I live in Hawaii... for now. Just like in most states, the one or two large metropolitan areas dominate the politics. The state is entirely blue and Honolulu politics are just as inbred and ugly as Chicago.
There is a strong gun-owning and absurdly strong hunting culture in Hawaii. Hunting and fishing are a way of life here like nowhere else I've ever been. In Honolulu, it's not political suicide to be anti-gun... but just about everywhere else in the state, and especially so when you leave Oahu, it is. Shootz, you can still own "assault rifles" here. Granted, there's no carry, no Class-3 and the licensing/registration scheme is everything on the anti wish-list short of an actual psych exam, but you can still own some fun stuff and I don't see that changing anytime soon. You've got a few politicians who are going to say the things they need to say to move up in the party, but I doubt that you're going to see anybody push harder than simple rhetoric... the locals just won't stand for it.
Stanley Chang is a Harvard Lawyer who has moved his way up in Hawaii politics... first as a City Councilman, now as a State Senator. If he follows any kind of playbook, he'll might be the State Attorney General next. This gesture is nothing more than to show the DNC that he can be a player.
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Living in Hawaii... damned if I don't feel like a criminal just to get permission from the gov't to buy a gun.