We’ll Take Our “Friends” Over Lingle’s “Likes”

Carroll: An open, friendly two-way conversation.

The Lingle campaign was crowing this morning about its Social Media campaign and the fact that they have over 1000 “likes” from “Hawaii and on the mainland.” That’s nice, but hardly indicates that their message of “Making the Issues the Heart of the Matter,” is catching on fire. Her competitor in the Republican primary, John Carroll, also has well over 1000 “Friends” on Facebook. This August we’ll see whether John’s “Friends” out-vote Linda’s “Likes.”

There are some interesting differences between how the two candidates present themselves on social media:

1. Facts vs Fluff. When John Carroll discusses how to fix Hawaii’s economy, he presents a well thought-out white paper document on why we need to get rid of the Jones Act, the single biggest impediment to growing Hawaii’s economy. Lingle makes a video and says her solution is to “restore

Lingle: If you "like" me you will fill out and submit this form.

confidence in government.” That’s it? What does that even mean?

2. John welcomes dialog. Lingle says that “Issues are the Heart of the Matter,” but refuses to debate. You can write comments and engage the candidate on John Carroll’s Facebook Pages and Website. On Lingle’s it is only she who speaks…you get to listen.

3. People first, or ME first? John’s approach is open, friendly and personal. Lingle, like any long-time bureaucrat, insists that you fill out a long boring form. The internet is supposed to be interactive not indoctrination. The first thing Lingle offers you is a pledge to vote for her, no matter what…shouldn’t we discuss the issues first?  Aren’t they the “Heart of the Matter?”

The difference is truly striking: John proposes a conversation to find out what you want; Lingle jumps right into “how she can USE you,” to get what she wants.

If Lingle truly believes that issues matter, she should publicly debate John Carroll and defend her positions. Instead she chooses to hide behind a one-way stream of one-sided messaging, bought and paid for primarily by mainland special interests.

If you want to respresent Hawaii’s people, Linda, you need to talk with them, not at them…or, they might stop “liking” you.

Obama Care Attacks Separation of Church and State

Obama administration declares the Church and the Constitution no longer relevant to modern society in one fell swoop.

By John S. Carroll, Candidate for the U.S. Senate

President Obama has repaid the Catholic Church for its support of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act by seeking to breach the Constitutionally protected separation of church and state. His Health and Human Service Department effectively denied conscience protections to church-run schools, hospitals and social service agencies, ruling that they must provide free contraception to employees, in violation of church teaching.

As a staunch constitutionalist, a Catholic and a believer in pro-life; this offends me on three levels. This is nothing less than an affront to American democracy and an assault on the U.S. Constitution. My opponent in the Hawaii’s Republican Primary, Ex-Governor Lingle, shares none of my three beliefs and will let this issue pass in the “spirit of bi-partisan placation.” This is just one reason she should not be elected to represent Hawaii’s Republicans as their Senatorial candidate.

This can and should be Obama’s undoing. I sincerely hope that the Church and the Catholic Health Association have learned their lesson. And that lesson is that people who espouse socialist “reforms” cannot be trusted. Their promise that no abortion funding was contained in Obama Care was as hollow as their oath to uphold the United States Constitution. The Catholic Church as well as all Christian denominations are now in a fight to protect their very existence. Make no mistake about it, this attempt to force secular authority on them is just the beginning.

The separation of church and state is not a new concept. English philosopher John Locke argued that government lacked authority in the realm of individual conscience. Thomas Jefferson, an admirer of Locke’s ideas wrote:

Believing with you that religion is a matter which lies solely between Man & his God, that he owes account to none other for his faith or his worship, that the legitimate powers of government reach actions only, & not opinions, I contemplate with sovereign reverence that act of the whole American people which declared that their legislature should “make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof”, thus building a wall of separation between Church & State.

These concepts were codified into the U.S. Constitution. I believe that this document is the sacred foundation of our individual liberties and the basis for our country’s greatness, and is not subject to contemporary revisionists like Barack Obama.

Whomever is elected to serve Hawaii in the U.S. Senate will be in a fight to protect our Constitution. Lingle will compromise; I will not.

Series of Bad Bills Assault the U.S. Constitution

Protecting the U.S. Constitution is the primary responsibility of every elected official.

By John S. Carroll

Just this week two bills came under withering public criticism. SOPA (Stop Online Piracy Act,) PIPA (Protect IP Act) were withdrawn after a highly publicized one-day Internet protest that featured huge Web enterprises like Wikipedia, Google, ReadIt and WordPress blacking out their sites and instructing their visitors to protest the bills to their elected officials. The bills, while purporting to protect intellectual property and attack the online piracy of things like music and movies also included language that made it possible for the government to unilaterally censor or shut down any Web operations it wanted. This blatant infringement of free speech, and affront to the U.S. Constitution was tucked into the small print. Was this just sloppy legislation, or something more pernicious…a deliberate assault on our civil liberties?

Less that a month ago, another bill with even more potential constitutional damage slipped through. The NDAA (National Defense Authorization Act) was signed into law on New Year’s Eve by President Obama, after he had promised to veto it. According to the ACLU (American Civil Liberties Union) this gives the U.S. President military authority to arrest and hold anyone, anywhere, for an unlimited amount of time without charges or due process. This includes American citizens on American soil in direct violation of the 5^th and 6^th Amendments of the Bill of Rights.

All four of Hawaii’s Washington contingent voted in favor of this bill!

Terrorism has replaced Communism as the bogeyman used to spook the American public into yielding their constitutional rights to what could easily become a police state run under martial law. President Obama knew this bill was flawed when he signed it. He felt compelled to add an addendum or “clarification” that said these new powers would never be used against American citizens. His promise, unfortunately, is not binding on future administrations. This law must be fixed.

I strongly believe that defense of the U.S. Constitution is the primary responsibility of every elected official, and that the passage of laws that attack the foundation of our civil liberties, whether by negligence or design, borders on disastrous irresponsibility. SOPA and PIPA, under the guise of protecting our entertainment industry, laid the groundwork for political suppression. NDAA, largely a procurement authorization, contains its own toxic time bomb whose worse case would result in American gulags, or North Korean-style political re-education camps.

Our constitution is America’s defining achievement. It is what has allowed the United States to attain greatness and has established our nation as the protector of human civil liberties. As your next U.S. Senator, I promise you that protecting the U.S. Constitution, and fending off these heinous attempts to chip away at the very backbone of the American spirit will be my unwavering priority.

John Activates Facebook Friends

Carroll calls for new "Friends," "Followers," "Likes," and "Shares."

John Carroll’s personal Facebook page will be loaned to his Senatorial Campaign. In addition to the Carroll “page” displayed on this site, campaign information and events will be promoted through John’s large personal Facebook account which now boasts over 1000 friends.  John will also be growing his new Twitter account as his campaign expands its use of social media to talk directly to Hawaii’s voters.

“Friend” john at: http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100000271431330

Jonesing For Economic Recovery

With Hawaii hosting APEC, talk about the value of free trade among Pacific nations has hit our local media. There is, however, no mention of the restrictive trade laws, like the Jones Act, that severely limit international shipping.

Foreign-flagged vessels cannot freely engage in international commerce in Hawaii, and our ability to export and the exorbitant costs of our imports are controlled by a tightly held local company.

If Horizon fails, there will be only Matson and its parent company, Alexander & Baldwin, holding a nearly total monopoly. Pasha will still be operating on its limited basis.

The cost of living in Hawaii is much higher than anywhere else in the United States. Because of our isolation and unique dependency on shipping that is controlled by a monopoly, the cost of living will only get worse.

Hawaii’s political elite can talk all they want about free trade, but as long as they take campaign contributions from those that control it now, there won’t be any competition any time soon.

Carroll Releases White Paper on Economic Fixes for Hawaii

Honolulu, November 12, 2011 – In his just-released white paper report entitled HAWAII’S POTENTIAL FOR OPEN PORTS AND FREE TRADE IN HAWAII, Adopting Singapore’s Economic Model, John Carroll, a candidate for the U.S. Senate, lays out a bold plan for removing shipping restrictions that stifle free trade for Hawaii.

Hawaii has long suffered from restrictive and antiquated maritime laws that limit shipping and prevent foreign flagged vessels from competing. This lack of competitive shipping has curtailed the development of our agricultural industries as well as having driven up the cost of living for every Hawaii resident.

Carroll says the removal of specific laws, like the Jones Act and ensuring compliance with the Commerce Clause are critical if Hawaii is going to enjoy economic prosperity.

“If what is offered here becomes reality, I will rest in peace knowing that a wonderful future will be available for all Hawaii’s children to come including my eight great grandchildren. I have worked for over forty years to get these onerous restrictions eliminated, “ said Carroll.

Carroll would also like to thanks those that helped him prepare this white paper report: Keith Rollman, Cormick Barnes, Ingrid Johnson, Sierra Payne and Moe Sy and their mentor Ken Schoolland for their contributions and support.

READ THE FULL WHITE PAPER REPORT:

Attachment: (PDF) HAWAII’S POTENTIAL FOR OPEN PORTS AND FREE TRADE, Adopting Singapore’s Economic Mode

Why it’s not OK to be a RINO.

BY JOHN CARROLL - There is a recent article by Josh Lederman in “The Hill” entitled “Former Gov. Lingle not running from RINO tag.”  In it, Mr. Lederman states, “For most Republican politicians, there is no smear more loathed, more insulting or more politically perilous than to be called a RINO — a Republican in Name Only. Not for Linda Lingle.”  He goes on to quote Lingle, “I’ve been called a RINO before, which I don’t mind.”

I disagree with Lingle’s cavalier dismissal of the label.  “RINO” implies fraud.

Does Linda Lingle see the Republican Party in Hawaii as something to be used as a base of operations from which to get elected rather than as a movement with cherished ideals to nurture and lead? The fact that she tolerates the term RINO is insulting to those of us who still think that the Republican Party, the party of Ronald Reagan, still stands for something, something considerably more important than personal political ambition.

While compromise and moderation has its place, so does standing up for what you truly believe in.  Lingle offers a grey, lukewarm set of principles that are designed to placate and absorb a vast, indifferent mass of voters.  She offers little for those who passionately believe in traditional conservative values and the core principles of our party platform.

I don’t need a focus group or a survey to tell me what I should say.  I don’t measure every word for its possible negative impact on marginal voters or contributor backlash.  I say what I believe.

1. My contributions from Alexander & Baldwin and Matson (of which I have none) don’t dissuade me from taking action against the archaic, protectionist Jones Act that drives up the cost of living for every family in Hawaii in order to profit a select few.

2. I’m not concerned about being called a Christian because I believe in the right to life.  The Bill of Rights guarantees all of us “life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness,” and it does not put an age limit on it one way or the other.

3. I believe that the failure to follow settled environmental law left the Superferry vulnerable to its opponents.  The Lingle administration was just plain inept.  I would have followed the letter of the law and we would still have the Superferry.

4. I believe we are overtaxed in Hawaii, and if I had been governor, would not have allowed the largest tax increase in memory to slip through while I looked the other way,

5. I think that the Akaka Bill is based on the restoration of the concept of division by race that our constitution and decades of the civil rights movement have fought to abolish.  Individual Hawaiian’s would be better served by receiving their birthright homestead lands in fee and not doled out by a self-serving bureaucracy.

Those are five big differences between me and Linda Lingle.  They’re also five big differences between Linda Lingle and most real Republicans.

Lingle: “I’ve been called a RINO before…I don’t mind.”

Next year’s Republican  primary will not be a preemptory coronation of Linda Lingle in her quest for the U.S. Senate.  It should be a determination by Republicans as to what they really stand for, what they’re willing to fight for and what principles they wish to have represented in Washington, D.C. during the ongoing debate on our nation’s future.

A Republican In Name Only isn’t going to cut it.

Carroll Team Seeks ‘Jones Act’ Solutions

John Carroll Welcomes Lingle to GOP Senate Primary in Hawaii

John Carroll welcomed today’s announcement by Linda Lingle that she will be running for the U.S. Senate in Hawaii’s Rebulican primary next year.

Carroll, who announced his candidacy last month, said, “I look forward to debating Linda on the issues that are important to Hawaii’s Republicans.”

An issue like the Akaka Bill, which many consider divisive and even “racist,” was actively promoted by Lingle. Another issue mentioned by Carroll’s campaign included the Jones Act, an archaic set of restrictive Federal shipping laws that raise Hawaii’s cost of living.

“Lingle had eight years, as our governor, to fight this unfair law that costs Hawaii’s people millions, and chose to do nothing.” said Carroll.

Hawaii’s Republicans have recently undergone internal turmoil, that some attribute to a power struggle between traditional conservative members and those more interested in the election of individual candidates regardless of any real ideological values. This primary campaign could become, according to Carroll, a very public debate over the core beliefs of Hawaii’s Republican Party.

“This primary will be about what we stand for,” added Carroll. “We call on Linda to debate us on the issues as often as possible, the people of Hawaii deserve to know what they are voting on.”

Carroll Mingles At Senior Fair

Thousands attended this weekends Senior Fair at Blaisdell Center. John tried to meet them all!

John S. Carroll Declares His Candidacy for the United States Senate from Hawaii

John Carroll, with friends and supporters, announces his run for the U.S. Senate

SELECTED NEWS COVERAGE:

Honolulu Star Advertiser, Hawaii News Now, KITV, KHON, Hawaii Independent, The Washington Examiner, The State Column, The Dallas News, Big Island News Center, Associated Press, Civil Beat

HONOLULU, September 21, 2011 – The following statement was released by candidate John S. Carroll during his official declaration to run for the U.S. Senate from the State of Hawaii at the Hawaii Republican Party Headquarters in Honolulu.

Our purpose here today is to announce my candidacy to represent the State of Hawaii in the United States Senate. I thank each of my friends here and the members of the press for coming and listening.

I particularly want to thank Keith Rollman for accepting the daunting task of winning this election to the UNITED STATES SENATE!!!

I wish to thank Jonah Kaauwai for allowing us to be here at Republican Party Headquarters. Jonah has done a good job in defining our Party’s principles and values. His ability to get a resolution passed at the convention, to oppose the Akaka Bill, is both commendable and remarkable.

We are not going to run as “Not just another pretty face!!!” I rejected that for several reasons. Also, I assure you that I am not seeking a long career as a professional politician.

Hawaii should have the most solvent, secure and productive economy of any state in the union. We should be exporting our incredibly delicious fruits, pristine cattle, and our unique taro to world wide markets. We have developed, local technological products which should be marketed worldwide? But, do we? No!!! Why not? Because the cost of agricultural and livestock production is prohibitive because of the stranglehold that Federal shipping restrictions have on our State, it is not allowed for foreign or non-qualified ships to come here and then proceed to another US State.

These restrictions on shipping not only limit our ability to export, but drive the daily cost of living up for every resident of Hawaii.

In 1970 I introduced House Resolution 0014, an Anti Jones Act measure. Since that time the issue has been brought up briefly but generally this federally imposed restriction is not mentioned, made an issue even in Pacific Business News, whose editors “can’t decide whether or not it is bad for Hawaii”.

Homelessness, lack of other than service jobs, a State that depends on Federal tax dollars for survival is where we are. I have eight great grandchildren whom I will not abandon because it is “just too much for me to take on”.

I know what needs to be done to make our State number one. We have the people with the talent, the intelligence, the drive to achieve real success in life, but in Hawaii today, the opportunity is missing. As our Party platform recites, “EQUAL OPPORTUNITY” should be afforded to each of us.

My election will restore balance to our congressional representation. Mine will be a loud and strong voice for a large segment of our population which has been marginalized for far too long.

As I ride my bike around this island, along East Loch at Pearl Harbor, under the Freeway by the Airport, along the Mokuleia shore down to Laie, there are homeless children living in tents and cars and in whatever shelter they can find. I intend to insure that we build a solid base for Hawaii’s businesses and full employment.

No candidate is addressing these root problems with any proposal that makes any sense to me.

Our Country faces very similar problems and the only leaders I observe making anything like common sense, fiscally responsible comments are the US House Republicans. We need the US Senate to be doing what the House is doing. I will gladly join that fight.

SO, If you believe, as I do, that our country is on the wrong path, that we need to return to the values that made our country great, join me in my campaign to restore our economy, our public education system and national pride and security.

Fund raising has always been something I hated doing. I know now that I must. I am asking today that each person who agrees with what I intend to do, the values I hold to dig down deep, buy a stamp and an envelope and send us ONE DOLLAR and a commitment to get five other citizens to vote with you. I find it obscene that we have children living in cars and shacks while millions are spent touting the virtues of campaigners.

We intend to raise the money necessary to win this campaign. Your campaign contributions and your tax dollars will be precious to me.

I have the experience needed to do this job and bring a consistent set of conservative values that I share with so many of Hawaii’s people. I want fee simple ownership of Hawaiian Homes for the qualified lessees and I want every qualified Hawaiian to be given his parcel in fee. I intend to confer with Senator Akaka, a truly fine person, to make this happen. We are the only State that does not allow fee ownership of homestead lands.

If you believe, as I do, that Hawaii’s cost of living, lack of fairness for our Kanaka Maoli and shortage of good jobs continues to plague our Island home, join me in addressing these issues with the power of government cooperation, tax relief and our indomitable entrepreneurial spirit.

God Bless each of us, our Beautiful State and our Great Nation.

Mahalo Me Ke Aloha Pumehana