Kaʻū News Briefs, Thursday, June 1, 2023

Po'o Wai U is a traditional Hawaiian competition that evolved from catching cattle in the wild and tying them to trees while gathering the rest. Photo by Leilani Esperanza

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HAWAI'I SENATORS VOTED FOR THE U.S. TO PAY ITS BILLS on Thursday, lifting the nation's debt ceiling for two years. The vote among Democrats, Republicans and Independents was 63 yea and 36 nay.       Sen. Mazie Hirono said, "That America will pay its bills should not be questioned. And yet, MAGA Republicans not only questioned this constitutional responsibility, but engaged in hostage negotiations to massively cut government services seniors, keiki, and our communities rely on.

U.S. Senate passed the debt ceiling bill Thursday evening to allow the federal government to  pay its bills. NPR image

    "Today, I voted to avoid a default on the national debt, which would have been catastrophic for our country, the global economy, and families across Hawaii. While I appreciate President Biden rejecting Republicans' most extreme demands and preventing default, certain provisions in this bill take our country in the wrong direction, including those that increase work requirements for federal assistance and permit the Mountain Valley Pipeline.
    "The House MAGA majority's dangerous political brinksmanship shows all too clearly their willingness to hold our country hostage to advance their radical and harmful political agenda. This outrageous behavior must stop. Elections matter.
    "Now that we've avoided default, we need to act to take the threat of default off the table moving forward. We cannot continue to allow the full faith and credit of the United States to regularly be taken hostage as a political weapon. Whether through legislative action, clarification of Section 4 of the 14th Amendment, or another path, eliminating the debt limit is critical in order to prevent these MAGA-manufactured crises moving forward. I'll continue working with my colleagues to do exactly that."

POLICE ARRESTED 22 FOR DUI during the week of May 22 through May 28. Hawai'i Police Department made the arrests for driving under the influence of an intoxicant. Three drivers were involved in a traffic collision. Three were under the age of 21. So far this year, there have been 416 DUI arrests compared with 443 during the same period last year, a decrease of 6.1 percent.
    Hawai‘i Police Department’s Traffic Services Section reviewed all updated crashes and found 362 major collisions so far this year compared with 317 during the same period last year, an increase of 14.2 percent. To date, there have been eight fatal crashes, resulting in nine fatalities, (one of which had multiple deaths); compared with 14 fatal crashes, resulting in 16 fatalities (one of which had multiple deaths) for the same time last year. This represents a decrease of 42.9 percent for fatal crashes, and 43.8 percent for fatalities. Police promise that DUI roadblocks and patrols will continue island wide.

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