{"id":2945,"date":"2026-07-23T10:35:59","date_gmt":"2026-07-23T10:35:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/?p=2945"},"modified":"2026-07-23T10:35:59","modified_gmt":"2026-07-23T10:35:59","slug":"gov-green-four-mayors-bring-laughs-to-final-day-of-native-hawaiian-convention","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/?p=2945","title":{"rendered":"Gov. Green, four mayors bring laughs to final day of Native Hawaiian Convention"},"content":{"rendered":"
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HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) – Gov. Josh Green and the four county mayors closed out the Native Hawaiian Convention with a panel that drew standing ovations, applause, and laughs \u2014 leaning on self-deprecating humor and personal stories rather than policy.<\/p>\n

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Green moderated the session, which featured Honolulu Mayor Rick Blangiardi, Hawai\u02bbi County Mayor Kimo Alameda, Maui County Mayor Richard Bissen, and Kaua\u02bbi Mayor Derek Kawakami.<\/p>\n

Green and Blangiardi trade jabs<\/h2>\n

Green opened with a remark about the makeup of the panel.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt is not lost on me on how much Hawaiians we have here in our mayors,\u201d Green said. \u201cNo offense, Blangiardi and me … \u2018cause he is whiter than I am.\u201d<\/p>\n

<\/div>\n

Green later added of Blangiardi, \u201cAnd for a rich bastard to care about the poor so much, it has been incredible to see.\u201d<\/p>\n

Blangiardi fired back: \u201cYou got a good laugh out of that. I think it was at my expense. You don\u2019t want me in a campaign year to start on you. I will turn this into the Josh Green roast in a nano second. You really want to go there with me. Do you really want to do that.\u201d<\/p>\n

Mayors open up on leadership, lessons learned and family<\/h2>\n

Alameda, who mentioned the loss of his wife two years ago and the challenges of raising children as a single parent, drew laughs describing life at home with seven kids.<\/p>\n

\u201cI get my seven kids. I get three of them activists, four of them semi-activists,\u201d Alameda said. \u201cI hear it all the time when I get home, \u2018Dad, what do you think about that?\u2019 Or \u2018How come not this?\u2019 So if you think I\u2019m a conspiracy theorist, go talk to my kids.\u201d<\/p>\n

Bissen, who is running for re-election, spoke about the gap between public expectations and the reality of the job.<\/p>\n

\u201cPeople think you know everything about their projects. Like whatever they\u2019re working on, they assume you know every part of it,\u201d Bissen said.<\/p>\n

Read more California family \u2018totally overwhelmed\u2019 after large fight at Kaanapali resort<\/a><\/p>\n

He also acknowledged the difficulty of juggling his public and family life.<\/p>\n

\u201cI have a lot of arguments with my staff over where I\u2019m supposed to be and where I would rather be. I actually want to be here, you guys,\u201d Bissen said to audience laughter.<\/p>\n

<\/div>\n

Kawakami, who is running for lieutenant governor, spoke about his approach to the role.<\/p>\n

\u201cI really felt I was able to rewrite some of the norms of being mayor,\u201d Kawakami said. \u201cI didn\u2019t let the title become my identity. I still get out there at reggae concerts and I\u2019m dancing in the crowd.\u201d<\/p>\n

Panel closes with a round of self-descriptions<\/h2>\n

Green asked each mayor how their staff would describe them in two or three words.<\/p>\n

Bissen said, \u201cWhat a guy.\u201d He then countered, \u201cThey wouldn\u2019t say that. I think they would say funny. I think they would say reliable and I think they would say integrity.\u201d<\/p>\n

<\/div>\n

Kawakami answered for himself: \u201cFunny, grouchy, non-communicative.\u201d He then added, \u201cI\u2019m not the best surfer, but I\u2019m having the most fun and you know what? If a wave comes, I\u2019m going to go.\u201d<\/p>\n

Alameda said: \u201cEnergetic, compassionate,\u201d then added with a laugh, \u201cI always get once in a while, podagee.\u201d<\/p>\n

Blangiardi kept it brief: \u201cIt\u2019s more about what I hope they wouldn\u2019t say. As example, \u2018He\u2019s an a**hole.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

Read more HPD says officer discharged firearm at \u2018large pit bull\u2019 in Kalaeloa<\/a><\/p>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Gov. Josh Green and the four county mayors closed the Native Hawaiian Convention with a panel mixing laughs, personal stories and self-deprecating humor.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2944,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2945","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"yoast_head":"\nGov. Green, four mayors bring laughs to final day of Native Hawaiian Convention - Hawaii Moving Insider<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/hawaiimovinginsider.com\/?p=2945\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Gov. 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