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Summary & Transcript Below
- [00:00 → 05:31]
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- Introduction and COVID-19 Overview
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Jason Schwartz introduces Dr. Josh Green, Lieutenant Governor of Hawaii and a physician, in a May 5th, 2020 interview amid the COVID-19 pandemic. The original intent was to discuss housing and alternative health topics, but the focus shifted to the ongoing coronavirus crisis given its urgency.
Key points from Dr. Green:
- Hawaii had 625 confirmed COVID-19 cases at the time, with a very flat curve indicating control over the spread.
- 88.22% of cases (551/625) have recovered, showing positive outcomes.
- Maui had a temporary surge in cases at Maui Memorial Hospital, causing concern, but the outbreak subsided.
- The federal government’s management of the pandemic is criticized, with concerns over rising cases on the mainland (20,000 daily cases expected to rise to 50,000). This poses a risk to Hawaii’s containment efforts.
- Hawaii is considered the safest environment in the U.S. and possibly the world due to strict measures, but remains vulnerable to imported cases, particularly from New York, Japan, Korea, and China.
- Dr. Green advocates for mandatory testing within 72 hours before travel to Hawaii to reduce risk of new outbreaks, acknowledging testing limitations but emphasizing risk reduction.
- Modeling suggests this testing would significantly decrease the chance of a major outbreak in the state.
- Airlines are tentatively resuming schedules around 5-6 months later, but the timeline for tourism recovery remains uncertain.
- [05:31 → 10:50]
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- Economic Impact and Housing Challenges
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Dr. Green outlines the severe economic impact caused by the shutdown:
- Of these, 60% (150,000 individuals) are in the local kama’aina economy and expected to return to work quickly as reopening begins.
- The remaining 100,000 unemployed are tourism-dependent workers (hotels, airlines), whose return to work will take longer due to slow tourism recovery.
- Dr. Green highlights a potential paradigm shift: some people are using this time to reflect on quality of life, potentially favoring less economic activity but more enjoyment and connection to Hawaii’s natural environment.
Regarding housing:
- Emergency housing efforts are underway targeting the most vulnerable homeless populations, including small community projects called “kau holi” in Waimanalo, Kailua, and Big Island (32 units).
- The pandemic highlights the importance of providing shelter to prevent dense homeless encampments and disease spread.
- Dr. Green anticipates some older hotels and businesses may fail financially due to lost revenue, which could create a unique opportunity to convert some hotel properties into affordable and workforce housing.
- Prior tours of homelessness statewide revealed a critical shortage of available housing inventory, and this crisis may allow the state to address that shortage by repurposing existing properties.
- This approach is described as “turning lemons into lemonade” by seizing opportunities created by the economic downturn to solve housing problems.
- [10:50 → 16:42]
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- Alternative Housing and Economic Models
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Dr. Green responds:
- He is open to innovative approaches and acknowledges the limitations of government power but emphasizes the influence and visibility of his position to advocate for change.
- He confirms interest in running for governor in the future, motivated by the desire to resolve homelessness, ensure universal healthcare, and reshape Hawaii’s economy.
- Hawaii’s existing universal health coverage helped keep mortality rates low, positioning the state better than many others during the pandemic.
- The current crisis offers a rare “clean slate” opportunity to restructure government priorities and economic sectors, including shifting focus from tourism to housing and healthcare innovation.
- Dr. Green stresses the importance of seizing this moment to enact reforms that were previously blocked by entrenched interests focused on profit from tourism and real estate.
- [16:42 → 23:07]
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- Reopening and Future Economic Opportunities
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- Retail stores
- Floral shops
- Auto dealers
- Nonprofits
- Real estate
- Electronics
He notes:
- Even with reopening, economic recovery will be gradual; businesses like furniture stores and restaurants will face reduced demand initially.
- The healthcare system in Hawaii remains well-prepared, having used only 11-13% of available ventilators at peak, indicating capacity for future COVID-19 surges.
- He emphasizes continued social distancing and mask-wearing for the coming months to prevent outbreaks despite low current viral loads.
- Beaches and outdoor spaces are considered safe with appropriate distancing within family or friend groups.
Dr. Green also discusses innovative health-related business opportunities:
- He references a local entrepreneur producing hydroxy hydrogen (HHO) devices that may help reduce lung inflammation in COVID-19 patients, citing Chinese research.
- He envisions Hawaii developing health spas and regenerative agriculture industriesthat combine environmental benefits with economic diversification.
- He advocates for supporting small innovative businesses and startups through university programs and potentially new state-private partnerships, including investments from utilities and corporations.
- The pandemic is seen as a catalyst for a “new economy” with more local self-reliance and innovation, particularly in clean energy, healthcare, and technology export sectors.
- Renewable energy is highlighted as a major niche for Hawaii with ocean, wind, and geothermal potential, despite challenges.
- [23:07 → 28:24]
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- Public Health Messaging and Vision for Hawaii’s Future
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Dr. Green’s key public health messages:
- People should not despair; Hawaii has the lowest COVID-19 mortality rate in the U.S., a testament to collective effort.
- Continued vigilance with social distancing and mask use is critical to avoid new outbreaks.
- Gradual restoration of freedoms, including outdoor activities and beaches, will continue with caution.
- Hawaii is positioned to attract wealthy visitors once safe, due to its reputation as a healthy, clean, and safe destination.
- The healthcare system is prepared and proactive in preventing surges.
Dr. Green expresses optimism about the broader societal impact of the crisis:
- He sees 2020 as the true start of a new millennium and era of opportunity, unlike the disrupted hopes of 2000 and 9/11.
- The pandemic has forced existential reflection on vulnerability, priorities, and community.
- Hawaii has an opportunity to shift priorities from tourism expansion to education, health, housing, and sustainable local development.
- The crisis could unify the community around long-term goals rather than short-term economic growth at all costs.
- [28:24 → 29:33]
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- Closing Remarks
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Dr. Green thanks the public for their sacrifices and emphasizes the importance of community effort for collective good. He expresses hope to repay the community with thoughtful plans and openness. Jason Schwartz thanks Dr. Green for his service and looks forward to future collaborations.
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- Summary Table: COVID-19 Data and Economic Impact (as of May 5, 2020)
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| Metric | Number / Percentage | Notes |
| Confirmed COVID-19 cases | 625 | Total confirmed cases in Hawaii |
| Recovered cases | 551 (88.22%) | High recovery rate indicating positive outcomes |
| Ventilator usage | 11-13% | Percentage of ventilators used during peak demand |
| Unemployed due to COVID shutdown | ~250,000 | Sharp increase from lowest unemployment in U.S. to one of the highest |
| Local kama’aina economy layoffs | ~150,000 (60%) | Expected to return to work quickly |
| Tourism-related layoffs | ~100,000 (40%) | Longer recovery expected due to tourism downturn |
| Housing units in emergency villages (“kau holi”) | 32 units (Big Island example) | Small-scale emergency housing communities underway |
Key Insights and Conclusions
- Hawaii’s early and aggressive response has kept COVID-19 cases low and healthcare system stress minimal.
- The state faces major economic disruption, especially in tourism, requiring a phased reopening and economic diversification.
- The pandemic presents a unique opportunity to address chronic homelessness by repurposing failing hotel properties into affordable housing.
- Innovative economic models focusing on health, clean energy, and local production should be pursued to build resilience.
- Public health vigilance remains critical even as restrictions ease to avoid new outbreaks.
- Dr. Green views the crisis as a catalyst for long-overdue social, economic, and political transformation in Hawaii.
Transcript
00:00
[Music] oh hi everyone this is Jason Schwartz at Maui neutral zone I am a very special guest that I have dr. and lieutenant governor Josh green with us so welcome to our show today thanks I love being here well this is May 5th of 2020 and when I first talked about having you on the show we were going to be talking about housing and the need for housing housing first and we were going to talk about other alternative health things and things like that and we may talk about that but I know we are right in
00:50
the middle of this culvert 19 virus and you are not only lieutenant governor but I want to say health commander in chief here and I’d like to get a current look at what you think is going on and what you can tell our viewers because I’m going to put this to our Maui Daily Show here later sure well thanks again I this certainly wasn’t what we expected to to have a pandemic in the middle of this four-year adventure as a tenant governor but I feel pleased that I can add a little extra to the response where we
01:30
are right now is you can see over my back shoulder people might be interested this is our white board I brought it along we have 625 cases now to date confirm there are certainly more you know positive cases of koban 19 in our state but the curve is very flat as you can tell it has significantly dropped off and so the viral load in the state continues to drop every day which is to say more people are recovering now 551 out of 625 people have recovered which is 88 22 percent and that’s a very good
02:03
thing now of course Maui had a brief crisis when the amount of Memorial Hospital lit up and that was scary as heck I’m sure for many there the good news is it has died down and I don’t have a strong position to defend or detract from I’m a more or any other place it’s a tough situation when you have these outbreaks just super infectious to people we’ve know that immunity you expect and the biggest concern I have right now is that the federal government and just making some pretty terrible decisions about how
02:36
they’re gonna manage the outbreak on the mainland and right now they’ve been getting 20,000 cases a day on the mainland and now that’s gonna bump up to 50,000 new cases a day in my estimation based on their loosening of the restrictions and that’s very dangerous dangerous to the world it’s dangerous to the poor folks that are gonna get affected and have a high mortality rate if they have chronic disease that are very senior and so on but also it affects us it affects how we will
03:03
recover and how we’ll be able to adjust when we decide it’s time to have tourism resume the state of Hawaii so those are some big things I think about well that one is pretty big there that I’m think we have to be more cautious almost than anyone we have people coming from all over the world here and I’m sure unless we have adequate instant or virtually instant testing going on we’re leaving them ourselves open to being the one that has you know a very pure environment and then one that can’t get rid of it yes we
03:42
have the safest environment safest right in the whole country in the whole world we are we are absolutely poised to have that be something that is a calling card for ourselves yet if we have sudden surge of kovat 19 from the mainland say from New York where I come from and a lot of our listeners and people who live in Maui come from we have sudden surge from from the mainland us and also concerned about a surge from Japan or Korea or China it could be quite terrible so what I believe we’re gonna have to do is even
04:17
more than have rapid tests here I think we’re gonna have to have an understanding that we have people get tested within 72 hours of leaving wherever they are it won’t be perfect because there is a window of question you know you could be asymptomatic and carrying the virus you also could of course get sick the day after you got tested but by having a window that it will greatly diminish the number of possible cases here in Hawaii and I think that’s worth doing and necessary if we do that I’ve done the modeling
04:49
with with experts it really decreases the probability that we’re gonna have a big nightmare here and hopefully once we you know once the world starts returning to normal people say Oh Hawaii really did it well and is a wonderful natural place to visit I like that idea you know I see these airlines there it looks like getting back to normal scheduling 9:30 and I mean that’s like five six months from now what does that mean to our state until then that’s an excellent question so one thing that I’ve learned
05:31
these pandemics or other crises are very informative you learn a ton you have to study all that all the things that surround them the economic picture is this we went from having virtually the lowest unemployment rate in the country to the highest and so we jumped up 250,000 individuals essentially became unemployed because we so shut down the state states all across the country are suffering in this way but we more than others of that 250,000 people 150,000 or 60% are a part of the kama’aina economy
06:05
our local domestic economy to Hawaii and the governor just moments ago I made a profound announcement that we are opening a lot of things about 36 hours from now and I’ll share that with you in in a half second so 150,000 other 250,000 people should resume an employment quite quickly that’s going to happen in the next hundred thousand though the remaining hundred thousand people that lost their jobs are very closely attached to the tourism industry and that’s hotel workers Airlines certain parts of the economy that rely
06:38
completely on tourism that’s gonna take a little bit more time because it like you said is gonna take months before we even remotely approximate the tourist numbers that we have that even if we want to I I’m not sure we told you want to come back to those numbers we we certainly want to have a vibrant economy but this may be the time where we’re more mindful of what our carrying capacity is and what we just want as people some people notwithstanding the economic hurt and I would never minimize
07:06
that some people are taking this opportunity to pause and to spend more time with their loved ones and to reflect on maybe having a little less but a little less economic activity but a lot more enjoyment and a lot more time to savor Hawaii and I think that’s possible that may be what the upshot of this whole thing is I’m with you taking the words out of my mouth which is what I like yes yeah when you first were coming on as to be lieutenant governor and you were talking about housing and youth is there
07:44
anything going on there because I always I’m wondering now in this situation it seems like the people that don’t have housing and that are on the lower end they’re going to be affected by all this and going forward we’re going to need so much housing is there any kind of emergency housing plans going on in any of the islands right now there is but they the stuff that we’re working on where people are in the most desperate straits where people have been homeless completely homeless or so near to being
08:19
destitute that they’re about to become homeless is in the works and we actually have already started to launch some of what we call kau Holly which are small communities around the state started one in Waimanalo another is going up in Cali Aloha big island opened one with 32 units and it’s an interesting opportunity to have this crisis because giving people a roof over their heads obviously it’s necessary to keep them in a shelter position so that they aren’t extremely exposed and in a in a dense
08:48
camp where they could infect one another and then other people so we are doing that right now but a lot more is going to need to be done and what I actually think I’ll say something a little bit provocative here on your program and that is that some businesses as you know will not be able to survive and it’s never good to see something go down but there some of the older hotel chains and some individuals that may have to walk away from what’s been going on just because when you take away six months of
09:16
significant activity economically they can’t survive and they may want to sell and I have already cautioned in fact advised our leadership around me to keep our eyes on this because we may be able to have quite a win-win opportunity some people may want to bail at you know small cost to get out of the market and those hotels may very well provide an opportunity to do some affordable housing and workforce housing I hope that that’s the case because I would definitely not want to see us if we had
09:49
a building out there step away from it and not provide housing when we have an extreme housing shortage when my team did a tour of the entire state on homelessness specifically before Lina long before the koban crisis occurred that’s what we heard absolutely everywhere which is there’s a shortage of inventory this shortage of houses there’s a shortage of opportunities as soon as you look at potentials for several thousand units that might become available you start wondering okay well
10:16
maybe that’s the opportunity to take to have the hope you know the hotel workers have a place to live and work very near their hotels to have an opportunity to totally reverse fields we didn’t have those housing opportunities because things are so expensive now we may just have an opportunity to have a big surge of them so we should it’s kind of turning lemons into lemonade and lemonade in a way but it’s important if that opportunity arises to seize it because boy this is a time when it’s very quiet out
10:50
there right there’s there’s no activity with no tourism virtually for at least three months and maybe six we should we should definitely listen if people want to make us offers to help us solve some of our other problems well I just I always think about you know alternative housing solutions and alternative community models that are maybe not in the in the codes right now the coloreds could be worked there are so many things I’ve seen I always wonder if these kind of times can allow quote
11:29
under an emergency situation to try different models that might serve as our population is growing and and we want to integrate you know the farms and the people in a new way and I always I’m looking at that you know especially if there’s not going to be people working what can we create that becomes work out of an alternative housing thing to set a new model that week almost here create our own economy locally and serve all our people not by creating a new currency but by creating a new quote
12:06
trade system here that would work including housing and the way I’m just bringing it up because I am I guess he gets so busy trying to work through the system and at some point I always when I speak to people to get in office it’s oftentimes when you get in you see you don’t have quite as much power as you had hoped you would have before you got in but you’re in a very interesting position because you your visibility now I think statewide your position to let’s say run for our next governor could I
12:42
say that I’m definitely if Jamie thinks it’s the right thing for us I’ll definitely run for governor I have no compulsion about saying that to dear friends I know I’ve been able we’ll see it after a year and I see not from a power perspective which I know is not you’re suggesting for me an opportunity to once and for all resolve the homeless and housing question to once and for all make the case that everyone must have health care and that’s why we were actually in a
13:14
better position than many as States code to make sure our mortality rate was very low I mean we had things in place already because people get coverage no matter what in the state that other states had no clue they could achieve and so that perspective is not lost on me and after a year and a half as you can imagine studying every nuance of government I now see exactly what is possible and there’s a lot that’s possible in the state of Hawaii it is tragic to see people lose jobs and it’s very very tragic to see
13:49
the fear in people’s eyes when they wonder could they contract a disease that’s scary for some although most people should be fine I’ll tell you but I also see an exceptional opportunity because this is the first time in decades we’ve had kind of a clean slate approach and that means that there will be no excuses if I serve as governor to take on and end homelessness to restructure how we look at health and mental illness and addiction to change the economy so that we utilize the
14:24
university for an energy economy and change some of our building focus so it’s not all hotels but instead is also actual housing for our people so these are opportunities that when you had the structures that were just generating money after money after money people are so reluctant to ever walk away or change that you do run into kind of an immovable object and I don’t feel that the object is so immoral anymore well it’s great and it’s like we’re given a chance for a global
14:56
reset here at least here locally a reset what a fantastic opportunity and hopefully for us as little pain as possible yeah very fortunate and I’m really I personally am very thankful that you’re in charge if you will because I feel your compassion and I your your priorities are in order I watch it a national scene and international and it scares me so I’m very thankful that you’re here and guiding this ship I wish there was a little more guy that could do on some days but each each day I can
15:34
tell you that behind the scenes sometimes out in front I’m able to make comments about whether it’s the cruise ships or getting everyone access to testing and screening or doing the pause on travel here unless it’s done very safely that we have a very positive impact on in spite of some of the fights and scuffles that people perceive about what goes on in politics it does I’m not going to tease it happens periodically but we my team has been hope thoughtful and we prevailed in those opinions and we’re
16:06
also now I think prevailing in some of the businesses that are opening and I’m sure your your folks will be happy to know that just an hour ago we announced major business reopening some retail retail stores across the state floral auto dealers nonprofits can now open real estate electronics so we’re opening a large large swath of business right now the concerns I have however are what do you do when lots of people start showing up possibly infected with a phobic so that’s the next phase of what I’m looking at more
16:42
even able to influence other things like in 12-step programs back up and and available to people I I think that’s very important at a time where people are feeling a sense of crisis so this is the kind of things that that I’m focused on and I hope that that hopefully that ends up meaning something in real terms for people I hope so too and I I am excited about the fact that in this time that we all have the ones that don’t have jobs that we can look at creating a new I want to say new use a lot of
17:19
people I believe would be happy to be doing different things you know we’re and then the area of health care um I don’t know if how closely you looked I’d sent you some stuff about this there’s a gentleman in Kula named John Beattie who has been working five years as a machine that creates hho which is hydroxy hydrogen hydrogen or oxygen and through communications I don’t know how they seem to come to me there’s a doctor in China that has found that this hydroxy hydrogen helps open up the alveoli in
17:57
the lungs and helps people that would have been on respirators not need to be there because it it it stops the inflammation in the lungs and stuff how does a small business here in these kind of times because I’m sure there are others that have ideas also but him even where do they get the help I mean to go and try to get something on their emergency basis I don’t know if that’s appropriate now or what but there’s here locally I mean I’m I’ve seen technologies like this and they’re
18:30
in regenerative agriculture citizen could really progress industry if hydrogen was understood and they could have health spas that understand the benefits of things that would turn us into how about having resort spas for health I mean it’s not unreasonable that Hawaii is already known for health but to sort of transform a lot of the people that are already working in different industries into serving even a new a new kind of industry and our chance to do have the the people that are growing
19:07
food here and all kinds of things I guess you can hear me talking about wanting to help some of the people here that aren’t as sophisticated with how to be business e small business you know the small core of retired executives or small business center may help some but it’s almost like we need I want to say more adventurous capital you know I mean everyone can fit in conforming loans but in these times when technologies come forward do you see places for that in our state nerve in our budget and our
19:43
systems because that’s what I’m really trying I find technologies that could use a little help and they often say well don’t go to the state don’t go to the feds they’re never gonna help it’s too much the responsibility you only look for private industry but I keep thinking in a small state especially if we strengthen the the core they’re you know we’re in a position that we don’t have to do minute you know don’t diminish the electric company make them part of the investment team to solve
20:15
that problem or in healthcare things so until so some of the the main corporate ones could somehow get involved in alternative solutions in a new way that Hawaii would almost create a new model if you will and there are some possibilities there be there there are some reality some hard realities are from state standpoint we’re gonna it’s gonna be tough economically for a year year and a half there’s no doubt about that but Hawaii as it reinvents itself there’s no reason that instead of propping up certain
20:51
industries that are already doing well once tourism is up and doing well to do innovative healthcare solutions is definitely a place that we could put resource there’s also little doubt to me that if people do decide to find a health incubator I’ve seen some very successful people kind of take a jump up during this crisis even I believe on Maui I think kai mattis is a physician over there that does some inventions and they had individual capital invest in them but it was it was a big jump for
21:29
them and all was done they’re creating ventilators that have a new technology bridge ventilators and certain things so there are opportunities and Hawaii could definitely see people working less in structured economy and having more time to work in other areas and usually the way the state can support that is through the university system and the university system has to be vibrant to be able to you know have a kind of a tolerance for risk but it should that’s a great place to have risk tolerance
22:02
well I think that’s a big part of the future yes well I was just thinking like they’re interns and students there that could well start into some of these industries and add their own twist to it and really be a vibrant clean exportable industry I’m really big for hearing that that you’re open to that and I’m sure like you say the state is one thing they may not have money for a while because they’re spending on other stuff but it may interest private individuals and private groups to get
22:35
more involved especially when they’ve now had a chance to see what happens and what the potential is for things if we don’t do things in a more vibrant way now so we need to good things it’s an opportunity that a lot of the rules have been deconstructed and a lot of the structures themselves have you know cracked at the edges so it can be a good time for opportunity I think that there is going to be an attraction of investment and wealth in Hawaii still that the fundamentals of Hawaii haven’t
23:07
changed at all or gone away at all still beautiful it’s still a once-in-a-lifetime from any destination and it is still the safest healthiest place overall the United States just needless to say and maybe internationally but now it won’t the assumption will not be automatic that if you want to go to Hawaii you’re going there to be a part of tourism period and a story maybe this is the time I think renewable energy solutions should find a major niche here in Hawaii we should have done that all along that is a very
23:39
very good opportunity for us when we’ve got ocean power and considerations of certain things like wind and geothermal and how they interact and so on I mean these are not without controversy and not without challenges but also opportunities almost nobody else has so I like the ideas I like the idea of us being an innovative state rather than a place where the only you’re gonna do well in business if you run a fancy hotel I am with you right now if you were talking to an audience you’d be
24:13
talking to them about Cove at 19 mostly what are the most important things that you’d like the public to know right now and either in the way they should be or be thinking about this or what you see coming up what what feels important for you to deliver well one thing that’s very important is that people not despair we’ve kept the mortality rate the lowest in the nation and that’s a very good thing so people should know they’ve succeeded in a way that we haven’t often seen us
24:41
come together as one Ohana which is very very good – they should we shouldn’t get cocky because you can see this thing explode quite quickly in a lot of different states and countries so please turn the next couple months continue to practice the appropriate social distancing and mask-wearing as needed if you’re gonna be within six feet of anybody even though our viral loads are very low I just don’t want to see an outbreak that’s unnecessary so please be careful we’re gonna continuously and
25:09
rapidly restore people’s freedoms to be outside which i think is totally safe and to be at the beaches which I also think is totally safe I do a little social distancing but if you’re there with your own family cohort or friends that are all negative you’re not running an extra risk so those are the things that will restore but don’t get too cocky and prepare prepare for a fairly rapid renewal of our old ways in the state for businesses that will happen although everything will be quiet
25:40
because you’ve run a furniture company it’s gonna take a little time before people have money to buy furniture and if you run a restaurant and you get open you know we’re not there towards there so your volume will be lower but prepare for what will probably be a very large pent-up demand for Hawaii I can easily envision wealthy individuals from all across the world wanting to come here without hesitation because we’ve done so well in keeping this a very healthy clean safe state those are some of the
26:11
things I would tell people I would tell them that our healthcare system is well prepared for them notwithstanding some of the scares we had locally on our island on Maui we’ve only used about between 11 and 13 percent of our ventilators in any given time which means we unlike anybody else had more than enough we are planning at least I am with top people at all times a strategy to keep us from getting a surge which is important which again will bode well for our future and then finally I don’t shy
26:44
away from new opportunities and new ideas I really hope that I see what I thought was going to happen was I thought was gonna happen in 2000 when we had the Millennium change and I thought we’re gonna get a new there was a mentality there that that seemed to move the spirit towards new opportunity and then 9/11 happened and it just wasn’t you know we became a concerned security state with our eyes on terrorism so I think now 2020 is when the millennium is really going to begin is my expectation and that’s mostly
27:15
because people’s existential consideration has been brought to the fore and and we now have looked at ourselves in the you know in the context that we could have been wiped out and each and every one of us was equally vulnerable and I think that will change our priorities greatly and that means that Hawaii has an opportunity to instead of fighting over the telescope uniting over what we should do together for the next decade instead of worrying about putting together another plan for 5,000 visitors maybe it’s putting
27:50
together a plan that’s better for our education system and what’s good for us here at home so I think priorities are shifting already very quickly and I mean I’m excited about that so I hope people take that to heart and don’t come from a place of fear as this copán crisis diminishes look at this as the new opportunity start Hawaii the way you wanted it all along well I can tell you from a personal point of view seeing you in charge and listening to you gives me a level of confidence that I hope all of
28:24
our viewers share and if there’s anything we can do to be service to you and as an outlet for you to be able to communicate to people here in Maui I’m always open here to you anything otherwise that you’d like to to say to our group well just thank you everyone for your sacrifice I know it has been extreme it has really been extraordinary to see people willing to sacrifice for the good of many and that’s really what humanity was supposed to be about so just a brief thank you here as we head
28:56
towards Mother’s Day and and and the summer as we start to return to some normalcy just thank you thank you for me and Jamie and Sam and Maya we appreciate what you’ve done and I hope that I’m able to reward you ten times over with good plans and kind of openness as we go forward because it definitely is a new year for Hawaii and probably for all of our country but I’m gonna focus on Hawaii well I want to thank you doctor lieutenant governor Josh green and it’s pleasure having here
29:33
on the show and I look forward to working with you not only hear this but on different projects as we go along and we’re past this huh thank you for your service thank you deeply it was my pleasure Aloha and everyone out there we’re gonna take a station break and we’ll be back dr. green thank you again Aloha [Music]
