Honolulu Advertiser: Campaigns taking Hawaii seriously

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Sen. Barack Obama's half-sister, Maya Soetoro-Ng, center, visited with campaign volunteers yesterday at Ward Warehouse. Soetoro-Ng and Obama have the same mother.
JOAQUIN SIOPACK | The Honolulu Advertiser

Posted on: Thursday, February 14, 2008
Campaigns taking Hawaii seriously
By Treena Shapiro
Advertiser Government Writer

With five days until Hawai'i's Democratic caucuses, campaigns for the leading candidates are ramping up as volunteers reach out through phone banks, potlucks and rallies featuring local celebrities and "high-profile guests."

And why not? Hawai'i party members will get a chance to voice their opinions while the Democratic presidential nomination is still up for grabs. In most years, the candidate has already been picked by the time Hawai'i weighs in, but the historic race between U.S. Sen. Barack Obama of Illinois and U.S. Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton of New York is still very much a race

Hawai'i Democrats don't just get to choose between the first woman and the first nonwhite leading candidates, but also whether to choose a Hawai'i-born-and-raised contender.

Obama, a 1979 graduate of Punahou School, might have a hometown advantage, but his campaign isn't taking that for granted.

http://honoluluadvertiser.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080214/NEWS01/802140355

Chelsea Clinton is coming to Maui. I guess they figured she needed a break.

There's alot of local detail about events and Hawai'i perspective.

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1. Kick.