Getting elected was ‘easy;’ now comes the job of governing

Now comes the hard part.Candidates who presumably bared their souls and

gave a true picture of their leadership and goals during the 2000 election

campaign met their political makers and breakers yesterday. Voters chose

national, state and local leaders for the next few years.

That was easy

compared to what lies ahead.

The new president must unite the nation on

domestic issues that often seem hazy or distant. Social Security. The cost of

healthcare. And so on. The silver lining is that these issues and others

appear to have pragmatic and effective solutions in the offing.

The next

president must also try to prolong a generally strong economy, deal with the

ever-looming threat of terrorism against Americans on our own shores and

worldwide, and help maintain international peace without plunging the United

States into warfare.

Good luck, Mr. President-elect. We support you in this

most difficult of all jobs.

We also wish the best to Hawaii’s congressional

delegates, state legislators and Board of Education members who face daunting

tasks that were assigned to them by yesterday’s voting. The newly elected

Office of Hawaiian Affairs Board of Trustees also faces a politically charged

mission that’s as complicated as the list of 96 OHA candidates from which

voters had to choose.

Closer to home, Kaua’i County Council candidates who

made the grade yesterday must grapple with their constitutents’ future on

numerous weighty matters: Electricity (Who will buy Kaua’i Electric, and how

will rates be kept under control?). Garbage (How will it be managed and

disposed without compromising the island’s environment?). Land-use (What type

of commercial development, and how much?). Transportation (Bigger and more

roads to handle traffic? Expanded public ransit?).

On some of these island

issues, work is already underway. But progress is the key. It’s one thing to

talk in generalities about possible solutions. It’s quite another to forge

ahead and turn words and studies into action.

Again, the job isn’t easy.

But somebody has to do it. The people who wanted it have been hired. Now it’s

time to get to work.