Linda Lingle: The GOP's Senate Pick-Up in Hawaii?

[Geee]

American Thinker:

With all the recent talk of the gains or losses the Republican party stands to make in the United States Senate, there are two issues that have so far gone beneath the radar. One, the GOP may lose a seat in Maine, as Maine's moderate Republican senator, Olympia Snowe, is retiring and may be replaced with an independent. And two, the Republicans may pick up a seat in, of all places, Hawaii, with the possible election of another moderate Republican, former Hawaii Republican governor Linda Lingle. This is kind of like trading a moderate Republican senator from Maine for one from Hawaii.

Hawaii hasn't had a Republican senator since the 1970s. In fact, Hawaii is so liberal that in 2002 it re-elected a deceased representative to Congress, Patsy Mink, rather than vote for the Republican opponent. If you think a pulse is optional to participate in the political process only in Chicago, you are wrong.

So how does a Republican candidate for statewide office get elected in deep-blue Hawaii? Very carefully. For example, here is what Governor Lingle's website has to say about her position on tax reform:

We have a tax system that is not fair. Our tax code contains more than 14,000 pages. It's not logical to expect average Americans and small businesses to understand and navigate this onerous law. Tax reform is essential because Americans have lost confidence in the way government treats individuals and businesses. Therefore, the solution is to bring down the tax rate to something more reasonable, while retaining the most important deductions such as the mortgage interest and charitable contributions.