Ed Case ready to bring change to Washington

As Ed Case prepares to be sworn into the U.S. House of Representatives in January, he’s been hiring key staff and gearing up for what he hopes will be major reforms in Congress.

“Right now all eyes are upon us and the country is marveling at the diversity and talent and potential of this class, and that is all very exciting, but in a couple of months the question is going to turn from that to, Is this class delivering on sky-high expectations?” said Case, in an interview with the Star-Advertiser earlier this month. “I’m encouraged so far.”

His class of 60 newly elected Democratic members of the House make up more than one-fourth of the Democratic caucus and represent the largest Democratic gains in the House since Watergate.

Although he is a member of the new class of House Democrats, Case had previously served in the House from 2002 to 2007. He gave up his seat when he unsuccessfully challenged U.S. Sen. Daniel Akaka in 2006. He is replacing Congresswoman Colleen Hanabusa, who lost her bid for governor this year.

Case said he was motivated to run because of how “deeply dysfunctional” Washington had become — a sentiment that has resonated with the rest of his class.

They’ve already been successful in ensuring that reforms to campaign finance and ethics laws and easing voter registration are top priorities for the Democratic Party next year.

“They all fall under the general category of draining the swamp,” said Case, adopting a phrase used by President Donald Trump during his 2016 campaign. “That is what the American people want, and I am going to be part of it.”

The House has already crafted a bill that would implement such reforms and numbered it HR 1, a sign that it will be a top priority when the new Democratic-controlled Congress convenes next year.

“The real problem is that we are asking folks that benefit the most from this system to change the system, and the only way that is going to happen is if folks believe that there is so much support for it back home that if they don’t support this, they’re in danger,” said Case. “And I think we have that — far more than we did, say, a year ago — because people are just so disgusted with Washington.”

As chief of staff, Case has hired Tim Nelson. He will oversee operations in Washington and Hawaii and double as Case’s legislative director. Nelson served as Case’s legislative assistant during his prior stint in the House.

Nelson also served as a foreign service officer for the U.S. Agency for International Development, working in Iraq and Afghanistan. Nelson, who lives in Maryland, currently serves as the audit manager for the Nuclear Regulatory Commission and the Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board.

Case hired Jacqueline Conant as his district director to oversee activities in Hawaii. Conant also worked for Case when he served in Congress. She is currently the congressional liaison and a project manager for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in Hawaii.

Former Honolulu City Councilman and KHON2 News reporter Nestor Garcia will be Case’s communications director. He had also served eight years as a Democratic member of the state House of Representatives, elected in the same class as Case.