Governor Puts Faleomavaega in His Place; Delegate Backs Down

Over the years, Faleomavaega seems to have reveled in his independence from the governor of the day and enjoyed sparring with them publicly on issues on which they disagree. But time and illness must be taking their toll on the elderly delegate, because the current governor, Lolo Moliga, slapped him down recently without a peep from Eni in response.

Last year Congress passed a bill requiring the Pentagon to study the feasibility of establishing a National Guard unit in American Samoa. In an April 4 press release, Faleomavaega made public a letter he sent to the Secretary of Defense the previous day recommending that American Samoa's guard unit be attached to the Hawaii National Guard and that retired CSM Iuniasolua T. Savusa be included as a member of the study team. The subject likely was discussed with Savusa when he paid a visit on Faleomavaega in March, one of the first official visitors the delegate received since he suffered a sudden illness—thought to be a stroke—last October in American Samoa.

The only problem is that Faleomavaega did not discuss these recommendations in advance with the Governor, who was not happy with either recommendation. In a sharp and equally public reaction, Moliga put Faleomavaega is his place, writing to the delegate to inform him he wanted American Samoa's guard unit to stand alone and reminding him that Savusa had a full-time job as a member of Moliga's cabinet and would not have time to serve on a Guard study team.

We were among those waiting for a quick Faleomavaega retort in his usual overkill with dates, times and places of consultation and were surprised by the silence. In the old days before illness slowed him physically and possibly mentally, the delegate would be johnny on the spot. Instead the response came only this week in a press release about his meeting with Brigadier General Timothy Wojtecki, Vice-Director of Force Structure, Resources and Assessment for the National Guard Bureau (NGB) to discuss the feasibility study, which is now underway.

Buried in the release, Faleomavaega completely reversed his position, saying “One issue that BG Wojtecki and I agreed on, which Governor Lolo also supports, is that due to legal issues American Samoa may not be able to have a guard unit function under the Hawaii National Guard because, unlike the Reserve, different rules govern the National Guard.”  Interesting he mentioned Lolo supporting Faleomavaega's position without admitting it actually was Lolo's position that the delegate was now adopting. He also went on to say “BG Wojtecki and I firmly believe the NGB and DOD must receive input from Command Sergeant Major Iuniasolua Savusa, who was once a candidate for CSM of the Army,” as if it ever were an issue. More likely, the general gave him a face-saving way of backing out of his “nomination” of Savusa to sit on the study team. Rather, the delegate acknowledged, “the study requires [Savusa's] input since he is the Director of Homeland Security in American Samoa.”

Making his capitulation to the governor total, Faleomavaega further went on to say “To alleviate any concern about his time commitment, I was assured in today’s meeting that the time commitment on CSM Savusa’s part would be minimal, making it possible for him to devote all of his time and attention to his job as Director of Homeland Security while also contributing his unparalleled expertise to this historic study.”

Although it proves he is alive and breathing, if anyone still had doubts, Faleomavaega does himself no favors by releasing photos like the one that accompanied the press release. Standing between the two Guard officers, Faleomavaega shows the devastating ravages of time and illness that have take a heavy toll on his appearance. He has not returned to the island since last October, has not told the public the nature of his illness and has made no mention of his future political plans. If and when he does return, people will be shocked by his appearance if he looks anything like this photo.

INDIA: Faleomavaega Rips Obama, Clinton, Kerry Policies; Gabbard Upstages Him; Hindu PAC Ignores Him

Following the victory of Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi as leader of the Bharatiya Janata Party in the recent Indian national elections, American Samoa Delegate Eni Faleomavaega lashed out at President Obama's policies in a news release containing remarks his office had inserted into the Congressional Record on May 19 congratulating the sub-continent's new prime minister.

Suggesting that Modi had scored a "resounding victory despite the U.S. using every recourse it could to disrupt his destiny," without naming them Faleomavaega made it clear he felt Obama, Clinton and her successor John Kerry had made a mistake in not restoring a visa that first had been revoked in 2005 for his alleged role in riots in Gujarat in 2002, when he was chief minister at the time.

“Nonetheless, despite the United States getting it wrong with India,” continued the delegate,who had pleaded with Obama, Clinton and Kerry without success (and once again underscoring his lack of influence) to build a friendship with Modi, “Narendra Modi is looking ahead . . . (a)nd he is the key player for improved relations between the U.S. and India.” No kidding! 

Almost as if to stick his thumbs in the eyes of the White House and State Department, he made certain it was noted for the Record that “As a token of friendship and in commemoration of the fulfillment of his destiny . . . a flag was flown over the United States Capitol at my request in honor of him on April 7, 2014, to mark victory’s dawn.” Preliminary results indicating a BHJ victory were not announced until May 16.

Faleomavaega also made it known that “I have personally met with Shri (the Sanskrit equivalent of “Mr.”) Modi as far back as 2010 and I know him to be a sincere man who stands against corruption and for inclusive growth and development.” Yet, even as the ailing, 13-term delegate was having his statement inserted into the Congressional Record, freshman U.S. Rep. Tulsi Gabbard (D-HI) was upstaging him in her own reaction to her fellow Hindu's victory.

Three days before Faleomavaega's statement, as Modi's victory was becoming evident, Gabbard, who is younger than Faleomavaega's children and has a long, bright future in politics, released her own statement, which said: “I recently spoke with Narendra Modi by phone and congratulated him and the Bharatiya Janata Party for winning a majority vote in India’s Lok Sabha [Congress]. This election was an extraordinary achievement for the 550 million Indians who voted over the course of six weeks in some 930,000 polling locations. I look forward to working with Mr. Modi and other members of the Indian government toward our mutual goals of peace, stability, and economic growth in the Asia-Pacific region. A partnership between the world's two largest and greatest democracies is necessary for us to successfully address the many global challenges we face, including economic growth, bilateral trade, the environment, terrorism, and security." 
 
No smirking, no reference to success or failures of U.S. policy, just looking to the future. In the ailing Faleomavaega's absence, Gabbard has on occasion served as Ranking Member of the House Asia-Pacific Subcommittee, a position it took Faleomavaega years to achieve. Whether or not Faleomavaega also tried to telephone Modi but without success is not known. Perhaps the fragility of his health would not permit such an attempt. Although he publicly welcomed the election of the first Samoan as a voting Member of Congress, it has to be grating on him how fast Gabbard has risen in stardom within their shared Democratic Party.  She has already appeared on more national televison news programs in a year and a half than he has in 25 years.

Whatever Faleomavaega'a relationship with Modi, it is clear that on May 31 the Hindu American Political Action Committee (HAPAC)  announced its endorsements for 2014 congressional primary elections. In its statement releasing the names of candidates it is backing, HAPAC said it is supporting them “because of their strong track record of work for the Hindu American community. HAPAC looks forward to supporting others candidates for political office.”

It should come as no surprise that Gabbard topped the list followed by U.S. Rep. Ed Royce (R-CA), the chairman of the full House Foreign Affairs Committee. Two California Democrats, Reps. Brad Sherman and Ami Bera, the latter the only Asian Indian currently in Congress, were next, followed by House India and Indian American Caucus Co-Chairman Joe Crowley (D-NY) and caucus member Eric Swallwell (D-CA). Rounding out the list, the PAC also announced it was financially assisting state Senate Majority Leader Ellen Corbett (D-CA), who is running against Swallwell, and two other Hindus running for Congress: Dr. Manan Trivedi (D-PA), and Swati Dandekar (D-IA).

Because Congressional Asia Pacific Caucus Chairman-emeritus Rep. Mike Honda (D-CA) has been very helpful to Hindu Americans, the PAC is not contributing to either of his Hindu opponents, Ro Khanna (D) and Dr. Vanilla Singh (R), urging voters to vote their conscience. This despite the fact that Honda In 2012 signed onto a letter to the U.S Department of State asking it to continue denying a visa to Modi.

Although incumbents such as Gabbard and Royce face little or no competition for renomination or reelection, HAPAC stressed that this was funding for primaries,. It is quite possible, however, that they are stressing that this is primary funding so they can come back and make additional contributions to the same candidates for the general election. In one case where they have two favored candidates contesting a seat, they are giving money to both, in another case to neither.

Curiously missing from this initial list, of course, is Faleomavaega, even though the aging Samoan is already facing four announced challengers with several more thought to be standing in the wings. Maybe HAPAC is waiting to see if due to his lingering illness Faleomavaega decides to retire.  For now, not even a nod to his existence.

It will be interesting to see if another Indian PAC, USINPAC, makes a contribution to Faleomavaega, as it has in the past.  Included in his statement for the Congressional Record congratulating and praising Modi, Faleomavaega made it a point to insert this sentence: “I also commend Mr. Sanjay Puri, Founder and President of USINPAC, for championing the cause and work of Shri Narendra Modi early on in the U.S. Congress when India’s next Prime Minister was Chief Minister of Gujarat.”  

Whether that was a payoff for past support or a down payment on future contributions remains to be seen. His statement was silent about HAPAC. USINPAC has donated at least $22,000 to the delegate's reelection campaigns in chunks from $2,000 to $5,000 going back as far as 2002 and there is no reason to expect they will abandon him this year, regardless of what HAPAC does.

Faleomavaega's statement got major play in the Indian media but not in American Samoa. It could be the local media did not consider it newsworthy. On the other hand, perhaps Samoa News, where Faleomavaega's sister-in-law, the territory's Democratic National Committeewoman, is on the editorial staff, spiked the story to save the delegate embarrassment for not gaining HAPAC funding or even an endorsement for re-election after all the fuss he has made about Modi, a Hindu. As much attention as his statement garnered in India and in the Indian American community, the snub hardly seems an oversight. 
 
Of course, all this is public information available on the Internet and one need not be in Washington to put two and two together. But our local media seems to be incapable of gathering and analyzing facts. Meanwhile, as expected, former governor Togiola Tulafono has tossed hat into the ring, becoming the fourth announced candidate for Congress. Other than emphasizing he wanted to work to restore a good working relationship between the delegate and local leaders, saying “my feeling is, we need to refocus cooperation” between the Office of the Delegate and territorial leaders and that the Delegate “must serve the supporting role” of the leaders, in serving the territory and her people” he kept his announcement on a positive note. “refocusing cooperation is a thinly veiled code phrase for pointing out that Faleomavaega has a fierce independent streak that has put him at odds with a succession of governors, including or perhaps especially Togiola. The two men do not like each other but Togiola did not take the bait offered by Samoa News to question Faleomavaega's health.

Will Faleomavaega Join the Old Bulls Leaving Congress?

Everyone knows that Faleomavaega is a sick man. He has said so himself. Just before the 2012 election Radio New Zealand International reported that he freely admitted that he “has had a double by-pass heart surgery, had his appendix taken out, underwent a knee operation, both his eyes are lasered with artificial lenses and he had high blood pressure, gout and Type 2 Diabetes. He adds it's likely he has been exposed to the deadly chemical dioxin found in Agent Orange while he served in Vietnam."

But, while admitting that he has new health problems from which he is still recovering, he has not yet been as forthcoming about them as he was about his earlier ailments nor has he announced whether he will seek re-election this fall.

Nonetheless, we have clues to the answers to both questions. His office in the few statements made has referred to his “rehabilitation,” a word normally used in connection with a stroke. Indeed, there is widespread belief he suffered two strokes last October. Although he has resumed “limited” office hours, he has skipped countless hearings and caucus meetings since he return. While he has made three appearances on the Floor of the U.S. House of Representatives where he has spoken without sign of impairment, there is anecdotal evidence that he may be suffering residual brain damage even if his motor skills have fully recovered.

On the question of re-election, the Federal Election Committee reports that his campaign committee is functioning and he has raised $40,000 towards re-election just since taking ill. There is no law, just tradition, that requires him to make any formal announcement. However, he has simply filed the required paperwork before without any formal announcement or campaign kickoff event without any impact on his votes and could do so again. So we will have to keep a close eye on our election office to see if and when he or someone on his behalf picks up a packet containing the petitions that must be circulated and filed before he formally becomes a candidate. The filing period opens July 14 and closes September 2. 

Not only has he missed many normal functions of participating in Congress, there is no evidence Faleomavaega has traveled since becoming ill, other than evacuation from Tutuila to Honolulu, where he was hospitalized at Tripler Hospital, then quietly moved to the Mainland for additional treatment in the west (some say at his residence in Utah; others say at a VA rehab facility in California; perhaps both). Then he returned to Washington in late winter and has remained there ever since. It is also said that his wife, who for many years has lived apart from him first in Nevada and now Utah, has returned to Washington to care for him.

If, indeed, he suffered one or more strokes, it would account for why there is no evidence he has traveled at all by air since returning to Washington. He may be under doctor's orders. We do know that he did not return for Flag Day or Memorial Day, two occasions that no politician ordinarily would dare miss in an Election year. So everyone is waiting to see when he will make his re-appearance. Will he pick up and/or file his own papers? Will he have a campaign kickoff event? Will he participate in candidate debates? Will he run a Curley/Spellman/Johnson type of campaign (James Michael Curley won election in Boston while in prison; Gladys Spellman won in Maryland while in a coma; Tim Johnson won a SD senate seat while hehabing from a stroke)?  Or will he wait as long as possible to assess his health then quietly retire if he, his family, friends, allies and/or doctors decide he no longer is up to the job?

Frankly, one has to wonder why he would want to continue. He is in the Minority and no one believes the Democrats have any chance of resuming control of the House this fall. The earliest date most analysts believe the Democrats can come back is in 2022 after redistricting when Faleomavaega would be pushing 80.  In fact, if anything all indications are that Republicans will gain additional House seats and perhaps enough Senate seats to gain control of the Senate in November. Even in the Majority he, as a non-voting delegate, would have very little opportunity to accomplish very much. Moreover, continuing health problems may force him to curtail if not curtail if not eliminate his extensive foreign travel. Over the past quarter century, it would come as no surprise to find that he has traveled more miles than any other Member of Congress even without counting the miles traveling back and forth from American Samoa.

Unlike the other delegates, he has no legislative record of which to speak and little prospect of building one. His signature bill, the so-called ASPIRE Act, introduced when his party controlled the House, never got reported out of subcommittee and even members of his own party spoke against it in a hearing. Despite his seniority, he was denied the Ranking Member position on the full Foreign Affairs Committee, authority over global environment was stripped from the subcommittee, he has been stripped of his vote in the House Committee of the Whole and the Clerk no longer reports his seniority or that of the other delegates—all Democrats—in the House seniority list. It is shown separately at the end of the list. He also was passed over in favor of a freshmen legislator for the chairmanship of the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus despite having served loyally for a number of years as vice chairman to Rep. Mike Honda (D-CA). Adding insult to injury, his place as vice chairman went to another delegate, Congresswoman Madeleine Bordallo of Guam.

Despite being on Tutuila at a time then-Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice was in Samoa meeting with the region's foreign ministers, he did not travel over there, even though he was chairman of the Asia Pacific subcommittee at the time, because Rice declined to give him an opportunity to address the gathering. And when then Secretary of State Hillary Clinton came through Pago Pago a couple of years ago, she ignored his plea on Cambodian debt relief while granting the then-Governor (who will seek to replace him this fall) was granted his request to allow American Samoa to have official observer status at the Pacific Islands Forum in a major reversal of U.S. policy.

His extensive travels over the years frequently have taken him to Bangkok, home of the parent company of Chicken of the Sea brand tuna and Seoul, home of StarKist's parent company. Although he touted those visits as opportunities to meet with American Samoa;s major private sector employers, Chicken of the Sea closed its plant and StarKist's long-term future remains in as much doubt as Faleomavaega's ability to get legislation to protect the company's tax advantages and wage structure. One trip he missed was a U.N. climate change conference in Copenhagen even though the global environment was under his subcommittee's jurisdiction at the time. Even though he was chairman, then-Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA)--whose political action committee once gave him $10,000 towards re-election (she wanted his caucus vote for Leader)—did not include him in her 21-Member delegation. 

He once got Pelosi to show up at a summit of Pacific Leaders in Washington only to have that triumph go sour when the then-Speaker showed up over a half hour late, annoying the heads of government and others alike, all trapped in an auditorium for the occasion,  They all were there for an evening of food and entertainment--to which Pelosi's appearance was a hastily arranged add-on.

More recently, his continued lack of influence was underscored by President Obama's decision to pick Esther Kia'aina over his choice, Nikolao Pula, as assistant secretary of Interior for insular affairs and VA Secretary Eric Shinseki resigned less than two days after Faleomavaega took to the House Floor to urge him to stay. Indeed, although Faleomavaeva was one of Obama's earliest supporters in his first run for president, there is no evidence Obama ever has returned the favor. Oh yes, Faleomavaega has lots of pictures with the president, but so does every Member of Congress—Republican and Democrat alike. It comes with the job.  One has to wonder if he realizes he is telegraphing his irrelevance by frequently punctuating his remarks with "I've been saying for years . . . " (even if he does not conclude with "but no one listens to me").

He has gone as far as his seniority will take him. Acquiring more now will not advance him further, get him a better office or increase his pension, which topped out at 20 years of service 2009. So why does he go on? We can only surmise that the limelight must continue to outweigh the humiliations, particularly since neither the local media nor his political opponents make any concerted effort to address his record or prospects for future success in Congress. Seemingly, as long as he can continue to flash his pe'a, strum his ukulele, carry a tune and dance, and have enough money to buy a boatload of radio and newspaper advertisements that cleverly list all the federal money that comes to the territory while only implying but being careful specifically not to claim it is due to him, as well feed the voters, there will be enough voters to get him re-elected.

One of the values of seniority is building friendships and alliances to help a Member reach his legislative goals. Much of Faleomavaega's investment in that relationship building process has been lost in the past three years with the retirement of Sen. Dan Akaka (D-HI), the death of Sen. Dan Inouye (D-HI) and the defeat of then-Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Howard Berman (D-CA), whose re-nomination Faleomavaega unsuccessfully backed in 2012. The wave of Old Bulls going out has continued unabated this year with the announced retirements of Reps. John Dingell (D-MI), George Miller (D-CA) and Henry Waxman (D-CA), all Faleomavaega allies with whom he serves for many years a fellow member of the Congressional Progressive Caucus.

The signs are present that other senior Members also may be on their way out. Rep. Charles Rangel (D-NY) has a tough primary challenge this month and Rep. Nick Joe Rahall (D-WV), a Faleomavaega ally who was Ranking Democrat on House Natural Resources, is thought to be in danger of losing his seat in November. All of the aforementioned Members are ex-Members who have or had seniority substantially exceeding Faleomavaega's 13 terms.

Dingell, the longest serving person in the history of the House, will be joined in retirement by Rep. Ralph Hall (R-TX), at 91 the oldest person ever to have served in the House. Hall, also the last World War II veteran in Congress, was defeated for renomination last week and the man who beat him said a long career of distinguished service does not entitle a person to a lifetime seat in the House. Watch this video interview for his comments.

Once again, do not expect our local media to present this kind of analysis to the voters for their consideration. However, even if others are hesitant to address the ailing delegate's shortcomings, former governor Togiola is not likely to be so shy. Faleomavaega realizes this so perhaps it will given him impetus he needs to pull the plug and go the way of the Old Bulls before the voters finally show him the door.

FALEOMAVAEGA LOSING TOUCH WITH REALITY

If anyone is looking for evidence that Faleomavaega really has lost his mind, perhaps his reaction to the growing Veterans Affairs crisis is providing it. With a highly critical VA Inspector General’s report being released the same day, the delegate’s timing could hardly have been worse than to rise to speak to the matter yesterday on the Floor of the U.S. House of Representatives.

The IG report released yesterday confirmed allegations that a Phoenix, VA facility concealed a long waiting list for veterans who needed healthcare treatment. As Faleomavaega took to the Floor with his full-throated (so to speak) defense of the embattled VA leader, retired army general Eric Shinseki, prominent members of his own party in both houses were scurrying to demand the secretary's resignation.

Acknowledging there were new reports of cover-ups in VA facilities, the Samoan delegate, looking old, tired and frail at the podium, argued in a weak and raspy voice that Secretary Shinseki should be given the chance to “fix a system that was broken long before he took charge,” in what might be seen as a little bit of rearguard Bush bashing while ignoring the fact that we are now almost six years into the Obama administration, veterans health was one of Obama’s key campaign pledges and Shinseki has been at the helm of the VA since the beginning. 

Saying “General Shinseki is right for America’s veterans . . . is a tried and proven leader (and is) the highest ranked Asian American in the history of the United States,” Faleomavaega pleaded with Congress to “let us stand together to do the right thing by our veterans.” So far we have not heard anyone critical of Shinseki being labeled as “racist,” and do hope the delegate’s reference to Shinseki’s Japanese heritage was not a subtle opening shot but he did misstate the secretary’s place in history. He must have meant to say Shinseki was the highest ranked Asian American military officer in American history because there have been Asian American cabinet officers in the past, as recently as Labor Secretary Elaine Chao in the Bush administration.

Faleomavaega then concluded by addressing his remarks to the secretary: “I say this to Secretary Shinseki: Do not resign.  We are with you.  Go for broke and let’s clean up this mess that has been there way before you took over.”

Perhaps Faleomavaega can take some small comfort from the fact that at the moment he finds himself “sort of” on the same side of House Speaker John Boehner (R-OH), who this morning again declined to call for Shinseki to step down despite the growing chorus from both Republicans and Democrats that he do so.

“I’m going to continue to reserve judgment on General Shinseki,” Boehner said at a press conference following a meeting of the House GOP. “The question I ask myself is, is him resigning going to get us to the bottom of the problem? Is it going to help us find out what’s really going on? And the answer I keep getting is no.”

Boehner wisely is staying above the fray for the moment and following the old Napoleon dictum to never interfere when your adversary is busy destroying himself. Boehner and other Republicans on the sidelines no doubt are just as happy to let the Democrats wallow in the VA mess.

Meanwhile, NBC’s “First Read” blog weighed in this morning with this: “Well, it's official: The Democratic dam broke on Wednesday in demanding VA Secretary Eric Shinseki's resignation after an inspector general's preliminary report confirmed long wait times and misconduct at VA hospitals. The first Democrat to call for his resignation was Sen. Mark Udall (D-CO), who's in a competitive race for re-election. Next was appointed Sen. John Walsh (D-MT), who's also running a tough race. Then came Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) and Al Franken (D-MN). So now that the dam is broken, the questions become: WHEN does Shinseki resign, and WHO replaces him?”

“So they need to find someone,” continued First Read, “and find him or her quickly. But they've also got to find the right person, too. Shinseki doesn't go until the White House finds a suitable replacement. They know they look like they've been slow to respond on this; the last thing they are likely to do is simply leave a void at the top of the VA while they try to find a replacement. And that appears to be where we're at right now -- searching for a replacement.”

Faleomavaega’s decision to jump into this controversy marching to the beat of his own drummer is puzzling, especially since he announced earlier this year that during his rehabilitation from the strokes he is suspected to have suffered last fall that he would be concentrating on American Samoa issues. Since he was not home for Memorial Day when virtually every Member of Congress was, it must be assumed he is still rehabilitating probably under doctor’s orders not to take long air trips.

Perhaps it has to do with a friendship that might have developed over the fact that they are contemporaries (Shinseki is 10 months older) who both grew up in Hawaii and served in the army at the same time in their early adulthood. Since Faleomavaega reportedly spent the early part of his rehabilitation at a VA facility in the San Francisco Bay area, perhaps Shinseki pulled some strings to get some priority treatment from his fellow Aloha stater and Faleomavaega is paying him back. Another possibility is that since he injected race into his short speech, maybe he is merely closing ranks with a fellow Asia Pacific American. Or, perhaps Faleomavaega really is out of touch with what is going on around him.

The subject of race was not very ambiguous when he took to the Floor on a second occasion yesterday, this time to deliver a lengthier speech on one of his pet projects: changing the name of the Washington Redskins football team. Over the past year, the delegate has been at the forefront of a move to force Redskins team owner Dan Snyder drop the nickname Redskins as being racist, accusing him of bigotry as bad as that of outgoing Los Angeles Clippers owner Donald Sterling. Again, another issue not particularly burning here but perhaps Faleomavaega was emboldened to renew his crusade by the recent letter to Snyder on this subject signed by 50 members of the U.S. Senate—all Democrats.

In a USA Today story several days ago, a former top aide to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said he thought Snyder would not be moved by a letter from 50 senators and further stated there was “no chance” that a bill offered by Faleomavaega last year canceling Redskins’ trademarks would pass. The bill has been stuck in a subcommittee of the House Judiciary Committee since introduction.

The delegate seems to revel in championing lost causes and pick fights where none are necessary. Earlier this year, an initiative with the Agriculture Department was taken to reduce the “Buy American” content of canned tuna. Samoa News asked Office of Insular Affairs Director Nikolao Pula if the Interior Department were aware of the move and he responded that although it was an Agriculture issue he had been made aware of the issue by folks who contacted his office several days before the arrival of an official letter dated Feb. 4, 2014, from Congressman Faleomavaega to Interior Secretary Sally Jewell. He said his office received a copy of that letter Feb. 7.

For some inexplicable reason, Pula’s innocuous response set off Faleomavaega, who fired off a press release in which he was quoted as saying “On February 4, 2014, I… submitted a letter and…same power point presentation to U.S. Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell, which was faxed and received in her office at 1:51 pm on February 4, which is contrary to Mr. Pula’s comments that the letter was received late afternoon on February 5.  Included with my letter to Secretary Jewell was substantial information on the subject from The Hill and The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.”

“Also, according to emails my office received from OIA, my letter to Secretary Jewell was received by OIA on February 6, which is contrary to Mr. Pula’s comments that OIA received a copy of my letter on February 7.  For the record, as a matter of protocol, Members of Congress write directly to the Secretary and it is up to the Secretary’s office to transmit the information accordingly.”

“Also, as a matter of record, on February 7, 2014, OIA asked my office for the names and contact information of the persons at USDA with whom we are communicating and, in response, my office offered to set up an appointment between OIA, USDA officials and my staff to ensure that all messages remain consistent.  OIA responded that they would prefer to have a separate meeting so my office connected OIA by email to our USDA contacts.  USDA officials informed OIA via email that a meeting had already taken place with my office but if OIA had specific questions about the report that were still outstanding that they would be happy to answer them.”

“As of today, our USDA contacts have informed my office that they have not heard back from OIA, which is okay, since as Mr. Pula has stated in Samoa News, ‘this issue is directed at a program managed by the US Department of Agriculture, not Interior.’  Nevertheless, I continue to welcome OIA’s involvement in any future meetings about this issue.” 

This is not the full release but it should be enough to demonstrate his overkill on this subject. Now we all know that the Interior Secretary received a fax on this issue at 1:51 p.m. on February 4 although he did not explain how he was able to include a powerpoint presentation in the fax. One is also left to wonder why the background information he included with his letter came from newspaper clippings and not research conducted by his own staff following the issue in Congress.

Maybe it is not the effects of the suspected stroke but just a flair for creating enemies. He demonstrated that talent last September before he took ill when he commented on President Obama’s appointment of Esther Kia’aina as next assistant secretary for insular affairs. In a press release congratulating her on her appointment, among other things he said “Although I was in support of Nikolao Pula as the candidate for the position, I look forward to working closely with Kia‘āina.”

In the space of a single sentence he managed to embarrass Pula, a career Interior official who may not have wanted known publicly he was seeking the job or was passed over, alienated Kia’aina by signaling she wasn’t his first choice and announcing publicly his lack of influence in getting his own choice selected. So the fact that he telegraphed once again his lack of influence yesterday on the Floor by announcing Snyder ignored his letter asking him to change the name of the Redskins should come as no surprise.

Obama ignored him on the OIA appointment, Snyder ignored him on the Redskins name change and now we shall see if Shinseki ignores his plea not to resign. Stay tuned. If his Mormon Church ever were to develop a system of saints, Faleomavaega would be a strong candidate to be selected as the church’s patron saint for lost causes.

Memorial Day: Faleomavaega Again a No Show

It has been just over seven months now that Faleomavaega continues to have been absent from public view.  Despite the insistence of friends, family and staff on island that he is “doing just fine,” few are fooled by the few public appearances he has made since suffering last October what are rumored to have been two strokes.  No one is certain because his office has provided no information on his health situation.   His two video appearances (one a brief Christmas message and the other a one-minute speech on the House Floor about Flag Day) and two photographs (one with ASG Homeland Security Director Utuali'i Iuniasolua T. Savusa and another with visiting Close Up Foundation students from home) seem staged and give little reassurance to anyone back here that he is alive, well and at his duty station in Washington.

To the contrary, although no one knows what he is doing in Washington, people are very aware that he was not here for Flag Day last month and now his participation in Memorial Day activities has been reduced to his office issuing a short statement on his behalf.   Readers of this blog will recall he shamefully piggybacked on this solemn holiday three years ago to launch a partisan attack  on Republicans in Congress, which, of course, our local media carried word for word.  An obviously more subdued Faleomavaega this year limited himself to remembrances of the war dead.

Not only has Faleomavaega missed Flag Day and Memorial Day here this year, we have heard from Washington sources that he also has missed countless meetings of caucuses and committees to which he belongs.  We have monitored on line the live broadcasts of committee hearings in which he normally would be expected to participate because of his interests, the subject matter or his responsibilities, particularly the House insular subcommittee, on which he is the senior Democrat, and the Asia Pacific subcommittee, on which he is the Ranking Democrat, but we can find no one who can say they have seen him at any hearings since last year.

Of course, absence from hearings and meetings is nothing new for Faleomavaega, who has shown a penchant for travel to the far corners of the earth over his quarter century in Congress and has shown little regard for the congressional calendar.  If he wants to go, he goes, whether Congress is in session or not.  It is doubtful any other member of Congress ever has been to Thursday Island, let alone twice, and few have been to Rapanui, where he went to insert himself into a local land dispute.  Both Thursday Island and Rapanui are parts of larger countries (Australia and Chile, respectively) in which he has no responsibilities in any of his committee assignments.

Recent Foreign Affairs Committee trips to East Asia, which he long has considered his back yard, and Ukraine were evidence that all is not well with the wandering delegate.  Although he is not on any subcommittee with responsibility for Ukraine, as a member of the Full Committee he would be invited and more often than not he could be counted on to be on any Congressional delegation that wanted him.  Then-Foreign Affairs subcommittee Chairman Rep. Jim Leach (R-IA) once was reported to have said that although Faleomavaega was annoying, he found it useful to have him around because when there was a need to have a bipartisan delegation to qualify for military aircraft, he could always count on Faleomavaega to sign up—no matter where they were going. 

Indeed, it must have grated Faleomavaega that Rep. Tulsi Gabbard (D-HI) a freshman congresswoman of Samoan descent who is younger than his children, has in at least one hearing served as Ranking Democrat in Faleomavaega’s absence and was a star on the subcommittee’s trip to Asia.  More about that in a subsequent post.

Faleomavaega has done the voters a disservice by remaining silent about his health and only time will tell if as a political calculation it turns out to backfire on him, should he run for re-election.  That is the question on everyone’s mind right now and it gets more and more so on every occasion, like today, when his absence is noticed and as the July 1 date approaches when the candidate filing period opens with the election office.  Indeed, speculation over the seven months of his absence has ranged from him being in a coma to dying of cancer.   

His movement to the House podium, albeit it slow, and his unslurred remarks to talk about Flag Day, the video of which he was eager to distribute on the island, do not suggest any residual physical effects of a stroke but there are credible sources here who say the problem is mental, with Faleomavaega suffering serious memory gaps.  It is said by some that he can be propped up for a short term photo opportunity or pointed to the microphone to deliver a prepared short speech but cannot think very well on his feet. Nevertheless, although he has not publicly announced his intentions, Faleomavaega is indeed officially a candidate in the eyes of the Federal Election Commission: he has a functioning campaign committee and already has raised funds for this election cycle.  

Moreover, he could win, just as U.S. Rep. Gladys Spellman (D-MD) did once even though she was in a coma at the time.  Indeed, Congress was in a dilemma over what to do because there is no prohibition against running while in a coma (or from behind bars, for that matter) and if the voters choose to elect someone anyway, that is their choice.  It was only when she did not revive that after six months they declared her seat vacant because she was unable to take the oath of office.  By the way, she remained ina coma for eight years before passing away at age 70, the same age Faleomavaega is now. 

Our local media either is not interested or is too lazy to go to the Federal Election Commission records where they would learn that Faleomavaega already has raised over $40,000 for this election cycle, which is a substantial amount for a small race like this one.  Indeed, it may be more money already than any other congressional candidate ever has raised for an entire campaign here.  It would not be that hard to research from FEC records.

His contributions come largely from tuna interests and people with Asian surnames, and many donations are for $2,000 or more, including one person at the maximum $2,600 allowed.  Surely these folks are not just throwing money down a rat hole.   Faleomavaega must be sending them a signal, probably through his chief enforcer, Lisa Williams, that he intends to run again.  His congressional office chief of staff, the feared and hated Williams, also is often on his campaign payroll as a fundraiser in election years. 

It is probably the uncertainty of Faleomavaega’s intentions that are keeping most potential candidates on the sidelines for now.  Only two people have announced their candidacies so far: ASCC employee Fuala'au 'Rosie' Tago Lancaster, a retired army warrant officer, and the Governor’s deputy senior policy adviser, Tua’au Kereti Mata’utia.  Both have run before and run poorly, and neither is considered much of a threat.  Lancaster has not reported to FEC any money raised this cycle and Mata’utia has not even registered a committee with the federal regulatory body (and did not do so last time, either, although he is a lawyer and should know his federal obligations).

Names of potential candidates being mentioned in the rumor mill include Faleomavaega’s sister Vaitinasa Dr. Salu Hunkin-Finau, who is director of Education for the government and a failed gubernatorial candidate in 2012, and Fai’ivae Alex Godinet, who is long-time director of Faleomavaega’s district office but has never run for office.  Both are thought to be “heirs-apparent” behind one of whom Faleomavaega conceivably would through his weight and lend his organization, should he bow out.  A third potential candidate who falls into that category is Homeland Security Director Savusa, who not only had his photo taken with Faleomavaega on a recent trip to Washington but has been “nominated” by him to serve on a Pentagon committee reviewing a proposal to establish a National Guard unit in the territory.  More about that in a later blog post.  Savusa was an unsuccessful candidate for lt. governor in 2012. 

Beyond those three potential heirs-apparent, none of whom likely would run if Faleomavaega decided to seek re-election, speculation has centered on former governor Togiola Tulafono, who had a contentious relationship with Faleomavaega during his almost 10 years in office, once even publicly calling for him to retire. Togiola has not filed any paperwork with the FEC.  Finally, there is Aumua Amata Radewagen, who has run unsuccessfully several times in the past but could be a contender in a multi-candidate race if she could hold her base vote.  Her committee remains active at FEC but she has raised only a token $850 this cycle and while she has kept in the public eye, she has not signaled her plans.  Whether Faleomavaega runs or not, it could be as much as a five-person race this fall or maybe more, if one of the usual delusional loons on the island also jumps into the contest.

We are updating our poll to add the names of all these speculated candidates.  Regrettably, this blog system’s polling app will not allow us to modify the current poll, so we are going to have to take it down and start over.  Our apologies to the enthusiastic Matau’tia supports who have voted him so far the overwhelming favorite to succeed Faleomavaega.  They are just going to have to vote again in the new poll, as will the supporters of any other candidates, if they are of a mind.  The results, of course, are entirely unscientific.

One final note.  This is the sort of speculative or analytical article that virtually every newspaper in America—including those in the other territories—publishes before elections.  Don’t hold your breath, however, waiting for one in our leading media:  Radio 93KHJ-FM or Samoa News.  In fairness, the radio station’s news format does not lend itself well to long form analysis.  Samoa News, on the other hand, does have the capacity but simply does not carry much political news beyond a single story about a candidate when he or she announces a candidacy.  There long has been speculation in the community that Samoa News has an unwritten policy not to carry political news as a means of driving up revenue by forcing candidates to spend more money with them on advertising.  Shameful and unethical by most U.S. journalism standards, but not illegal.

Speaking of local media, they seem again to have reverted once again to publishing Faleomavaega’s news releases without any caveats on their veracity.

Faleomavaega still missing; American Samoa in Legislative Danger

We watched the internet-streamed hearing with bated breath today as House Foreign Affairs Asia Pacific Subcommittee Chairman Steve Chabot (R-OH) announced that a Samoan member of the panel would be Ranking Minority Member.  Only that Member was not 13-term veteran American Samoa Del. Eni Faleomavaega but Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard (D-HI), who has only been in office for 13 months.  We found no small irony in Gabbard quickly taking the seat Faleomavaega waited years to earn.

This was the important overview hearing on U.S. policy towards the Asia-Pacific region that will set the tone for the subcommittee’s deliberations over the balance of this session of Congress.  At the outset, Chabot announced that Faleomavaega was unable to be there so Gabbard would serve as Ranking Member.  Oh, the irony.  It is clear that, given his passion for Asia-Pacific issues and given his status as Ranking Member, few things would have kept him from participating in that hearing.  One of those things would be illness.  Gabbard did a very creditable job and viewers also were spared having to put up with Eni’s typical harangues and whining.

While nothing was directly at stake for American Samoa in today’s hearing, there are other matters afoot in Congress that need the personal attention of the delegate. On January 8 we posted a blog headlined “Faleomavaega Absence Could Destroy American Samoa Private Economy.”    Sadly, it appears our worst fears may be coming true.  Just as he was caught napping when the House included American Samoa in its 2007 bill raising the U.S. minimum wage, Faleomavaega was caught off guard by language which was put into the Consolidated Appropriations Act report that mandates the Secretary of Agriculture to come back to Congress in 60 days with options to end the requirement that tuna sold to the U.S. for school lunches be 100% American caught, processed and canned.

In 2007, Faleomavaega was away from Washington (as he so often is) while his House Democrat colleagues--fresh back in the majority after 12 years in the wilderness--were putting the finishing touches on the bills they planned to offer at the opening bell of the session.  A minimum wage raise, which they promised in the campaign, was at the top of the list.

Eni raced back to Washington to speak against it before final passage but he was too late.  The die already had been cast and he was not around to explain to his colleagues why adding American Samoa would hurt our economy.  Over subsequent years, he has tried to cover himself by blaming Republicans but anyone who knows how Congress works knows that the House Majority can strip out of any bill any language it does not want in there.

This time, the Republicans are in charge and one of them added language to the appropriations bill that would weaken the “Buy American” requirement for tuna in school lunches.  It is impossible to know if Eni could have stopped it but, lying in a bed in Utah attempting to recover from what is thought to be a severe stroke he suffered in October, once again he was not in place to do anything about it. 

When we wrote about this issue, it was part of the Farm Bill that was working its way through the system.  But, given the uncertainty of that bill’s fate at the time, one of the senior members of the Appropriations Committee had the language added to the report of the Appropriations bill, which was on the verge of and ultimately did pass and was signed into law by President Obama.

Now once again American Samoa is behind the eight ball.  Op-ed pieces for Capitol Hill publications have been written in his name and a slew of press releases in his name have been sent out on the issue.  But no one is fooled except maybe the people.  Talanei.com and particularly Samoa News may think they are covering themselves by saying that “according to a statement issued by Faleomavaega’s office,” but then the go on to use quotes that undoubtedly are written by staff to mask the fact that Eni simply is still not in Washington after nearly four months.  Most readers and listeners believe he is hard at work on these issues when he is not. His absence at today’s hearing is proof.

Meanwhile, the Farm Bill now has been passed by both houses and is on its way to the President for signature.  What kind of language is in it on “Buy America?”  Also yesterday it was announced that the full D.C. Circuit Court has agreed to hear the American Samoa citizenship case.  Faleomavaega filed a friend of the court brief before he took ill arguing against imposition of citizenship.   What will happen with him out of commission?  And House Democrats are moving ahead with plans to raise the minimum wage yet again, this time to $10.10/hour.   Senate Democrats have the votes to pass it.  What if House Republicans go along?

Lots of questions but unfortunately, if our local media is seeking answers to them, they are not informing us what they are asking and what responses they are getting.  It is now at the point that Faleomavaega reminds us of the title character in the Terminator movie.  If you remember the end of the movie, the Terminator is taking so much punishment, his outer skin has been all blown away.  Finally, the hero sticks dynamite in his rib cage and blows the Terminator all to bits.  But the hand and the upper torso keep on crawling.

Eni is like that.  Against all odds, he keeps on coming.  Only in his case, it is madness.  What has he got left to prove??

Faleomavaega on Hillary’s Hit List?

It recently has been revealed that former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has been keeping a score card or “hit list” of those who did or did not endorse her in her first run for the presidency in 2008 against Barack Obama.  Please read this PoliticoMagazine story for greater details about the list.

It is no secret that Faleomavaega was one of Obama’s earliest backers while then Gov. Togiola Tulafono endorsed then-Sen. Clinton.  When she came through here as Secretary a few years ago, we all watched carefully as Faleomavaega used his precious time with her on the ground to plead for debt relief for Cambodia while Togiola asked that American Samoa be allowed to seek official observer status at the Pacific Islands Forum—a dream that had eluded several governors before him but was always denied by State.

It also did not go unnoticed on the island that when Mrs. Clinton returned to Washington, nothing further was done on Cambodian debt relief but she did announce that State would change its long-standing policy and allow its Pacific territories to participate at the Forum as observers.

With the odds high that Mrs. Clinton will be the Democratic Party’s nominee in 30 months time, the local Democratic party would do well to hustle Faleomavaega into retirement as quickly as possible so that American Samoa is not disadvantaged under a Clinton presidency.  It could be a lose/lose situation for us: Hillary wins and we get punished because Eni is on her hit list; Hillary loses and we get punished because Republicans control the White House as well as the House.

Here is why the time right for Faleomavaega to put in his retirement papers:

•  he supported Obama over Hillary in 2008 (and as far as we can tell, has gotten nothing for it) and is probably on her hit list described in the Politico article;  

•  he is suffering severe health problems and is no longer up to the job;  even if he were not ill, he now is over 70 years old and while age and wisdom are valued in our culture, not so in Washington; there are few members of the House over 70;  

•  he no longer has Senator Inouye on whom to rely in a tight legislative spot; had the Senator still been alive and been in charge of appropriations on the Senate side, the reduction of Buy America for tuna never would have been in the final appropriations bill and Eni was not around to try to stop it himself;

• the retirements of allies Reps. George Miller and Henry Waxman take away two people on whom he could rely for help in the House (although it was Miller who sandbagged him and continues to sandbag him on minimum wage);

• even if he were healthy, he served on a committee, Foreign Affairs, of little value to us and we have seen no evidence that his service as the senior Democrat on the Asia-Pacific subcommittee has brought us any benefits; he is in and out of places like Seoul and Bangkok all the time but there is no evidence that StarKist or Chicken of the Sea are influenced by him at all;

• he never will serve in the Majority again--ever;  Democrats already pretty much are conceding control of the House this fall, with even the DNC chairman saying so; the earliest that Democrats might return to power in the House is 2022 after the next redistricting; were he still alive and in office, Eni would be approaching 80;  we need someone new to start building seniority now; if you aren't in the Majority, you are nothing; if you are a non-voting delegate in the Minority, you are less than nothing, particularly if you have a worthless committee assignment;

Over the years, Faleomavaega has been one of those who has taken the time to stake out his ground on the House floor so as to be seen on television.  We watched very carefully this year and while we saw the Guam and Virgin Islands delegates well positioned to greet the President as he strode past them on the way to the dais, Faleomavaega was nowhere to be seen.  Even though his office continues to furiously pump out news releases (including one commenting on Obama’s speech), and our local media continue to use them (especially Samoa News, where his sister-in-law is on the editorial staff) as if he were back in his office, we have no evidence to suggest he is in Washington at all.

We have not yet called for his early retirement but if this Buy America problem does not get resolved, then maybe he needs to reconsider.  It is clear that representing American Samoa by press release and letters issued from bed is not doing the job.  It may be time to go.