A message for Neil Clendennin, one of your past health club members

[Anna]

Aloha

I wanted to let you know that I am a candidate to replace Rep. Mina
Morita in the Hawaii State House District 14 Waipouli to Ha’ena. The
District Democratic Council has selected 3 names out of 8, which were
given to Governor Abercrombie to choose one of us to complete Rep.
Morita’s term. The Governor will make a decision from now through
about 60 days. We are hoping it will be soon, as the session completes
in early May and we would like the 14th District to have a voice in
critical legislation that is moving through the House.

I have appended and attached information concerning who I am; why I am
seeking this office; my political views and how you can help me, if
you please. If you would like to discuss my candidacy or views feel
free to contact me directly. I would also like to ask you to forward
this information on to others, especially those who reside in the HD
14, so they will have a better understanding of me and my views. If
you belong to any groups (email lists) I would appreciate it if you
could pass this along to the groups. (I apologize if some of you
receive this more than once.) This is time sensitive, the sooner the
better.

I thank you in advance for any assistance you can give me. The more
support letters the governor gets can only help the selection. Please
kokua, Mahalo.

Neil Clendeninn

Cell 808-826-9519

cybe...@msn.com

<<...>>

NEIL J


CLENDENINN (clen-DEN-
in)

Seeking Appointment to District 14 House seat of Mina Morita

Who am I?

Personal Life

I was born and raised in a rural part of the north Bronx. I have 3
grown children and I reside on my small farm on the north shore of
Kauai, between Kilauea and Princeville. I have been coming to Kauai
yearly since 1978 and was able to move here in 2003.

Professional Career

I have over 20 years experience in the pharmaceutical/biotech
industry. I was recently the VP of Clinical Development for Agouron
Pharmaceuticals, of La Jolla, CA; where I developed the AIDS protease
inhibitor Viracept, which was approved in the record time of 36
months. I previously worked for Burroughs Wellcome, Research Triangle
Park, NC where I was head of Clinical Oncology. I currently consult to
the biotech industry through my company CANAID, Inc.

I received my BA (Biology and Chemistry) from Wesleyan University,
Middletown, CT and my MD and PhD (Pharmacology) from New York
University, NY. I did my medical residency training at the University
of Washington, Seattle. I trained at National Cancer Institute (NCI),
Bethesda, MD in Oncology and specialized in new cancer drug
development.

After retiring from the biotech industry I received a Master of
Science in Architecture from the NewSchool of Architecture and Design
in San Diego. I concentrated on Urban Planning and did my thesis on
the growth and development of Lihue.

Community Involvement

I have been an active participant in the Lihue Business Association
since 2006 and have served as Secretary and now Chair of the Lihue
Tomorrow Committee of LBA. In 2004 I was appointed to the Citizens
Advisory Committee for the Lihue Town Core Urban Design Plan, which
was approved as an ordinance in 2010. I have been actively involved in
several political campaigns in 2008 and 2010 for Council member JoAnn
Yukimura, President Obama, and Senator Gary Hooser. I am also an
active participant in a number of community organizations including
Apollo Kauai, the Multi-modal path, Kauai Agricultural Initiative
(KAI), Kauai Farmer Bureau, Malama Kauai, Northshore Council and
others.

Why I am seeking this office?

I have decided to “throw my hat into the ring” because I believe in
the work Representative Mina Morita has been doing all these years in
the Hawaii State Legislature. I have a similar political viewpoint to
her, and will represent the 14th District in a similar manner. I am
committed to supporting our new governor and all his stated policies.
While not having been in politics before, my business background gives
me experience in working with others, which should enable me to work
with other legislators to enact new laws for the benefit of Kauai and
the State of Hawaii. I am able to listen to and represent all the
views of the North Shore of Kauai and am able to converse with the
citizens of this district and help formulate their concerns and issues
into legislation for consideration by the House for action. I will
seek out residents of the district to listen and discuss the issues
that face us all, and my ability to interact with peers will enable me
to be electable in the future. I am a diligent, hardworking individual
who will concentrate on the job to be done in the legislature. I do
not seek this out of personal ambition, but I do have a vision of the
future of Kauai and Hawaii, which includes all of us. I believe we
are at a critical juncture and we must insure that Hawaii becomes self-
sufficient and sustainable. Sustainability can no longer be a “buzz
word” but must be the law of the land. I will continue the work that
Rep. Morita has begun this session and hopefully add new and valuable
additions and expertise in the years to come. I have the
qualifications, ability and desire to fill the seat for the district.

What are my political views?

Rep. Morita is one of the public servants I most respect and admire.
She is a diligent, industrious, soft spoken, humble and dynamic
political personality. In her quiet way she is extremely effective at
what she does. I view her in the same political spectrum as Governor
Abercrombie and President Obama: two others who I admire immensely. I
believe my political point of view is in line with Rep. Morita. I
consider myself a progressive democrat. I believe in helping all
people through initiatives and if necessary government assistance. I
believe we need to be fiscally responsible but we cannot destroy our
future just to balance the budget. We must eliminate waste but keep
those programs that will aid us and keep the future positive.

Energy

I am an active participant in Apollo Kauai and with issues effecting
KIUC. I believe energy is one of the critical issues for Kauai and all
of Hawaii. I have advocated for changes with the KIUC Board and with
the strategic plans. Apollo Kauai has often consulted with Rep. Morita
on energy issues and sought her counsel on plans. I believe the state
must use all reasonable methods of reducing our dependence on fossil
fuels and must do this as soon as possible.

Agriculture

Agriculture is another issue we share in common. I am a small time
farmer and am a member of the Kauai Farm Bureau and the Kauai
Agricultural Initiative, which has sponsored the Mayor’s Garden and
the Garden Island Range and Food Festival. I see agriculture as a
necessary issue to help the state develop self-sufficiency. We, as a
state, must examine our land use and water access policies and make
sure they support the small farmer as well as large farms. We must
also make sure we have adequate farm workers and adequate conditions
for them to work and live.

Health & Technology

I am a research physician and am very interested in issues of health
care, especially from the research aspect. I believe Hawaii has an
opportunity to stimulate biotechnology and pharmaceutical scientific
research here, as one alternative to diversify our economy. We need a
way to hold onto our young college graduates with high tech jobs in
the health care field as well as other technology fields.

Education

Part of the new economy will depend on a highly educated work force.
We cannot cut education at this time. We must find ways to make it
more efficient and provide a better quality education for our all
students. Without investing in better education we will never be able
to diversify our economy and attract new industries. We need to face
the fact that tourism may eventually go the way of sandalwood,
pineapple and sugar; certainly not immediately but eventually. Today,
we are even taking a big hit because of the Japan earthquake and
tsunami. Combining natural disasters with increasing prices of oil and
the unstable economy may make the faltering of tourism come sooner
rather than later.

Environment

My other interest and belief is in the environment, not just the earth
but man’s built environment. I believe that we must make all efforts
to improve our towns, cities and transportation. By improving the
built environment we will help make us less dependent on fossil fuels,
increase sustainability and most importantly, improve our health. The
more we exercise by walking or biking we will make our population
healthier and less dependent on health care treatments. The built
environment is part of the solution.

Equal Rights/ Civil Rights

I, like Rep. Morita, am a strong supporter of equal rights. I believe
that civil union is a civil right and needed to be passed and
celebrated when the governor signed it into law.

Legislative Philosophy

I believe Rep. Morita and I agree on most issues. I may think of other
methods of achieving the same goal, but I also recognize in politics
sometimes one must compromise to get closer to what is desired. It is
often said that the perfect bill can be the enemy of the good, but I
would strive to get as close to the ideal as possible. I, very much
like she, believe in consensus building. I think it is important not
just in the political process but in our every day dealings with our
fellow humans.

Will you help?

I am asking that if you support my views and candidacy that you help
lobby Governor Abercrombie to select me to fulfill the unexpired term
of Rep. Mina Morita. A simple email saying ‘you give me your support
and are asking the governor to appoint me’, would be very much
appreciated. Please title all correspondence “Support for Neil
Clendeninn to fill vacancy in House District 14”.

Please contact the governor via the following email –
gov.c...@Hawaii.gov or

FAX to 808-586-0006 or

regular postal mail-

Governor Neil Abercrombie

State Capitol

Executive Chambers

Honolulu, HI 96813