the Hawaii delegates

Capitol Priorities

With Congress back in session, we ask Hawaii's delegates about their top priorities and how they expect to make headway in such partisan times and with the fledgling Trump administration.

Mazie Hirono (Time Magazine)

For the near term, I will continue focusing on protecting Hawaii from further harm from this administration, and working across party lines to advance important priorities for Hawaii and the country.

Immigrants and minorities have been under near continuous attack from this administration, and I will continue to fight to protect them from discriminatory treatment.

This has become an even more urgent priority following the administration’s decision to cancel the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program.

Tulsi Gabbard

For too long, our country’s leaders have refused to meet and negotiate directly with North Korea, and have held onto failed policies that resulted in a nuclear-armed North Korea with intercontinental ballistic missiles that put Hawaii and the mainland squarely within range. President Donald Trump needs to meet with Kim Jong Un to conduct direct negotiations without preconditions, in order to de-escalate and ultimately denuclearize the peninsula. Until then, we must also invest in cutting edge missile defense technology. We must always be willing to sit down with our adversaries, not just our friends, to pursue all avenues of peace.

Colleen Hanabusa

Congress has important work to accomplish during this 2017 fall session. As a member of the House Democratic Caucus, my priorities include issues important to the people of Hawaii’s 1st Congressional District and, of equal importance, resistance to Trump administration initiatives opposed by my constituency. In a broad sense, my top three priorities are: 1) People, 2) Budget, and 3) Defense.

Brian Schatz

We live in highly partisan times. But in the U.S. Senate Appropriations Committee, distrust and dislike for the other party is rare.

As a member of the committee, my No. 1 priority is to bring federal funds home, knowing that these dollars play a critical role in helping our state solve challenges and seize opportunities.