David Shapiro: 2 parties forge 2 paths to promoting minority rule
An acquaintance on the Republican right once told me, “I don’t care so much which party has the White House and Congress, as long as we have the Supreme Court.” Read more
David Shapiro
David Shapiro is a Honolulu Star-Advertiser columnist whose "Volcanic Ash" column appears every Sunday. Shapiro has covered Hawaii and national news for five decades as a reporter, editor and columnist for Honolulu daily newspapers.
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Latest Stories by David Shapiro
David Shapiro: Trust will remain broken when accountability lags
Randall Roth lit a flame 27 years ago that still burns brightly. Read more
David Shapiro: District 22 Senate drama is turning Shakespearean
Gov. Josh Green faces only bad options in making an interim appointment to fill a vacant West Oahu state Senate seat, and his plan to wait until after the Aug. 10 primary election is a fair solution — even if it bends the law. Read more
Green won’t fill Senate vacancy until after primary election
Sen. Maile Shimabukuro resigned from her District 22 seat at the end of the 2024 session, saying she wanted to spend more time with family and friends. Read more
David Shapiro: Supreme Court blesses sticky-fingered government
In Donald Trump’s Senate impeachment trial over the 2020 election insurrection, his attorneys argued it was more a matter for the judicial system because he’s “like any other citizen and can be tried in a court of law.” Read more
David Shapiro: Hawaii kids seek escape from grim climate future
It was poignant to see young activists and Gov. Josh Green in the governor’s ceremonial room settling a lawsuit brought by the teens asserting the state failed to safeguard their constitutional right to a clean and healthy environment. Read more
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David Shapiro: Kaneshiro and Mitsunaga maybe not yet in the clear
Ghosts of O.J. Simpson are appearing following the failed federal bribery prosecution of former Honolulu Prosecutor Keith Kaneshiro, businessman Dennis Mitsunaga and others. Read more
David Shapiro: A political roller coaster could crash Honolulu rail
Keeping politics out of rail was the rationale for the 2011 charter amendment taking direct control of Oahu rail from the mayor and City Council and giving it to the new Honolulu Authority for Rapid Transportation. Read more
David Shapiro: Waters seals the getaway in City Council pay heist
A proposed City Charter amendment to remake the salary process for Council members and city executives is the cherry atop Council Chair Tommy Waters’ scheme to bestow gluttonous 64% pay raises on his members despite public outrage. Read more
David Shapiro: Machine politics at work on Waianae Senate seat?
Shimabukuro resigned at the end of the 2024 session, saying she wouldn’t finish her term that ended in November in order to spend more time with family and friends and do volunteer work. Read more
David Shapiro: Randy Moore shows way for life of public service
If you’re looking for a model of a public-minded citizen, you couldn’t find a better one than Randy Moore. Read more
David Shapiro: How to clean corruption? One politician at a time
The spotlight is bright on Hawaii’s corrupt pay-to-play politics, but major reform was blocked by the recent Legislature and there’s little chance of widespread change in the 2024 election. Read more
David Shapiro: Time to make a 911 call on the city’s 911 overload
An old publisher of mine started an executive committee meeting with concerns about newspaper subscriber complaints of slow telephone response in the circulation department. Read more
David Shapiro: Discord drives the beat at the heart of HART
We had brief hope the bedeviled Honolulu Authority for Rapid Transportation might be on track to some measure of stability. Read more
David Shapiro: Mayor Bissen led from the rear in fighting Lahaina’s fire
David Shapiro: Green’s stamp on schools had better deliver for kids
For a state always proclaiming our keiki come first, we seldom show it when it comes to the quality of our public schools. Read more
David Shapiro: Waters pleases the pols; we’ll see about the voters
Elected leaders are best remembered by good works they leave behind. Read more
David Shapiro: What’s funny to the men maybe not so for women
I’ve been venting pointed opinions in this column for nearly 30 years, and somebody asked which I was most surprised I got away with. Read more
David Shapiro: Lawmakers’ rigged game keeps them cozy and paid
Hawaii’s state and city lawmakers may not be so sharp at taking care of public concerns such as affordable housing, gridlocked traffic and rundown infrastructure, but they’re wizards at taking care of themselves. Read more
David Shapiro: New House stadium plan deserves careful review
UH is no stranger to managing sports venues; it fought for the 10,300-seat SimpliFi Arena at Stan Sheriff Center and runs it capably, and also owns Hawaii’s premier baseball stadium Read more
David Shapiro: UH pays a heavy price for ego-tripping senators
The state Senate missed a chance to reset its increasingly toxic culture when it voted down Gov. Josh Green’s nomination of Alapaki Nahale-a to the University of Hawaii Board of Regents, where he served as interim chair. Read more
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