Setting the Record Straight
You may have received a mailing from my political opponents during the 2006 campaign attacking my wife and distorting my record. I am happy to say that my opponents' decision to “go negative” in a last-minute attempt to manipulate the voters of the 28th District failed. Let me set the record straight.
As is well known, in 2001, Honolulu Councilmember Andy Mirikitani was convicted of extortion and witness tampering in Federal District Court. One of the witnesses he tampered with was my wife, Cindy McMillan. One of the people he extorted was my wife. In fact, as a victim of a federal crime, the government informs my wife every time there is a change in Mirikitani’s criminal status.
Before I ran for office, the Republicans called my wife a “hero” for the role she played in the Mirikitani case. The conservative Hawaii Reporter on at least two occasions stated, and this is a quote, “His staffers – McMillan and Serikawa – were the heroes in the case and helped bring justice to the taxpayers.” Once I ran for office, the story changed and my opponents tried to twist my wife’s role into a negative. Don’t believe it. It took a lot of courage for her to stand up to Mirikitani and I’m as proud of her as I can be.
Andy Mirikitani abused his power and I am proud of my wife’s role in ending that abuse of power. Mirikitani served over four years in prison for the crimes he committed. My wife testified truthfully at his trial despite Mirikitani’s pressure on her not to. For my opponents to have implied that my wife or I behaved dishonorably is simply nonsense.