SD17; HD41: Inoculate
July 23rd, 2008 by Derrick DePledgeState Sen. Ron Menor, D-17th (Mililani, Waipio), has sent out a deeply personal apology to his constituents over his brush with the law after attending a Chicago concert in April.
Usually, political consultants believe one apology is enough before you move on and leave the mistake in the past. But Menor, who is facing two primary opponents, used the letter to take full responsibility for his drunken driving and said he “should have known better.”
From the letter, which was first posted Tuesday on the Hawaii Threads Web site:
While I know many will believe I don’t deserve it, I nevertheless ask for your patience and understanding, and a second chance.
I know it will take time and that I will have to earn back your trust. I accept that as well. This has been a life-changing and deeply humbling experience, through which I have gained a greater appreciation for the privilege of representing you in the Legislature.
I believe that I have served our community well and cherish every moment of my work. Rather than let this incident pull me down, I want to use it to become a better person and a better representative of your trust. I feel invigorated and committed to do an even better job as your senator.
State Rep. Jon Riki Karamatsu, D-41st (Waipahu, Village Park, Waikele), sent out a similar note in a mailer to his constituents last year. The young lawmaker had the misfortune of having his drunken driving case dragged back into the light by the news media after Menor got picked up.
Karamatsu also has a primary opponent and he could face Rito Saniatan, a Republican insurance broker, in a general election rematch of 2004 and 2006.
The mailers are attempts to help inoculate Menor and Karamatsu from opportunistic political attacks over their arrests.
Menor said this afternoon, however, that he planned the letter regardless of a primary challenge. “Whether I had opposition or not, I was going to send the letter out,” he said.
July 24th, 2008 at 3:34 pm
After reading the Menor letter, I was amazed at how little he apologized for. Did he apologize for lying about his foot being hurt and for using that as an excuse not to get out of his car to take the drunk driving roadside sobriety test? NO. Did he apologize for lying about his foot being hurt and slowly limping into the police station, but upon his release speedwalking out of the police station? NO. Did he apologize for ducking reponsibility by showing such a lack of cooperation with police which prevented them from obtaining the additional evidence which would have kept him in jail longer than 2 days? NO. Ron Menor doesn’t know what it means to be apologetic and repentant. He is doing as little as possible in order to keep his little state job. I feel sorry for his family, his friends and his constituents.
July 24th, 2008 at 9:03 pm
It appears that the party of these officials has a form letter for these types of offenses. Our elected officials must held to a higher standard as we have put our trust and fate in their hands. It is fortunate that these elected officials are not in the military because their careers would be over. There was a time when judgement was a required quality of our elected officials…apparently not any more.
August 13th, 2008 at 3:50 am
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