Angus McKelvey, State Senate Dist 6 candidate, now State Senate. , w Jason Schwartz, – 6 22 22
Summary & Timestamped Full Transcript below…
Summary
In this in-depth interview, Jason Schwartz hosts Angus McKelvey, a seasoned Hawaii state representative running for the state senate, to discuss his political journey, priorities, and vision for Maui and the broader Hawaii community. McKelvey, who has served since 2006 in the House representing West Maui, is seeking to represent a new, larger senate district that encompasses nearly half of Maui. The conversation covers key themes such as community-driven planning, infrastructure development, political strategy, economic development, and the importance of experienced leadership during times of transition.
McKelvey emphasizes the need for cohesive community involvement in governmental projects, highlighting the successful use of the “charrette” process in highway planning, which involves community participation at every stage. He contrasts this with less effective top-down decision-making, such as the recent Kihei roundabout project, where the community felt excluded. The discussion also delves into McKelvey’s personal motivation, sparked by frustrations with stalled local infrastructure funding, and his determination to secure critical projects like the Lahaina bypass and highway widening.
The interview further explores McKelvey’s approach to political campaigning in a crowded election environment, stressing modern digital outreach over traditional mailers to break through voter fatigue. He addresses challenges related to economic development in Hawaii, acknowledging stagnation caused by entrenched interests and emphasizing the need for innovative, future-focused policies. Additionally, McKelvey outlines his commitment to cybersecurity and infrastructure protection, describing it as a critical but often overlooked area of public policy.
Throughout the dialogue, McKelvey stresses transparency, accessibility, and the importance of dialogue between elected officials and constituents. He portrays himself as a genuine, community-focused candidate who values honest conversations and collaborative progress, advocating the slogan “Forward Together” as a guiding principle for his campaign and governance philosophy.
Highlights
- [01:25] McKelvey explains the new state senate district covers nearly half of Maui and stresses the need to connect diverse communities.
- [05:41] Personal motivation for running: frustration with stalled funding for Lahaina bypass and highway widening projects.
- [13:32] ️ Importance of community-driven planning using the “charrette” process for infrastructure projects.
- [16:13] ⚠️ Concerns about the top-down implementation of the two-lane roundabout in Kihei and the need for public education.
- [20:33] Legislative process overview: from idea brainstorming to bill introduction and public feedback.
- [25:45] Campaign strategy focused on digital media to cut through voter information overload.
- [35:18] Advocacy for cybersecurity and “red team” testing to protect critical infrastructure from cyber threats.
Key Insights
- [01:54] Expanding Constituency and Shared Challenges: McKelvey’s move to the senate district that covers half of Maui reflects a strategic need to unify communities with shared concerns. His approach underlines the principle that solutions in one area can be adapted and applied to others, highlighting the interconnectedness of Maui’s communities. This demonstrates a scalable governance mindset, essential for effective policy-making in diverse districts.
- [05:08] From Community Frustration to Political Action: The catalyst for McKelvey’s political career was direct community impact—traffic gridlock and failed infrastructure funding. This “straw that broke the camel’s back” moment exemplifies how local issues can inspire civic engagement and leadership. His story illustrates how personal experience with systemic failures can lead to more hands-on, solutions-oriented public service.
- [13:32] ️ Community-Driven Planning as a Model for Success: The interview highlights the “charrette” method, a collaborative, ground-up approach to infrastructure planning involving community input at every step. This process contrasts sharply with top-down decision-making and fosters buy-in, reduces opposition, and improves project outcomes. This insight stresses the importance of participatory governance in achieving sustainable urban and rural development.
- [16:13] ⚠️ Risks of Top-Down Infrastructure Decisions: The Kihei roundabout example clearly illustrates the pitfalls of excluding community voices, leading to public dissatisfaction and potential safety concerns. McKelvey’s call for public education and enforcement during the initial phase underscores the need for comprehensive change management strategies when introducing new infrastructure concepts unfamiliar to the public.
- [20:02] ️ Legislative Innovation and Limits: McKelvey explains the legislative process as a filtering mechanism for ideas, where thousands of proposals are narrowed down to a few hundred viable bills. This underscores the balance between creativity and pragmatism in policymaking, where constitutional and jurisdictional constraints shape what can realistically be pursued. He portrays the legislature as a dynamic “spaghetti on the wall” environment requiring flexibility and community feedback.
- [25:45] Navigating Voter Overload with Digital Marketing: In a crowded election year with numerous races, McKelvey’s strategic pivot to social media and digital platforms aims to break through voter fatigue and information overload. His insight about the limited attention span of voters and the importance of a clear, concise message supported by a memorable online presence reflects modern campaign best practices and the evolving nature of political communication.
- [35:18] Cybersecurity as Emerging Public Policy Priority: McKelvey’s expertise and advocacy in cybersecurity bring a unique perspective to state governance. His emphasis on “red team” testing—simulated cyberattacks to expose vulnerabilities in government and utility systems—reflects a proactive and sophisticated approach to protecting Hawaii’s critical infrastructure. This insight elevates cybersecurity from a niche technical issue to a vital element of public safety and economic stability in the digital age.
Additional Context and Reflections
McKelvey’s interview offers a compelling portrait of a local politician deeply embedded in his community’s fabric, whose approach combines practical achievements with forward-looking vision. His emphasis on community engagement, transparent governance, and technological awareness suggests a politician striving to bridge traditional politics with modern challenges.
The discussion about the “clean sweep” election year contextualizes the political environment as one of significant change and opportunity. McKelvey’s recognition of the challenges new candidates face, including voter overwhelm and the need for effective messaging, highlights the complexity of democratic participation in today’s media-saturated environment.
Finally, the personal tone of the interview, including reflections on his mother’s caregiving and his own recommitment to public service, humanizes McKelvey and aligns with his broader call for “Forward Together,” advocating collective progress through shared effort and mutual respect.
Summary
In this in-depth interview, Jason Schwartz hosts Angus McKelvey, a seasoned Hawaii state representative running for the state senate, to discuss his political journey, priorities, and vision for Maui and the broader Hawaii community. McKelvey, who has served since 2006 in the House representing West Maui, is seeking to represent a new, larger senate district that encompasses nearly half of Maui. The conversation covers key themes such as community-driven planning, infrastructure development, political strategy, economic development, and the importance of experienced leadership during times of transition.
McKelvey emphasizes the need for cohesive community involvement in governmental projects, highlighting the successful use of the “charrette” process in highway planning, which involves community participation at every stage. He contrasts this with less effective top-down decision-making, such as the recent Kihei roundabout project, where the community felt excluded. The discussion also delves into McKelvey’s personal motivation, sparked by frustrations with stalled local infrastructure funding, and his determination to secure critical projects like the Lahaina bypass and highway widening.
The interview further explores McKelvey’s approach to political campaigning in a crowded election environment, stressing modern digital outreach over traditional mailers to break through voter fatigue. He addresses challenges related to economic development in Hawaii, acknowledging stagnation caused by entrenched interests and emphasizing the need for innovative, future-focused policies. Additionally, McKelvey outlines his commitment to cybersecurity and infrastructure protection, describing it as a critical but often overlooked area of public policy.
Throughout the dialogue, McKelvey stresses transparency, accessibility, and the importance of dialogue between elected officials and constituents. He portrays himself as a genuine, community-focused candidate who values honest conversations and collaborative progress, advocating the slogan “Forward Together” as a guiding principle for his campaign and governance philosophy.
Highlights
- [01:25] McKelvey explains the new state senate district covers nearly half of Maui and stresses the need to connect diverse communities.
- [05:41] Personal motivation for running: frustration with stalled funding for Lahaina bypass and highway widening projects.
- [13:32] ️ Importance of community-driven planning using the “charrette” process for infrastructure projects.
- [16:13] ⚠️ Concerns about the top-down implementation of the two-lane roundabout in Kihei and the need for public education.
- [20:33] Legislative process overview: from idea brainstorming to bill introduction and public feedback.
- [25:45] Campaign strategy focused on digital media to cut through voter information overload.
- [35:18] Advocacy for cybersecurity and “red team” testing to protect critical infrastructure from cyber threats.
Key Insights
- [01:54] Expanding Constituency and Shared Challenges: McKelvey’s move to the senate district that covers half of Maui reflects a strategic need to unify communities with shared concerns. His approach underlines the principle that solutions in one area can be adapted and applied to others, highlighting the interconnectedness of Maui’s communities. This demonstrates a scalable governance mindset, essential for effective policy-making in diverse districts.
- [05:08] From Community Frustration to Political Action: The catalyst for McKelvey’s political career was direct community impact—traffic gridlock and failed infrastructure funding. This “straw that broke the camel’s back” moment exemplifies how local issues can inspire civic engagement and leadership. His story illustrates how personal experience with systemic failures can lead to more hands-on, solutions-oriented public service.
- [13:32] ️ Community-Driven Planning as a Model for Success: The interview highlights the “charrette” method, a collaborative, ground-up approach to infrastructure planning involving community input at every step. This process contrasts sharply with top-down decision-making and fosters buy-in, reduces opposition, and improves project outcomes. This insight stresses the importance of participatory governance in achieving sustainable urban and rural development.
- [16:13] ⚠️ Risks of Top-Down Infrastructure Decisions: The Kihei roundabout example clearly illustrates the pitfalls of excluding community voices, leading to public dissatisfaction and potential safety concerns. McKelvey’s call for public education and enforcement during the initial phase underscores the need for comprehensive change management strategies when introducing new infrastructure concepts unfamiliar to the public.
- [20:02] ️ Legislative Innovation and Limits: McKelvey explains the legislative process as a filtering mechanism for ideas, where thousands of proposals are narrowed down to a few hundred viable bills. This underscores the balance between creativity and pragmatism in policymaking, where constitutional and jurisdictional constraints shape what can realistically be pursued. He portrays the legislature as a dynamic “spaghetti on the wall” environment requiring flexibility and community feedback.
- [25:45] Navigating Voter Overload with Digital Marketing: In a crowded election year with numerous races, McKelvey’s strategic pivot to social media and digital platforms aims to break through voter fatigue and information overload. His insight about the limited attention span of voters and the importance of a clear, concise message supported by a memorable online presence reflects modern campaign best practices and the evolving nature of political communication.
- [35:18] Cybersecurity as Emerging Public Policy Priority: McKelvey’s expertise and advocacy in cybersecurity bring a unique perspective to state governance. His emphasis on “red team” testing—simulated cyberattacks to expose vulnerabilities in government and utility systems—reflects a proactive and sophisticated approach to protecting Hawaii’s critical infrastructure. This insight elevates cybersecurity from a niche technical issue to a vital element of public safety and economic stability in the digital age.
Additional Context and Reflections
McKelvey’s interview offers a compelling portrait of a local politician deeply embedded in his community’s fabric, whose approach combines practical achievements with forward-looking vision. His emphasis on community engagement, transparent governance, and technological awareness suggests a politician striving to bridge traditional politics with modern challenges.
The discussion about the “clean sweep” election year contextualizes the political environment as one of significant change and opportunity. McKelvey’s recognition of the challenges new candidates face, including voter overwhelm and the need for effective messaging, highlights the complexity of democratic participation in today’s media-saturated environment.
Finally, the personal tone of the interview, including reflections on his mother’s caregiving and his own recommitment to public service, humanizes McKelvey and aligns with his broader call for “Forward Together,” advocating collective progress through shared effort and mutual respect.
Transcript
00:00
[Music] aloha everyone out there in radio television and internet land i’m jason your host jason schwartz at the neutral zone maui neutral zone dot com both on akaku maui community tv and media and the radio 88.5 fm the voice of maui and on the internet on youtube i have a terrific guest today not only is this guest distinguished but he is a serving state house of representatives for the state of hawaii but he’s new and that he’s running for state senate angus mckelvey welcome to our show thank you so much jason as we
00:54
were talking about in the beginning you know i look forward to any opportunity no matter the medium or airwaves to be able to reach out and discuss things with people and talk about give them information and you know answer the questions that are on top of everybody’s mind let them know more about me uh you know i’ve been a state rep since 2006 for west maui however this new state senate district and i say new uh because of reapportionment includes almost half of maui island now and as such there are a lot of people
01:25
out there who don’t know me um who have yet to hear what i have to say on different things and so opportunities like this i’m very grateful for because really the challenge ahead is trying to get myself introduced and you know getting to know a whole new swap of the community and constituency that you know i didn’t really have a chance to work for before and try to tie in the fact that yes my successes you know and continuing challenges have been in west maui but it can give them an idea of the
01:54
track record of production that i can bring to their communities and to try to tie our different communities together because we have the same challenges and when we’re successful in one area we can transplant that success elsewhere and my favorite expression i use all the time thanks to my friend my friend rep roy takumi who came up with it is a rising tie floats all boats oh yeah a rising tide raises all ships yeah exactly so when you have a success in affordable housing for teachers in lahainaluna
02:26
that’s something that can be transplanted over into kihei mauka of the honopihilani highway when you have a success in preserving affordable housing in the line of crossroads and the front street apartments you can translate that success into areas in waikapu and so these are the kinds of synergistic tie-ins that i’m trying to create you know and if i’m elected to the state senate i use the word if because you know my humble outlook is that despite you know one’s degree of service
02:56
or anything else the fact is it’s up to the voters to make that final decision and you know nothing is a given and all that’s given is hard work and opportunity and that’s kind of it and you said it right there the words that to me are very important it’s up to the voters and hopefully it’s these kind of forums that show candidates so the public can know who you are like yesterday i interviewed someone else running in your race and i think it’s really important that people get to see they can see and
03:27
compare for themselves rather than have other groups there are other groups giving you their opinions i really trust to say that’s just an opinion make your own decision people please pretty much you know and i’m at peace with whatever is the end result because i know that basically i know that i’m going to leave nothing on the field or off the field i should say and you know work my hardest and um you know at the end of the day hopefully the voters will see the you know what i have done and what i can do
03:59
and what i’m going to try to do and support me in that endeavor and if not then you know life goes on the sun will still rise over haleakala and there’s a lot of great opportunity out there in this crazy world right now um what made you start what made you start doing this you know i remember way back i guess i’m somewhere between the age of uh your mom and you and so i remember when your mom was really a fixture there on front street developing the lahaina community really intrigued
04:32
and you were her son i remember and uh suddenly you decided you were gonna run and i i never forget that that was very meaningful to me that you had made a decision to jump into that what sparked you then and how is how have you maintained that well the biggest one it was one of those straw that breaks the camel’s backs moments you know where before i’ve been heavily involved in the community i’d worked as a consultant on various campaigns beforehand um some successful some not um and what happened was is that you
05:08
know it takes two parts of the legislature to fund projects but the funding to be successful usually needs to start from the house of representative side and we had lost funding yet again for what was just then a plan for this thing called the lahaina bypass and we’d also lost funding for this thing to widen the honor ilani highway the existing highway from two lanes into four lanes which it is today and i was stuck in you know absolute gridlock because of a fire traffic with no alternative road in or out and i got
05:41
a call from my then counterpart basically very upset so not you know then counterpart sorry but then our state senator very upset that the funding for both the widening and the bypass had failed yet again in the house of representatives because the current representative at the time was not really focusing fire and creating a strategic plan to get it over to the senate and i’m like okay you know i gotta step up and put up or shut up you know i’m working with my mom working with the community groups that
06:12
she founded behind the town action committee west maui taxpayers association with other people i’m like okay you know it’s time to serve my community and put my skills to use on the front lines uh and i think we can do this we can rescue this we can get this funding we can you know use the relationship i had the time with senator inouye you know as a family friend and he was also not happy at all with the funding falling through because he had just secured the federal portion on his end
06:42
and he was i guess i am not happy as he you know imitate them and um so i jumped in and you know i the fruits of this labor are there in front of you today we vote all stages of the bypass that exists we’re because of my efforts along with those of him and you know my counterpart in the state senate and others to you know form a strong team in the county at the time you know the counselors and the mayors to basically you know form this you know really strong alliance and work hard and create a
07:16
strategic plan to get this through and getting the money is only half the battle as i like to say you know as we experiencing now with the screw up with the latest phase of the bypass which i’m not happy it’s executing it it’s getting the pieces in motion to actually turn the you know the obligate obligatory notes into the money into the mechanism and contracts and the construction who makes that happen is that after it leaves you you’ve got a crack a whip or is that a governor doing
07:47
who is it is a governor thing and it’s a lot of carrot and stick i mean uh there’s you know and i’ve been very not i haven’t been shy when i first ran i was a very vocal critic of the powers that be i think that’s one of the reasons why i was able to successfully upset an incumbent at that point i’ve been very open about that since then as past governors can probably attest to you you know i’m the squeakiest wheel uh using the media to basically voice the frustrations of the community to force
08:18
you know and to try to get things through but at the same time i understand there’s a carrot you know mechanism that needs to be employed as well where it’s like okay when good things happen they will be acknowledged the same soapbox that is used to bring criticism and fire is also used to bring credit and thanks you know when the when the phase two of the bypass got done and you know neil abercrombie who i was kind of going to fist the cups over it you know helped to finally make it through and
08:47
signed it and then the got the contracts out with the d.o.t i was there at the groundbreaking with them and you know hey praise them and my my joke at the time was yes virginia there is a bypass because these are on christmas time so you know i mean to show that hey you know what you know look this is the good things that can happen when we finally stop with these silos and turf wars and they exist today i mean i’m hopeful that with the new governor and i’ve made it clear to all the candidates who are running for
09:16
governor that you know when it’s going to be a clean sweep of all the different departments and agencies and we expect to have people’s feet held in the fire to have commitments made that can be followed through on and as a state senator you trade in the power of the purse from the house for the power of confirm confirmation and as i’ve said before you know my pledge is as these directors dog dlnr and deputy directors highways etc come before the senate committees and the body as a whole
09:49
to basically put their feet to the fire in so far as where they stand on supporting us and our maui projects and our maui priorities and now now that you’re moving from where it begins there in the house like you said to the senate where you kind of put bottle it up um do you have a i imagine you do you have a good working relationship with others that are still in the house or could well be in the house oh yes i’ve got numerous colleagues in the house i have great friends with i have 26 good
10:24
friends in the house uh you know which was i mean because of cobit and other things with my you know family and my mom’s caregiving i did allow i mean to be honest with the voters and the people out there there was some you know disconnection that was starting to occur but you know now that we’ve come out of this now i’ve used my mom’s passing is a you know way to reinspire and rededicate myself and you know i’ve reconnected these relationships and three strings and them like weavings on a basket you
10:53
know on a net and you know a lot of them wanted me to continue to come back to the house but i’m like no because of the vacuum that’s occurred it is it is critical for the maui community to have veteran leadership at the higher at the state senate level we could be looking at you know a huge swath of completely new faces and no dings on them you know i admire them stepping up to the call for public service but they have zero experience at all and that’s a very very important and powerful uh thing to be saying we really
11:28
need experienced leadership to continue and grow what we need especially the district that you’re in you’re talking about i call it the bread basket that’s where all the money is coming from i would think for for the whole maui so um a role like yours is really and you know the interesting that you see that with this opening how important it is to switch a thoughtful leadership is also recognized in you thank you for for that you know the point i want to bring up since we’re at this juncture is
12:01
that you know i also have a great relationships with a good majority of the state senators that are probably going to get re-elected or elected in the case of tim richards from the big island into office and you know it’s you know i’ve had several that came to my one of the events that i had in honolulu around the convention i’ve been talking to them on the phone you know i’ve had for relationships with them before when they were in the house or other branches of government and so
12:30
i’ve already really started to build a strong network you know of allegiances with probably who are going to be the other state senators and you know having in the state senate if you have 12 other people who will work with you and agree with you then you have a lot of impetus to be able to do good things and so i think that having all of them as friends and colleagues and reconnecting with them especially um i think bodes well for my chances to be successful with an agenda that i’m trying to lay out through the campaign
13:02
and on my website mac for senate six dot com um where i’m being very open about some of the plans and ideas and the priorities that i want to bring to the state senate but i think the biggest thing i try to underscore there and i’m underscoring everywhere else is it’s not about what angus wants to do it’s not about what i while i may have the game plan and a road plan and a network to accomplish this it’s really got to be community driven and i bring up the example the best example is the widening of the ilani
13:32
highway when the d.o.t came out with their original plan to do it it was a total honolulu top-down special and a lot of people were upset so the lahaina at that time lahaina town action committee under theo morrison hired a consultant a remarkable renowned traffic consultant named jim charlier who had created this new process called charette and the charette was a community planning and design system to plan and design a highway or a infrastructure improvement from the community from the ground up
14:06
using the community as working groups breaking out into different facets using white boards so people not only got to contribute but as we started to move towards conclusions people could see why hey this idea well you know may be great may not work or we may have to tweak it like this and so what during this whole process when the project finally came to be instead of people protesting it and being upset you had the community supporting it and once that’s really important i mean to make it i remember
14:40
years i guess it was years ago in waialua when they were planning the uh figure out what to do about parking in wailuku that now they’re in construction on again same kind of idea of a charrette but there they didn’t really follow they didn’t move into action from the charrette and it broke down yeah i’m really glad to hear that by having a having the consultants and the powers that be dot there involved in the charette system from the beginning is critical i mean we’ve had charlene
15:44
basically decided that they were they were gonna do it because hey it worked here even though what they were what had worked before was a one lane roundabout and now they’re talking about a massive two-lane roundabout in the middle of a major freeway for lack of a better word and you have what i call the european vacation scenario happening where people are not used to roundabouts to begin with let alone two lane roundabouts where you have to switch and turn and people can get trapped or have
16:13
collisions in them and look it’s the proverbial look kids big ben parliament look kid parliament you know because you can’t get out of it now we all know that i know that you know that yeah i mean i saw i saw the first four-lane roundabout i ever saw was in australia and my brother was driving it and it was it was basically the most hair knuckle experience and was insane of course for everybody who was used to it for generations it was a no-brainer same with vancouver canada um you know
16:47
how i finally got used to using it was there’s a place called lummy land which is an indian tribal land in bellingham and they built several of these two-lane multi-lane roundabouts but there’s no traffic on them it’s very quiet from so we were able to drive them without one’s bars and get used to the but there’s a huge public education campaign and i told the d.o.t that has to happen before you even break a single blade of grass or ground and to instruct people on how they’re used what the right-of-way is
17:21
and you’re gonna have to have a strong police presence when it first opens to ensure that the traffic properly flows and people gets used to it and then finally when that happens it will work as function but to just throw people to the wolves to to basically say this is it and start building it without the community being involved and so people are like hey wait a second this is our backyard this is our major thoroughfare yeah that’s the top that’s the top down you’re talking about
17:49
honolulu they shove it at you and they don’t really know what’s going on in the community so strong leadership by people like yourself critical critical that’s well and i want to use this community group the community group system is critical we’re lucky in west maui to have several that are very robust and well established we have a great gem in south maui called the kihei community association with mr mike moran and his board and i plan to lean on them i actually joined and became a member and you know
18:19
regardless of what happens with the election it’s a great organization and that’s the kind of apparatus i’d like to use to be able to not only have regular community meetings and outreaching but what to when we move forward with the charette system for other projects to have their assistance and help in convening the forums and creating the working groups and putting the things on their go kihey.com website um for people to be informed with and i think that’s a great apparatus to you know to really
18:49
tap into and that’s my hope as their state senator is to use that that organization and others in the kihei wailea area to help have community driven planning and prioritization of bills of projects etc let me ask you a funny odd question i have an expression i use a lot sometimes it’s difficult to remember that the original intention is to drain the swamp when you’re up to your eyes and alligators we have a lot of alligators going on around here um i for years been talking about an alternative of how to raise money for
19:28
far out projects that don’t need the government i sometimes wonder you know i’ve had economic development ideas that don’t seem to have a reception there’s no basket to be able to bring these ideas into to explore have you been able to figure out where is the creativity of looking into the future from the government i’ve had a real block there and seeing well i i think it depends on your elected officials in their world out view and their way they i’m i’m a spaghetti
20:02
against the wall guy and it’s like at the very beginning before session in november and december is when we start doing the brainstorming the community meetings the ideas they get emailed and start throwing them like spaghetti against the wall some are you’re only limited to x amount of bills per session and so you need to so it becomes that process like a charrette where you start to discuss these ideas and kind of read through them and say okay this may not work because of x y and z this it’s unconstitutional or it’s a
20:33
federal role not a state role this will work but you need to we need we sorry need to tweak it and perhaps be open to doing z and x y and z for it uh and then get it ready for introduction as a bill but then during that time as bills move through that’s when the public gets to respond and comment and create input to further refine the legislation and you know out of the 3 thousand bills that you introduce every legislation only 300 approximately make it up to the governor’s desk 3 000 3000 bills usually what starts with both
21:13
chambers and then you end up with about 300 to 600 depending on there’s you know the economic forecast models of whether it’s going to be a surplus or a deficit year well see my question was really i guess maybe i shouldn’t be asking a legislator because you are hands-on your creativity comes in being able to sift through the ideas that come at your dart board but i’m talking about our government doesn’t have you know they say oh we’re going to get grants together and we’re going to be giving
21:44
grants out to people in our community but there’s there’s no one looking there’s no focus on future as i would seek to be needed to get the public more involved in funding future ideas i i don’t know where there’s an economic development department that makes the room for that they seem to be on an old track it’s a well it’s critical that there’s two economic development entities at the state level it’s department of business economic development and tourism and at
22:16
the county levels the office of economic development but this is why having a clean sleep election of every office from the very top to the very bottom this is a time with shows like yours to bring out the ideas and challenge these candidates on okay how do you plan to redefine and reinvent the paradigm of stagnation that has become unfortunately the model of economic development and so that if they’re successful their nominees to the position will be challenged with those kinds of paradigm
22:49
changing thoughts and ideas that you’re talking about now so that one suggestion i thought your your eloquence about it here is really important and it’s it’s a a problem that isn’t going away i mean because there’s so many problems to handle you end up spending most of your time on trying to handle problems and not really really projecting into the future there’s talk about uh you know making more jobs happen here and giving us equal opportunity for the world but we are the most remote landmass we should
23:22
be doing things differently and yet i don’t see those discussions publicly i mean i’ve been talking about the same idea i may have worked it out with pundi and the guy years ago but no one else is listening yeah you know that just you have to keep moving the ball forward i feel like i’m pushing this ball up the hill the world is now breaking down enough where hopefully we’ll realize it’s really important to be projecting you may not remember i guess i’m bringing it up because it’s important to
23:55
me in 1990 i was talking with the maui electric and the advisory board on planning the long-range energy future of our island and then when it came to implementation and doing things there was such a resistance in the business community from making a big shift it paralyzed things in housing i watch how things got paralyzed because of this political process and because of business interests that really had a stranglehold on the way things were done and aren’t shifting i’m not sure if it’s a legislative role
24:38
or i i’m just trying to bring up what happens things get stagnant here too locally there’s this real challenge to make on a big change your idea about a clean sweep that sounds really powerful i hope that it well it’s actually happening because of reapportionment and because of the terms that are up for the existing everybody is up this year this is why this is a you know there’s not a presidential election year it’s a huge election year for the people of maui and hawaii because everybody is up from the
25:13
governor all the way down to dog catcher wow it’s it’s every that’s what i mean that’s challenging though in it of itself to a lot of new candidates because there’s so many races with so many voices in every level that it’s creating a cacophony you know to a lot of voters voters are going to get overwhelmed one of the reasons why i’m kind of steering away from mailers and moving really hard towards social media to programs like yours to uh you know youtube instagram electronic
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advertising is that voters especially when the ballots go out are going to be getting literally rings and heaps of flyers direct mailer fires from every candidate under the sun and you already have what they call you know marketing i did marketing before i became a politician and one of the things that we learned is that the attention you you don’t operate in a vacuum when you’re marketing your marketing with everybody else marketing and the span of a recipient is at best five seconds you get like this is really how it goes
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when you do a flyer brochure you’re like wow this is amazing you put all these great ideas in there you get all this little text and like this is my thought this is this and this and then you don’t realize when the person gets it in the mail they get it with a stack of things and they literally go whoop trash whoop trash whoop trash so your job your effective marketing is literally your name and one big idea and by your website and they’ll go oh and they’ll stop for that five seconds
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and go oh i’ve got to check it out more then they’ll throw it away well you know when you’re saying i’m looking behind me and i’m realizing i have these three logos to try to explain the concept in full but then i can say three logos next you’re right they will they’ll go next but a real powerful graphic a main message and a tag of like lying you know for more information and once the curiosity has been peaked you know by the brand that you’ve hopefully branded to the point where
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people are become recognizable then during that five seconds it actually sticks to them when they get closer to elections like okay i better research what all these guys are and gals are about it’s like you dot www.schwartz’swithyou.com or x whatever your url is or vogue shorts and um then they that’s what then they’re now focused in on those details i hope i i say that you know like you say if you only have five seconds worth with the overwhelm and things that going on in life the this election is really for for
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newer people a big question mark you really don’t know no idea with seven people a lot of great voters too because of covid a lot of people moved in here uh because of the fact their jobs became remote and are living here and they may have voted in the mainland still for the last election but this time around they’re probably going to vote here and they’re like you know they’re like okay i want to get involved i registered to vote here you know what are my choices how are these people actually going to
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that’s when your marketing hopefully has made a brand id in their mind enough for them to burrow down in your platform a little bit more and you know look at what you’re trying to do and say and you know and then hopefully they’ll be like okay this person their philosophy their ideas why may some are great some i don’t know about but i like the philosophy i like the where their center is you know what their value system is you know i mean really at the end of the day i think that’s when most people
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will feel comfortable in making the choice that they make but i i love your scenario the only thing that i know is there are groups out there that say hey you guys are too busy here we’ve done the heavy lifting these are the people to vote for i have an issue only in that that process has not adequately handled this huge number of candidates and that first sift is a bit strained to make not all the candidates shot day you know there are a lot of you at the end get know members of these groups that either
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have been members of them or they follow their you know their they believe in what the group is trying to do x y or z so yeah they given all the voices and all the races and all the noise they’ll they’ll be like and they’re in that carton of stacked political things coming so hopefully by the end of this we’ll recycle all those political flyers and turn them into straws that biodegrade i got well you know i’m always been a strong environmentalist and part of it is true is trying to stop the slaughter of trees
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you know with all of these printed male pieces they’re besides being very expensive they’re you know they are not the most friendly way to get your message out and so but i think my district in particular from the marketing that has been done is the most electronic savvy for lack of a better word district that there is we have the highest use of social media we have the highest use of the different types of media platforms from instagram to youtube to everything else facebook obviously all of that
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goes out there a lot of maui now is a good example i mean their bulletins and their alerts are widely circulated faster than a wildfire up on the hillside here uh you know because this has become such a media interconnected community and you know part of part of the you know people told me flat out constructive criticism hey you know you’re doing a good job a better job of getting your message out and especially what you’re doing as a rep in social media but you need to be more not the word they’re used as more um
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more community more driven community more be willing to quicker to take a more you know pointed position of echoing the outrage or concern in the community you know and i understand that it’s it’s this is why it’s an active electronic media and that’s how you stop that top-down thing like you said the community activity drives what you want the government to do and it’s great to think that there’s a representative like you that’s been so connected and in touch with your community for a long
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time well and i like i said before i mean i i have been i did let things kind of get a little afraid but i’m really rededicating and redoubling to get back to my roots and get back to the critical importance of being connected whether it’s in the grocery store or whether it’s on facebook you know it’s uh you know my door is always open as i like to say i give freely give people my cell phone number and you know i uh you know and you know but i my one thing is like hey you know what you may be
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pissed off you may be upset but you know don’t don’t come at me you know like a barrel of spider monkeys you know let’s have an honest discussion let’s you know try to we in our dna of public service i think all of the you know candidates you know especially and even my opponents have this in their dna the common dna of wanting to help of wanting to try to make it better of wanting to address the situation and so it’s important that people don’t immediately look at their electeds or
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their candidates you know as the enemy but and you are only one of a number of voices and your job is to secure money right not only to make some plan but to secure the money if there’s not enough money someone’s going to be disappointed so exactly you know i’ve been very i point to and it’s on my website i point to things everything from the lionel in the football field which went from a rutted mess into the state-of-the-art facility to the new playground areas and classrooms at
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lahaina intermediate princess nahiana and uh to the bypasses all phases one and two and yes we are going to get phase three done although we hit a huge stumbling block with covid because of that i’m confident in the game plan we have to resurrect that and to use this unprecedented infrastructure funds to be able to not only do that but to finally get this honor ilani highway moved inland away from the ocean and be able to abandon the sea walls which is causing a whole slew of problems in and
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of themselves yeah any other issues that before we close you’d like to make sure you address or think there’s so many i mean i could keep you here for hours along with your i try to lay them out on my website i i actually let’s make sure we get mac is mc or mac mac the number four senate s-e-n-a-t-e the number six um all about catchy things.com i actually do cyber security on on the side and so yeah that’s one of the reasons why i like using numbers well that’s important it’ll be sitting
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up here so people can go to it yeah they go check it out i mean we’re going to be unveiling new features and things all the time we have a brand new video we did um with community members from malaya and kia and uh in there we’ll be posting our updates on our facebook page um as well and you know we’re going to be kicking off a new thing to allow people to be set up video chats with me with them and other interested groups via zoom and also to schedule starting to schedule in-person
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talk stories for people who are or groups who are interested you know um there’s a way isn’t it exciting this this uh time of all the technology has its good points and bad points oh i said well that points are what basically keeps you know you need the bad with the good you know part of the on the cyber side of what i kind of get i’ve gotten into is thing called red team where you emulate the bad side to un to better protect and promote the good side you know and so it’s uh the blue team is the good side
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it’s the defensive side the red team is the attack side it’s the side that tries to basically break things and it’s through this kind of constant conflict is this taoism of yin yang that you can create better products better technology better systems so that as we saw with the remote learning that had to be instituted quickly you know i will caution people from the very doe from the very beginning i’m like look you guys you know if you don’t constantly attack these systems and try
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to exploit them other people will and they did and a lot of people had their information stolen they lost a lot of money and as a result now your faith in this kind of technology and systems undermined so i mean i think that if i’m elected to the state senate i plan to make this a very prominent part of my public policy platform we need to be an active engager in red team testing not only of our government systems but also of our infrastructure what i call our scada or what systems which are our
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utilities our water our electrical because other entities russia will be looking to do the same and if they’re successful it’ll come at a very heavy cost yeah well thank you for taking the time here with me i hope that people will go to your website and like please do please do share your uh this broadcast with me if you don’t mind jason that’s so i can put it on my facebook page and promote it as well and i thank you for doing this i really thank you for you know helping to create more
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opportunities for candidates like myself and other candidates to be able to get out there and have an honest discussion about things that are all over the board you know things that are you know that may not make the front page or may not make the hot button issue list but people are interested in knowing and really the big one is to getting to know candidates as a person what their value system is about and their background and i think that’s the part that unfortunately gets missed with all of the voices in the compressed
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time frame that’s why i say i’m the long form i don’t know who’s listening but well i take the long view i’m hoping that someone will watch and by the end of this whether they agree with you on everything or not the fact that they can sit and talk with you and you will share about ideas and hash out things is so important and that’s that’s why i do these things that’s why i’ve been doing it all these years let’s enjoy the ride let’s enjoy the richness
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of dialogue we’re only given one time on this earth to share ourselves and with others and to create these kinds of networks because once we’re gone they will not exist anymore these opportunities won’t exist anymore so i that’s what i you know you know i think is the most important thing to me philosophically and hopefully to others is you know use shows like yourselves and what you’re doing use them as a way to engage in dialogue you know let’s my slogan for this election is forward together and i
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think that’s really encapsulates what we should hopefully try to do and shows like yours helped to create that kind of environment so thank you for doing this and i’m on the same page i’m a team aloha guy you know uh it is a pleasure to talk to you uh what i also like is you’re not a facade you’re not putting on some face and a mask you’re very genuine and it’s very much appreciated well i appreciate you doing this i appreciate everybody out there listening and sharing it and you know getting
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involved get engaged at the end of the day whatever decision you make you just make it then you make it the hawaii way and just be involved and make that decision and you know i think as a result the wisdom of the public the zeitgeist will come forward and we will have better decision making and you know finally progress being made on all of these challenges that we have out here particularly to hawaii well thank you angus thank you for being here and all you out there and listening radio tv and internet land you can watch
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this again if you’d like at mauineutralzone.com or put youtube and angus mckelvey jason schwartz apple pump thank you for all joining us thank you angus again please aloha and have a great day jason we’ll talk to you soon okay [Music] you
