Trending on Twitter: David Ige Facts!
New accounts assails Hawaii Democrat running for governor on votes, bills, education, the homeless and more.
Screen shot from David Ige Facts, Oct. 2, 2014.
Yesterday I reported on a new Twitter account titled Duke Aiona’s Brain, a clear attack on the Republican candidate for governor of Hawaii. Today we share with you another new Twitter account called David Ige Facts.
Ige is the Democratic Party nominee running against Aiona. Unlike the anti-Aiona tweets, however, which are heavy on humor and sometimes profane, the anti-Ige tweets focus on key criticisms of the state senator in boring, repetitive fashion. Here’s the first one, posted last month:
David Ige introduced a bill SB438 to raise pension tax! #poorleadership#davidige#ige4hawaii#higov… http://t.co/yI1GIHG4dh
— David Ige Facts (@davidigefacts) September 18, 2014
In fact, Ige introduced the bill in question by request of another, unidentified party, a common practice at the Hawaii Legislature. It in no way means that Ige actually wanted to raise the pension tax.
Other tweets, however, point out things for which Ige, the chairman of Senate Ways and Means, which helps craft the state budget, arguably shares some responsibility. Civil Beat, for example, has reported on the problem of no air-conditioning in most public schools. This tweet makes that link:
242 Hawaii Public Schools without AC. Children in 95 degree classrooms…. http://t.co/Nt4IHUbR30
— David Ige Facts (@davidigefacts) September 18, 2014
Other issues for which Ige may be less responsible are also cited on David Ige Facts. For example, while it’s true that the homeless population has grown over the past four years, the blame is more likely due to many reasons. But David Ige Facts wants viewers to blame Ige and Gov. Neil Abercrombie:
David Ige – 30% more homeless since we took office. #hprgov#poorleadership#davidige#ige4hawaii#higovpic.twitter.com/2hkMwaFNp9
— David Ige Facts (@davidigefacts) September 23, 2014
David Ige Facts lacks humor — unless you include the lame attack the Abercrombie camp used and is being used in this account about Ige’s accounting error on the state budget. It was an error, and Ige took responsibility for it, but it certainly didn’t hurt Ige in the primary, where he crushed Abercrombie in a historic.
There is also the occasional odd tweet that seems out of sync with the account’s intent:
When David Ige prays to God, he does it with his eyes closed. #pbsinsights#davidige#ige4hawaii#higov#hipoliticspic.twitter.com/qmKk9i4K1x
— David Ige Facts (@davidigefacts) September 26, 2014
As I wrote about Duke Aiona’s Brian, I don’t know who the author is of this Twitter account. But this person definitely pays close attention to Hawaii politics and wants Ige to lose. So far, though, only seven people are “following,” and one of them is me.
