Political veteran hopes to retain seat
Sen. Laura Thielen draws on years of government experience as she faces first-time candidate and retired chaplain Robert Nagamine running in District 25, which stretches from Kailua through Waimanalo to Hawaii Kai, in the Nov. 8 general election.
“I want to give people a choice,” Nagamine, the Republican nominee, said in an interview. “I feel like there are some things that need taking care of, like the homeless situation, which is not improving. … I think I have to step in. My background is in helping families.”
While Thielen, a Democrat, has been a senator for only one term, she has held high-profile jobs as director of the state Department of Land and Natural Resources and director of the state Office of Planning. She also has served as a member of the state Board of Education.
Her decision to run for Senate was propelled in part by her concern over land use decisions. She has pushed to preserve farmland, including allocating state funds to purchase parcels from Dole Food Co. in Central Oahu.
“These ag lands are being marketed for development,” she said. “The only way to keep them in long-term agricultural use and grow our agricultural sector is to get them into the state inventory and get them out to long-term leases for farmers.”
She wants to “tighten up our land use laws to stop luxury residential development on agricultural lands.”
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Nagamine, 63, was raised in Kalihi but has lived in Kailua for years. His son and daughter graduated from Kalaheo High School. He retired in 2011 as a lieutenant colonel after 33 years in the military, serving as a chaplain in the Army and the Hawaii Air National Guard. He also spent three years on active duty with the U.S. Air Force.
He maintains that his wide-ranging community service gives him a good base for stepping up as a legislator. He has taught elementary school children and counseled youth, singles, couples and families. He coordinated respite support for elderly caregivers and served as a pastor at First Southern Baptist Church at Pearl Harbor.
Tackling homelessness, he says, requires sustained focus and efforts targeted at individual needs.
“I’m just saying, go after the roots of them all,” Nagamine said. “Affordable housing is just one part of it. Treat the mentally ill. Treat the drug addicts. Treat the vets. I’m trying to see who can round up as much support to work together to wrap our hands around it and fix it.
“If we do nothing, it’s going to stay the same,” he added. “We have to draw our attention to the problems that we have, like homelessness, crime and curbing wasteful government spending.”
He advocates investing in job creation on neighbor islands and encouraging people to move there.
“Housing would be less expensive, instead of trying to cram people into one island,” he said.
Thielen, 55, and her husband brought up their daughters in Kailua, and moved to Waimanalo several years ago, where they have a small farm business. She has served as president of Hawaii Women Lawyers and is a member of the Women’s Legislative Caucus.
She said the district, which wraps around the eastern tip of the island, is rich in cultural and recreational treasures that residents work hard to protect. But its beaches are a magnet for vacationers, and conflicts are cropping up more with competing interests, and home prices pushed up by short-term visitors and offshore investors, she said.
She wants the city and state to focus more on housing geared toward the needs of local people, with micro-units, “Housing First” for the homeless, and limits on vacation rentals.
Both candidates are wary of proposed tax increases.
Thielen voted against the governor’s proposal to fund state road projects by raising gasoline and vehicle weight taxes, saying the state Transportation Department wasn’t using federal funds it already had.
“If they come back with the same proposal, I would oppose it,” she said. “But I am willing to listen if the department is serious about restructuring their internal operations so that they can manage these contracts and get the projects done.”
As for rail, she voted against the general excise tax extension two years ago, and opposes it again because she thinks the city has not shown it can manage funds for the rail contract. “They have not been transparent about the subcontracts and the cost overruns.”
Nagamine said he would vote against both transportation-related tax proposals.
“My answer is no to that unless there is a strong, compelling argument to say otherwise,” he said. “We have enough money to take care of what we need to if we use it wisely.”
13 responses to “Political veteran hopes to retain seat”
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Laura is nothing like her mom. She should be shown the door without a doubt.
Thielen is a liar she’s out for herself and her own interest. Shes got to go . Give that republican a chance after all, thielen was once a republican but since moved on being a democrat . All dems does not like her.
When was she a republican? Certainly not when she was running for Senator. I remember her mother saying she was a democrat decades ago. As for other democrats not liking her, I doubt that is true. Democrats are like herding cats so yes some democrats don’t like her but others do. As a constituent, I like her. She had an exercise during the session of being a representative where she asks how you would vote on various issues. Not as easy as it might seem.
Your endorsement surely demonstrates her need to be shown the door.
Not surprised you would say something so empty of value. Thanks for the verification.
Senator Thielen represents the good people of her district with integrity and does not take money from PAC’s. She cares deeply about the Aina and is a great role model.
Nagamine looks like an awesome option.
Why? Actually sounds more like a democrat with the pushing for expansion of governmental services?
Nagamine gets my vote. Send all the career politicians home. Give this guy a chance. Seems to have a solid background.
Seems… I’m going with Thielen.
Sorry, why change when your existing rep. is good? Certainly not going to change to a retired Chaplin. Can only assume that he is motivated, just like the rusty Hood, by same sex marriage. Sorry, I don’t need government telling me how to run my life.
So Thielen wants to force the market by having the state buy Ag land that is struggling to make a profit?! Ok, despite the Dems fears, I guess she has completely flipped from her previous career as a Republican staffer. Just like the other Thielen – Republican in name but Democrat at heart…
What has Thielen really done? Being a Director at DLNR and at Office of Planning and being on the board of DOE don’t seem to be credentials that anyone should be proud of. A Director is an appointed position and does not demonstrate hard work and knowledge of the workings in the department. Being a past board member of DOE means that she has done nothing to improve the DOE.