That’s according to this article, which was published Tuesday. Among other things, reporter Philip Rucker says that Gov. Neil Abercrombie explained why he disagreed with Dan Inouye‘s deathbed wish to appoint Colleen Hanabusa to his seat:

The governor said he thought Hanabusa, now 62, was too old to build enough seniority in the Senate to continue Inouye’s legacy of steering an outsize allowance of federal money to Hawaii.

Noting that Inouye entered the Senate in 1963 at age 38, Abercrombie said: “Brian Schatz is 41. Colleen isn’t. She’s in her 60s.”

Rucker said Hanabusa described Abercrombie’s focus on her age as “rather offensive.” Rucker continues:

Over lunch at Zippy’s, a local casual-dining chain, Hanabusa sounded angry and at times bitter that Abercrombie passed her over for Schatz, whose résumé in state government she believes does not stack up to hers.

“By saying that he’s putting somebody in so they can get seniority, it’s like saying to the voters, ‘You’re not relevant. Here’s somebody who’s going to be there forever,’ ” Hanabusa said. “No one — no one — should feel that level of entitlement. …”

Rucker writes, “In Hanabusa’s candidacy, what remains of Inouye’s mostly Japanese American political machine is fighting for supremacy against a younger and whiter progressive wing that is trying to become Hawaii’s new ruling class.”

Photo: Hanabusa v. Schatz. (Courtesy the respective campaigns)

—Chad Blair