In some ways it unfolded as one more staid, out-of-session legislative briefing Wednesday, with Senate Judiciary Chair Karl Rhoads and Congressman Ed Case speaking calmly and deliberately.

But despite the briefing’s academic-sounding topic, “The Rule of Law,” this was the stuff of a political thriller: an American presidency run amok.

Think of novelists like Tom Clancy and David Baldacci unspooling fictional tales of democracy’s potential demise. Then move to the nonfiction section and think Donald Trump.

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“This president is not complying with the rule of law in our country,” Case said before citing examples of what he called “a threat from within”:

• “When a president tries to hold back money already committed by Congress and signed by a president, and this president is trying to do that right now.”

• “Removal of inspectors general and others from key federal agencies. We have an entire system or had an entire system of providing independent internal oversight of our agencies in order to assure that somebody was looking over the shoulder, somebody was acting as an internal check and balance on the administration.”

• “This president has consistently flaunted federal court orders. He comes right up to the edge, goes over even, causing the federal courts to come in and actually order him to do what they ordered him to do once already.”

• “Eroding the independence of key federal agencies such as the Department of Justice is highly troubling because the Department of Justice has the ability to wreck lives, to directly wreck lives if it is manipulated for political purpose.”

• “Finally and again most concerningly, attempted intimidation of the press.”

None of these concerns are policy based, Case said, arguing they should worry Trump’s supporters as much as his opponents.

Instead, he said, his Republican colleagues who hold majorities in the House and the Senate “are not providing a check and balance on this president. They have ceded their constitutional duties to this president.”

That leaves court challenges — many of which Hawaiʻi has joined — and “the ultimate check and balance, us, the people, and our check and balance is the vote. Do we think that this is the right way to go for our country?”

Did The Blog mention this all smacks of a political thriller? Well, it took a turn toward an apocalyptic plotline when state Sen. Stanley Chang got the mic.

What are the chances, Chang asked Case, that Trump will defy the U.S. Constitution and seek a third term? Not likely even in today’s political environment, the congressman replied.

Then Chang took things a few steps further.

“I was just reading a book actually, recently, about the rise of Hitler and you know, there are some troubling parallels,” Chang said. “One is the escalation of political violence. It struck me that if this cycle continues and there were assassinations on both sides, I don’t think we’re that far away from kind of a pretext for martial law or something like that. Do you think that’s farfetched?”

Case initially said he wasn’t comfortable with the Hitler comparison, but then added, “It is true though, that Hitler took power through a vote. It wasn’t like he took over government. He got a foothold and then he started to expand it through the erosion of the foundations. And so I think what we should take from that regime is a lesson again that democracy can be fragile and we all have to work at it.”

The Blog encourages you to watch the full hearing or at least read the transcript, now easily available through Civil Beat’s new Digital Democracy website (click on a section of the transcript and it’ll take you straight to that moment’s video).

Media illiteracy: The Blog has only been half listening to the debate at the Honolulu City Council over whether the media should be granted access to police scanners partly because it’s been going on for years with no resolution. And also because Civil Beat isn’t really a breaking news operation when it comes to “if it bleeds it leads” kinds of stories. The TV folks do that so much better.

Still, our little ears perked right up on Thursday at the public safety committee meeting when chair Augie Tulba read the Bill 46 definition of a legitimate news organization. And that would be only media outlets that have been in business for at least 25 years. Or publish legal notices (special carve-out for the Honolulu Star-Advertiser). Or have a broadcast license (no news dissemination requirement there).

Tulba touted how the City Council thinks this would “ensure access is granted only to established and credible news organizations.”

Seriously?

As council member Val Okimoto pointed out, Civil Beat has only been in business for 15 years. And Hawaiʻi News Now technically has only existed under its shared-services agreement (station consolidation) since 2009.

The Blog would note that Tulba’s deal would also discriminate against Aloha State Daily, a new online-only news site run by veteran local journalists, who, we imagine, would be equally outraged that Tulba doesn’t consider them “credible.”

The battle over who should or shouldn’t be considered a legitimate news organization isn’t new in Hawaiʻi. In this day and age legacy media is going out of business all over the country, creating news deserts including here in the islands. Startup online sites, like Civil Beat or Aloha State Daily or even the Maui Now/Big Island Now/Kauaʻi Now operations are rapidly filling the public’s need to know. Social media platforms like Stolen Stuff Hawaiʻi, Hawaiʻi News Report and Hungry Hungry Hawaiian attract far more users that follow crime news than the daily newspaper or even Civil Beat.

More than a decade ago, the Legislature debated the definition of local news media when it was trying to extend the media shield law. The handwringing stalled things for a few years, but a new media shield law was passed in 2023.

News media under the shield law is considered to be “a journalist or newscaster presently or previously employed by or otherwise professionally associated with any newspaper or magazine, news agency, press association, wire service, or radio or television transmission station or network, or digital news website.”

City Council, take note: No set number of years in business required.

By the way, in case anyone is thinking this is more about Civil Beat than it is about standing up for equal treatment for all media when it comes to important public information, we actually have an FCC license that we got a couple years ago in anticipation of launching a community radio station. Sorry, Augie!

And then there were three: State Rep. Della Au Belatti launched her campaign for Hawaiʻi’s 1st Congressional District on Friday, making her the second prominent Democrat to challenge Congressman Ed Case. State Sen. Jarrett Keohokalole is already in the running and The Blog hears more candidates may enter the field as well.

Promising to “fight for what is right,” Belatti pledged to help Hawaiʻi residents with equal opportunity and to oppose the Trump administration. She singled out for condemnation raids conducted by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (“shameful,” she said) and the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade. She fears outlawing interracial marriage is next.

She also took Case to task for his support of the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility Act, a controversial bill passed by the House earlier this year and awaiting action in the Senate. It would require documentary proof of U.S. citizenship for voter registration.

“I call B.S. on that,” she said, adding that the contest represented “generational change.” Belatti is 51, Case 73.

The launch was held on the lawn of the Hawaiʻi State Library in front of the statue of Patsy Mink, the late but legendary congresswoman. Those in attendance included state Rep. Amy Perruso, Democratic Party stalwart Amy Monk and attorneys Eric Seitz (she works for him) and Ali Silvert.

Since Belatti won’t be running for reelection to her legislative position, that’ll be another open seat in next year’s Democratic primary.

Still, The Blog can’t help but think Ed Case is smiling right now. Wouldn’t progressives Belatti and Keohokalole draw from the same voters, allowing the moderate Case a path through the middle?

Portrait gallery: The official state portrait of Gov. David Ige was unveiled and dedicated Sept. 21 at Capitol Modern. But there was just one problem: Where to hang it?

Frequent visitors to the Ceremonial Room on the fifth floor of the State Capitol know that the portraits of Govs. John Burns, George Ariyoshi, John Waiheʻe, Ben Cayetano, Linda Lingle and Neil Abercrombie take up most of the available wall space already.

Fortunately, a solution was reached by the governor’s office and the State Foundation on Culture and the Arts: The paintings of Burns, Ariyoshi, Waiheʻe and Cayetano now line one side of the Ceremonial Room while Lingle and Abercrombie can be found opposite the room with space made for Ige and — one day — Josh Green. The governor’s office is now looking at refurbishing the cabinets in the room that are largely unused, potentially making room for several future portraits to come.

The portrait of Bill Quinn, the last territorial governor and first state governor, used to be on view as well on the fifth floor. But it was taken down in order to join the paintings of Hawaiʻi’s other territorial leaders, which used to hang in the entrance to the governor’s office but are now stored away from the Capitol by the foundation.