

SB3111 was introduced by Gabbard, Ihara, Ruderman and Shimabukuro.  Kim was not listed as sponsoring this bill.  It was passed on first reading by a pro forma vote.

Then it went to the committees on Energy and Environment headed by two of the introducers – so no problem there.  It also went to Commerce and Consumer Protection headed by Roz Baker and Brian Tanaguchi.  Looks like Roz Baker may have killed it despite Maui County’s successful plastic bag ban working well for several years.

SB3111 was re-referred to these committees and to Ways and Means (headed by David Ige and Michelle Kidani) where it died.

At this time, Donna Mercado Kim was president of the state senate and despite her powerful position,  she couldn’t  get this bill (that she is supposedly so passionate about) out of committees.  Really?

Given the dismal death of the bill, one has to have doubts about her enthusiasm for getting the plastic bag ban bill passed.

Support candidates endorsed by environmental organizations

The average voter is not going to be aware that this ad is most likely faked and does not represent Donna Mercado Kim’s record on the environment.  We can only hope that enough voters look at who League of Conservation Voters has endorsed and who the Sierra Club has endorsed, if environmental records are important to them.

The League doesn’t have any endorsed candidates in the two Hawaii House races but they did endorse Mike Honda who in turn endorsed Mark Takai.

The Sierra Club endorsed Mark Takai.

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