One moke story bout drinkin’ at da state Capitol an’ tryin’ fo’ bus’ lawmakas fo’ drunk drivin’ wen put one rookie lawmakah in plenny hot wata wit her colleagues. ??
State Rep. Natalia Hussey-Burdick wen say sorry aftah da whole kine, but experts stay tinking she wen hurt her own long-term careah by losing da trust of her Democratic Party group. ?♀️?
Plenny sources say Hussey-Burdick wen try fo’ use drinkin’ at one aftah-hours party at da state Capitol fo’ bus’ her colleagues cuz dey wen kill one bill she wen push. ??
Da bill wen die wen da House Finance Committee neva schedule one hearin’ befo’ da deadline fo’ go ova to da Senate, even dough had one rally an’ midwives wen occupy House offices. ??⚕️
Da night of da drinkin’ party in one House conference room, oddah lawmakas say Hussey-Burdick wen bring shot glasses an’ push da drinkin’, den wen tell da midwives fo’ call da cops. ??✈️
Wen Hawaii News Now wen ask Hussey-Burdick bout da story two weeks ago, she wen say, “I no know anyting bout dat.” Oddah lawmakas neva like talk on top record. ?♀️?
But aftah Civil Beat wen publish one story Wednesday, Hussey-Burdick wen make one statement Thursday aftahnoon wea she wen confirm some of da basics. She wen write: ??
“I wen text one friend bout my worries dat some peepo at da party stay lookin’ like dey goin’ drive drunk, an’ my friend wen tell da HPD. Da cops neva come, an’ instead, da word of dis tip to da police wen make it to da peepo at da party. ??
“Aftah plenny tinkin’, I see now dat da kind ting fo’ do in dis situation would be fo’ check wit my colleagues an’ try fo’ set up one safe way fo’ dem fo’ go home. I wen say sorry to my colleagues fo’ choosin’ one unkind way fo’ go.” ??
Da statement neva make her colleagues feel bettah, who wen say on da down low dey felt she wen try fo’ hurt dea political careahs while understating her part in pushing da heavy drinkin’ at da party. ??
“I stay tinking you fo’ lookin’ into dis cuz da Civil Beat article wen get plenny wrong kine stuffs,” Hussey-Burdick wen say. “I wen release one statement bout it an’ dat’s all I goin’ say.” Wen dey wen ask if her statement stay fully true, she wen say, “It stay true da best of my knowledge an’ dat’s all I goin’ say bout dat.” ?️?
Da colleagues, all mad, at first wen like Hussey-Burdick fo’ be kicked out of da Democratic group o’ even wen like expel her, but den dey wen agree bettah fo’ keep da whole ting on da down low. ??
House Speaker Scott Saiki wen say no goin’ get official kine discipline. ?❌
“She still get all her assignments in place. No discipline being taken,” Saiki wen say, pointin’ out dat Hussey-Burdick still stay as vice chair of da House Tourism Committee. ?️?
Saiki wen say da disciplinary process fo’ members stay hard fo’ do. ??
“Da House would need fo’ make one special committee dat would do public hearings on da mattah,” he wen say, den aftah dat, get one recommendation fo’ discipline an’ one vote of da full House. ?️?️
University of Hawaii Political Science Professor Colin Moore wen say no surprise da lawmakas neva like da episode fo’ go public. ??
“It really kine make da institution look bad,” Moore wen say. ??
“It’s fo’ shua, I tink dat’s one of da reasons why no one like talk about dis. Fo’ any lawmakah, no mo’ upside hea ― everybody look bad in dis story.” ??
Even dough Hussey-Burdick no goin’ face any official kine discipline, da unofficial punishment by her colleagues could be rough: She need dea support fo’ get bills passed or improvements to da state facilities fo’ her district. ??️
NOW IN ENGLISH
??️ Freshman Lawmaker Tries to Bust Fellow Legislators for Drunk Driving ??
A strange story about drinking at the state Capitol and attempts to get lawmakers arrested for drunk driving has put a rookie lawmaker in hot water with her colleagues. ??
State Rep. Natalia Hussey-Burdick has apologized following the incident, but experts believe she may have damaged her own long-term career prospects by losing the trust of her Democratic Party caucus. ?♀️?
Multiple sources say Hussey-Burdick tried to use drinking at an after-hours party at the state Capitol to retaliate against her colleagues for killing a bill she sponsored. ??
The bill died when the House Finance Committee did not schedule a hearing before the deadline for crossover to the Senate, despite a rally and midwives occupying House offices. ??⚕️
On the night of the drinking party in a House conference room, fellow lawmakers said Hussey-Burdick brought shot glasses and encouraged drinking, then told the midwives to call the police. ??✈️
When Hawaii News Now first asked Hussey-Burdick about the story two weeks ago, she said, “I don’t know anything about that.” Other lawmakers declined to speak on the record. ?♀️?
But after Civil Beat published a story on Wednesday, Hussey-Burdick issued a statement on Thursday afternoon that seemed to confirm some of the basics. She wrote: ??
“I texted a friend about my concerns that some people at the party seemed likely to drive drunk, and my friend in turn alerted members of the HPD. The police never arrived, and instead, word of this tip to the police somehow made its way to the people attending the party. ??
“After much introspection, I see now that the kind thing to do in this situation would have been to check in with my colleagues and try to arrange a safe way for them to get home. I have apologized to my colleagues for choosing an unkind course of action.” ??
The statement did not please colleagues who privately said they felt she had tried to damage their political careers while understating her role in encouraging excessive drinking at the party. ??
“I appreciate you looking into this because the Civil Beat article did have a lot of inaccuracies,” Hussey-Burdick said. “I’ve released a statement about it and that’s all I’m going to be saying.” When asked if her statement was fully true, she said, “It is true to the best of my knowledge and that’s all I’ll be saying about that.” ?️?
Outraged colleagues at first demanded Hussey-Burdick be kicked out of the Democratic caucus or even expelled, but then apparently agreed it was better to keep the episode quiet. ??
House Speaker Scott Saiki said there would be no official discipline. ?❌
“She has all of her assignments in place. There is no discipline being taken,” Saiki said, pointing out that Hussey-Burdick still holds her leadership position as vice chair of the House Tourism Committee. ?️?
Saiki said the disciplinary process for members is cumbersome. ??
“The House would have to form a special committee that would conduct public hearings on the matter,” he said, followed by a recommendation for discipline and a vote of the full House. ?️?️
University of Hawaii’s Political Science Professor, Colin Moore, stated that it is not surprising that lawmakers did not want the incident to go public.??
“It really kind of casts a pall on the institution,” Moore said. ??
“It’s certainly, I think that’s one of the reasons why no one wants to talk about this. For any legislator, there’s no upside here ― everyone looks bad in this story.” ??
Although Hussey-Burdick will not face any official discipline, the unofficial punishment by her colleagues could be severe: She needs their support to get bills passed or improvements to state facilities for her district. ??️
