 Welcome back to another episode of Talk Story with John Waihei. Have we got a special guest for you this afternoon? Taking time from his very busy schedule, dealing with the great problems of the state of Hawaii, we have with us the governor of the state of Hawaii, Governor David Ige. Welcome Governor. It's a pleasure to have you on our show. I think we had you once about a year or so ago. Yes, thank you. Thank you so much for inviting me. Well, you know, obviously people are right in the midst of dealing with the coronavirus crisis. So we might as well just go right into that subject. I know that this afternoon you had a press conference. If you don't mind, could you just kind of update us to what was announced at the press conference? Sure. And let me just, I just really do want to take a step back, Governor, because I do want to thank all of your, all of those are watching your program and who may be listening live on audio. I just wanted to thank each and every one of you for your commitment to the state of Hawaii, for really doing all the things that are so necessary to control the virus and really flatten the curve. You know, Hawaii needs the nation in the response to the COVID virus because we have, you know, the lowest number of cases per capita. We have the very low hospitalization, which, you know, demonstrates that our health care system is taking care of the disease. And we are fortunate in that we have amongst the lowest mortality rate in the country. And I think that's really because every citizen has taken on the responsibility of doing what they can to help fight the virus. Thank you, Governor. Thank you for that. I know that the listeners, the think-tack listeners appreciate that and we also thank you for the work that you're doing. Where are we? What was the purpose of the press conference? So the press conference focused on two important things. First and foremost, we did launch the Hawaii Recovery Plan, Beyond Recovery, which really laid out our phases for restoring the local economy. I think it was very important. I know that there's been lots of conversations of competing plans and different people and organizations working on different efforts to restart and reopen Hawaii. And the plan I announced was in conjunction with Mark Muguyishi and the Speaker's COVID Response Task Force. We had broad participation by various stakeholder groups, many in the business community, and obviously the state agencies and the Hawaii Emergency Management Agency all collaborated on this Beyond Recovery Plan. So it was a great effort, teamwork on all fronts that got us to this place of a common, thoughtful and phased reopening of the Hawaii economy that will allow us to increase business activity in a safe way. We do anticipate that the number of COVID positives will go up slightly, but we are prepared and able to test, do contact tracing, and most importantly contain any virus infections that we may see occur. Okay, so the plan is announced. Does that mean one of the first questions I received from one of our listeners was he or she wanted to know whether, and I assume that that has happened. Let me see, and the question was, has the Hawaii's occur flattened? I mean, how we, in fact, what's the... Yes, most definitely, and there's been a number of websites across the country that tracks all of the COVID positive and all of the data that every state is producing, and Hawaii is just one of seven states that actually over the last three weeks have had lower and lower total positive COVID cases across the country. So by every measure of the COVID-19 pandemic, Hawaii is definitely trending lower, and I think most importantly, we've been doing that for now three, four weeks, and feel like the COVID-19 infection in our community is contained and under control. And Governor, if I may ask you, is that pretty much across the whole state? I mean, every island is in that situation, including Oahu, which has the greatest number of people. Yes, and you know, Governor, two weeks ago, I wouldn't be able to say that, and Oahu continued to get cases of COVID-19, but beginning last week and continuing in this week, even Oahu, the number of cases on Oahu, there will be days where there's no cases at all, and the number of cases has been one or two or three, at least for the last two weeks. So all counties are definitely very low single digits, less than five per day. Now, is there, in terms of the phase recovery plan, when do you think or what you hope will be the timeline for returning to allowing inter-island flights, just in-state travel? Yeah, so certainly inter-island, the whole issue of the inter-island quarantine, actually I had a call with the mayors this morning, and we really, I told them I really wanted to talk about inter-island travel. I've had questions from people I know on the neighbor islands. I think everyone knows of a relative or friend who's passed away, funeral services have been delayed, a wide variety of reasons that normally we would be traveling inter-island, but has been put on hold because of the quarantine. So we definitely are talking about it more seriously, talking about what safeguards and screening processes need to be in place, and then we will be making an announcement on inter-island travel. I would say in the next week or so, as I said, and you asked whether every county is the same, I think now all the counties are the same. The number of cases have been below five in all of the counties, even sitting in county of Honolulu. So I think all the mayors feel more comfortable with the notion of allowing inter-island travel. So part of the discussion, for example, would be how close people should be in situations like an airplane or the like. I presume I'm not up on all of this, so that's actually a question, Governor. I mean, what are some of the same things? So a couple of things. There's actually lots of CDC guidance on travel in airplanes and I would like to note that because of the regulations and how much they control circulation of air and all kinds of things on an airplane, it is relatively safe and it hasn't been, I can't think of a single case where we can track back to an individual getting infected on a flight. So, you know, I know the perception is that COVID-19 is tied to travel, but it's more residents traveling somewhere and then getting infected on the mainland and then traveling back home. But it is... Yeah, make sure your Omiyagi is something healthy, right? Yes. And, you know, Governor, I did have the chance to talk with people at Hawaiian Airlines and they are being very cautious and respectful of people's concerns about safety. So they are, even though they're not required to explicitly implement social distancing, they've chosen to, you know, spread people around the aircraft, you know, even on weekends that I think you knew and saw increased traffic on Mondays and Fridays by construction workers and other employees who go to do work on the neighbor islands. And Hawaiian has really implemented social distancing on their flights. They've even added flights, even though the planes are less than half full, they chose to go ahead and add another flight so that they could space the travelers apart and they don't have people sitting in adjacent rows or in adjacent seats. And so definitely during this time, I think it's safe to travel into Ireland once we allow it to happen. Well, that's great, Governor. You know, I can tell you, though, at the end, we opened up the beaches, I guess, this weekend, at least on Oahu. And so my, you know, I took a drive, my wife and I got in the car and took a drive. And people were so happy to be out and about. And, you know, people for the most part were still complying with the the social distancing, wearing the mask when they were away from the water, you know, things like that. But how did all of that turn out? Is that something that it looks like we're going to have and we'll be working for a while? Yeah, certainly, you know, Governor, and you know, you served as Governor for eight years. Yeah, by the way, you still cut, that office still looks great with you in it. Thank you. I'm looking at my old back snob. Yes, yes, it's still the same one. But you know, the people of Hawaii really have a sense of community and they understand the Kuleana and they are more than willing to embrace it. You know, and in this COVID-19 crisis, I am so proud to be Governor of Hawaii because it is so obvious that everybody is paying attention. They are taking the mandate seriously. They're distancing themselves. You know, in other states, they're fighting about whether they have to wear a mask or not. But everyone here, as soon as we said, it's safer for everyone to wear a mask. Everybody was out making masks, you know, doing all of the things that they need to do to keep our community safe. And like you said, you saw it on the beaches. I did talk with Mayor Caldwell and, you know, he was very nervous about opening the beaches. I think we all are because, you know, we see the photos in California and Miami, you know, the chaos that reopening the beaches has caused on the mainland with everybody just piling on and not really listening. But in Hawaii, people paid attention and they were in family groups, you know, they stay distance away from each other six feet. And, you know, so it was obvious that we could reopen the beaches and not see the chaos that was created on the mainland. And that, you know, that makes me proud. It assures me that our people will comply because we all understand how important that for each of us to do our part in keeping our community safe. Well, thank you, Governor. We're going to take a real short break at this time. And we will be right back. Governor of the state of Hawaii, David Igay, talking about the state of the coronavirus pandemic in Hawaii. You know, Governor, I had somebody from the mainland, a friend of mine sent me an email and he said, oh, wow, what's happening? They arrested these people in Hawaii, you know. And I said, you know, we are really serious about, you know, doing things that will keep our population healthy. I said, you know, we have the lowest, I was aware of that, the lowest contagion, contagious and death rate in the whole nation. And we're proud of that. And so, you know, someday when we reopen travel to Hawaii, the people are going to be coming to the healthiest place in the United States. And I said, that's something that we can really build on, you know. And I know that you have been working on this issue with the travel industry in Hawaii. But are there plans, you know, plans being drawn up to foresee a time when we might be allowing tourists back into our state? Yeah, you know, certainly, Governor, we know that one in five jobs is dependent on the visitor industry. And really, most of them are unemployed right now. So we need to bring our visitors back. There are a number of states that have actually ordered a mandatory quarantine. But for the most part, it's all lip service in other states. Hawaii is the only state that actually is enforcing and truly implemented a 14-day mandatory quarantine. So, you know, as you noted, we've been working with the counties and the police departments all across the state and working with state law enforcement in the Sheriff's and Attorney General's office to really put some teeth behind the Hawaii mandatory quarantine. So, for example, we did get the courts to agree that when we make an arrest, they were just releasing the violators with no bail at all. And we were able to talk with the Chief Justice and just explain that, you know, they have to impose a $2,000 bail because if they don't, if they just release them, then it makes a mockery of the mandatory quarantine. So that has helped us with enforcement. And as you noted, we are serious and we have arrested, you know, we've done a couple things. We want, if they need to have a confirmed reservation in a hotel in order for them to be here. And we do make sure that they have a reservation and confirmation for the entire period of quarantine. If they leave before the 14 days is up, then we require them to have a confirmation on a flight out of Hawaii so that, you know, what was happening is people would come check into the hotel for a day and then just check out and disappear. And then we would lose them and we wouldn't be certain of where they were. So, even though many states have ordered quarantine, only Hawaii has really implemented them and really made it effective. We have been working with the visitor industry and what I tell them is we need to reinvent the hospitality industry in light of this COVID-19 experience. And I really tell them that it'll never be the same. You know, we have to reinvent every aspect and, you know, it's been heartwarming to meet with hotel industry executives and hear them talk about, as you said, they want the brand of Hawaii to be enhanced post COVID-19. They want to be the self-safest and healthiest hotels. They want to be able to assure their guests that they can get health care and help if they should become ill in the islands. And I think most importantly, they want to let the local residents know that they will be partners in enforcing the quarantine, in enforcing any kind of program that we need to put in place to keep our community safe and allow visitors to return. So really, that's what we've been working on with the airlines, with the hotels, with the travel agents and the tour companies, all partners in creating a better hospitality industry in Hawaii. That's fantastic. I mean, how many societies have a chance to redo something, something important like that? You know, it's so interesting to me, but there are people, as I saw on the internet, there is this Aina Aloha Declaration about using this opportunity to make things more like Hawaii in the future. And I was just thinking, wouldn't it be wonderful if this gave us a moment when we can, when we not only enhance the health of our industry in terms of its tourists coming here, but also an opportunity to, for example, use local products, emphasizing the need to be self-sufficient. I think of the cattle ranchers on the big island who send their cattle off to the mainland to be brought back to, you know, Seoul and Safeway and then in the stores. Yet by all working together, maybe we might first achieve a moment when the industry and the society seems to be running in the same direction. I think there's some, there's a reason to look for the silver lining, I guess that I'm saying. And the Aina Aloha was just one of those opportunities. Yeah, I guess that's what you're trying to tell me. Yeah, that's absolutely correct, Governor. And we are definitely working in every facet with the farmers here to promote self-reliance. You know, we actually want to challenge the ranching industry to stop sending cattle to the mainland for finishing and just have it sold here. We're trying to get our public schools to be 100% self-sufficient. We actually have figured out the procurement and so we're very close for like beef to be all locally sourced for all of the public schools all across the state 100% of the time. So yes, we are using this opportunity to really accelerate our commitment to self-reliance, to being a better industry, for the visitor industry to truly be partners with our community and our residents in recreating a better Hawaii movie. Yeah, get off the numbers. It's not about numbers, it's about quality. And I hear that more and more as we, you know, go through all of this, that this is a chance for us to do something that demonstrates Hawaii's specialness. And I'm so glad you're taking the leadership on that. Yes, absolutely. And it's, the response has been terrific. So, you know, one of the notions that we're talking about in this phase as we hopefully can get to a place of allowing inter-island travel, it's really focusing on the Kama'ina economy and encouraging our residents to experience a staycation in the new hospitality industry 2.0. Yeah, so that they can experience and see what the hotels are going to be doing to keep the guests safe. And I think most importantly, to keep our community safe, to put in place health requirements that would keep sick people in the hotels and separated from other guests, as well as the local residents. Well, I got to ask you this, Gal. You know, I didn't think that I would ever say this in my life, actually. But when I was much younger, my hair was down to my shoulders, you know, and I used to be all fuzzy. And one of the things that I have missed during this period, social distancing period, is my haircut, you know, and you know, you and I have this mustache hair thing. And my wife is already threatening to just cut it off herself, you know. When do you think we'll be able to have those kinds of services brought back, if at all? Well, so certainly, Governor, we've evaluated all the businesses and industries in terms of risk and restaurants and personal services. So hair salons, hairdressers, barbershops are considered medium risk businesses. And so we are actually very close to restarting all of those activities. County of Maui has announced that they're going to allow barbershops and hair salons to reopen on May 25th. Oh, great. Yeah. So, and I'm certain that... I hope the airlines get there. I'll fly over to Maui, cut this hair. Yes. Keep peace in my family. No, Governor, I just want to let you know my hair was getting too long for me and Don cut my hair this weekend. If I wear a mask, can I come over to the governor's residence? I certainly will let her know that she might have a second customer. It's not bad. It looks really good. Yeah, no, she did a good job. I was very, very nervous. But she seemed to have done a good job. Are you keeping in touch with your children and how they're doing in... I know they're... I guess they're in Washington, right? Yeah, well, so as you know, Gav, I have three kids. My oldest daughter, Lauren, is in Washington, D.C., on lockdown. Yeah, she's kind of stir crazy. I'm my middle daughter, Amy. She's married to my son-in-law, Anthony, is a Navy pilot, and he just got deployed to Japan last week. So she's kind of on her own. She's living in Mount Vernon in Washington State. It's about 45 minutes north of Seattle. And my youngest son, Matthew, is working for Microsoft in Bellevue. And he was just informed that Microsoft will let them work from home until October. So I'm really encouraging him to come home because he can. And he can work from Hawaii or he can work from home. But I don't think I'll be successful. Well, you know, for all families that are listening to us and all families going through that, we obviously wish them the best. And we wish you and your family the best, Governor. And we look forward to your leadership as we come out of this crisis. Thank you so much. Thank you so much for inviting me. And I appreciate it. Thank you, Heraloja.