• Home
  • Deals
  • COVID Travel
    • COVID Travel Guide
    • Vaccination Passports
    • Travel After Recovery From COVID
    • Kauai Resort Bubble Options
  • Southwest
    • Latest Updates: SWA Hawaii
    • Southwest Hawaii Deals
    • Southwest Inter-Island Flights
    • Southwest vs. Hawaiian
  • Categories
    • Hawaii Deals
    • Hawaii Airline News
    • Travel Tips
    • Culture and Events
  • Top Picks
    • 25 Ways to Save on Hawaii Car Rentals
    • Free/Cheap Parking Waikiki
    • Jellyfish Warnings 2020
    • Frugal Hawaii | 15 Ways To Save
    • Hawaii Sunscreen | New Law + Health and Safety Updates
  • Kudos
  • Win Free Trips

Beat of Hawaii

Cheap Flights to Hawaii | Hawaii Travel News

Should California Lawmakers Attend Questionable $500+/Night Maui Resort Conference?

November 16, 2020 by Beat of Hawaii 35 Comments

Should California Lawmakers Attend Questionable $500+/Night Maui Resort Conference?

After telling constituents to stay home, not travel interstate, and quarantine on return if they do, 100 lawmakers and lobbyists convened today at a Maui luxury hotel where rooms start at over $500 per night.

The group included both Democratic and Republican lawmakers from California, Washington, and Texas who were there to discuss reopening strategies during the COVID crisis. This news is juxtaposed with yesterday’s announcement where California, Washington, and Oregon governors joined in telling residents to avoid out-of-state travel, including to Hawaii. It seems at least that what’s good for the goose should be good for the gander, but perhaps not when politics are concerned.

So said regular Richard C. whose comment first gave us the heads up. “From you can’t make this stuff up. Currently, there’s a conference going on at the Maui Fairmont attended by the State of California legislators. Here they’re discouraging travel to Hawaii, yet there they are enjoying Maui. To be fair both Democratic and Republican lawmakers are attending this conference. Another example of the rules don’t apply to politicians.”

Held at the beautiful Kea Lani Resort (pictured above) where rates this week begin at over $500 a night, the conference was organized by the San Diego based Independent Voter Project. Its executive director said he also wasn’t worried about the public health implications of bringing attendees from throughout the US, due to Hawaii’s mandatory testing program. He said, “It really doesn’t matter where you’re coming from as long as you have a negative Covid test before you arrive here.”

As we’ve seen in the severe recent runup of cases here in Hawaii, tests are merely a snapshot in time and do not indicate, for example, if you may have been exposed to but not yet developed COVID to the degree necessary to test positive.

In order for the event to be permitted, organizers requested and obtained special permission from Maui County for a group larger than 12 people to convene. The organizer said, “At some point in time, you have to figure out a way for people to get back to some semblance of a normal life. This is a good conference.”

Your take, please?

 

Disclosure: We receive a small commission on purchases from some of the links on Beat of Hawaii. These links cost you nothing and provide income necessary to offer our website to you. Mahalo! Privacy Policy and Disclosures.

Filed Under: Culture and Events

Subscribe to Free Updates

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Comment policy:
* A "please" or "thanks" is required for a reply.
* No profanity, rudeness, personal attacks, or bullying. Stay on travel - not politics.
* No links or UPPER CASE text.
* No duplicate posts or using multiple names.
* Use a real first name.
* Comments edited/published at our sole discretion.
* Beat of Hawaii has no relationship with our commentors.
* Please read https://beatofhawaii.com/comment-policy/

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *


Comments limited to 2,000 characters.


Please, use first name and last initial only.

* Denotes required fields. By commenting you agree to our Privacy Policy.

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Comments

  1. DaveR says

    November 28, 2020 at 2:06 pm

    As Leona Helmsely said about taxes, rules are for little people. (That’s us.)

    Reply
  2. Heather M. says

    November 18, 2020 at 11:25 am

    Mahalo,
    I am appalled at All of these government “officials” actions. I live in Cali and they have moved us back to the purple tier which raises my concern and anxiety. But, now that I see politicians do whatever they want (conference on the islands, flying) I guess I’ll do whatever feels right to me…do as the do.
    Part of local news story:
    by: Ashley Zavala

    Posted: Nov 17, 2020 / 06:11 PM PST / Updated: Nov 17, 2020 / 06:11 PM PST

    SACRAMENTO, Calif. (KRON) – At least two California lawmakers are in Maui for a legislative conference.

    The trip comes as state leaders put a recommended 14-day quarantine in place last week to discourage travel and urged Californians not to gather ahead of the holidays.

    Multiple members of the California Assembly are in Maui for the Annual Independent Voter Project Conference.

    An eyewitness source tells us they saw Democratic Assemblyman Jim Cooper on the island.

    Cooper told our source he was in town for a conference, staying at the same hotel hosting the independent voter project’s event.

    Another Democratic Assemblymember Blanca Rubio is also at the conference, she is the only California lawmaker who allowed the event organizer to reveal her participation there.

    Recent finance reports show Republican Assemblyman Jordan Cunningham bought plane tickets for a flight to Hawaii that arrived Monday.

    We contacted the offices of nine legislators who went to the conference last year. One confirmed their assemblyman was not there, and have yet to hear back from the other eight, including the offices of Cooper, Cunningham, and Rubio.

    The five-day conference is bringing together about 150 people this week, 20 of them lawmakers from Texas, Washington, and California, according to the event organizer.

    The event mainly features policy discussions and mingling with lobbyists and corporate sponsors.

    This comes just days after California leaders discouraged travel by issuing a 14-day quarantine recommendation for anyone coming into the state

    Reply
    • Bob B. says

      November 19, 2020 at 10:12 am

      This BS and here in Albuquerque we went from a “Stay at home” order a week ago to yesterdays emergency shelter in place order (came across the TV and Cellphones etc) from the Governor, this due to an over 2000 new cases in one day, we’ve been averaging 1000+ per day until then. Over 800 hospitalized, and the University Med Center where my daughter is a physician and a COVID team leader is over capacity and being overwhelmed!

      Colorado is in worse shape!

      I haven’t heard if anyone from New Mexico is in Maui, I hope they have more sense then the other people do.

      Be like Newson break his own rules for everyone else, do as I say not as I do and when you get caught you just say “I made a mistake” and everyone forgives and forgets by the time the next election comes around. Very sad CA residents let him get away with this.

      Reply
      • DaveR says

        November 28, 2020 at 2:07 pm

        As the article made it very clear, it’s not just Newsome and it’s both Repubs and Dems.

        Reply
  3. Chris O. says

    November 18, 2020 at 5:10 am

    What Washington state legislatures attend this conference

    Reply
    • Doug J says

      November 18, 2020 at 6:42 pm

      I would like to know who from WA went too

      Reply
  4. Bob B. says

    November 17, 2020 at 4:55 pm

    Typical Commiefornia crap, plenty of places in Calif for a conference, humm gee, Lake Tahoe would be a great place and little to no air fair, less expensive hotels etc, won’t support their local economy.

    Due to health issues I’ll probably never make it back to HI, and I miss seeing and working with my HI nurse BFF’s.

    Bless you all, stay safe, take care!

    Reply
    • DaveR says

      November 28, 2020 at 2:08 pm

      “Commiefornia”…hmm.
      So those GOP lawmakers who went are communists?

      Reply
« Older Comments

Subscribe to Free Updates

Most popular on Beat of Hawaii

  • Southwest Hawaii Update Southwest Hawaii Expansion Continues | New Flights $99

    1,656 Comments

  • Why Hawaii Travel Will Rebound First Cheapest Time to Fly to Hawaii in 2021

    4,644 Comments

  • Win A Free Trip to Hawaii Sweepstakes Win a Free Trip to Hawaii Sweepstakes

    570 Comments

  • Cheap Flights to Maui How Do Hawaii Residents Honestly Feel About Tourists

    617 Comments

  • Vaccination Passports For Hawaii Travel Starting in 3 Phases

    605 Comments

  • coco palms resort Coco Palms Kauai Update: Elvis Has Left

    283 Comments

Home » News » Culture and Events » Should California Lawmakers Attend Questionable $500+/Night Maui Resort Conference?

Beat of Hawaii was featured in

TripAdvisor
Budget Travel
Frommer's
USA Today
NBC News
The Seattle Time
ABC News
  • Home
  • About
  • Contact
  • Subscribe
  • Facebook
  • Privacy
  • Disclosures
  • Cheapest Time to Fly to Hawaii

Copyright © 2021 · Beat Of Hawaii. All Rights Reserved.

sponsored