There’s nothing quite like an e-mail bomb to liven things up on deadline day for the session, especially when the subject line is: “Urgent! Alex Sonson Humiliates the Legislature.”

David Lee, of the North Shore, sent out the blast today complaining about state Rep. Alex Sonson’s remarks at a retirement party Thursday night at Hilton Hawaiian Village for Herbert S.K. Kaopua of the Plumbers & Fitters Local 675.

Sonson, D-35th (Pearl City, Waipahu), the chairman of the House Labor and Public Employment Committee, told the audience the story of how he first met the union leader.

Here’s Sonson’s account:

Last night, I told the story exactly how I met Mr. Kaopua and I used the words and intonation that he used when he said those same words to me.

Recall that last night, I said: “Mr. Kaopua took my hands and said: Sonson! Your’re that f$%&^&* guy?”

He was really upset because he thought that I was helping the electricians to the plumber’s detriment, and that I was too hard on the plumber’s representatives during the committee hearings.

Then I said, “If you want to hear the rest of the story, ask Mr. Kaopua.”

Then, I said, “Electrician bill.”

The plumbers in the room were laughing because they all understood.

Lee, apparently, was not laughing.

In his e-mail, he claimed Sonson embarrassed and humiliated himself and the dignitaries who attended, including Kaopua’s wife and family.

“Alex Sonson deserves some kind of punishment from the House,” Lee wrote. “I don’t know how you do stuff down there at the Capitol, but something needs to be done for what he did.”

Sonson sent Lee an e-mail reply saying he was sorry if he offended anyone. He explained that he told the story because he wanted to show how Kaopua was an honest man who spoke his mind, “not like a politician who beats around the bush.”

Sonson said Kaopua shook his hand and hugged him several times after his speech.

With very little debate, state lawmakers have approved a proposed constitutional amendment to lower the age to run for governor and lieutenant governor from 30 years-old to 25.

We blogged about some of the young people behind the idea last session. The subject barely came up this session yet is headed for the November ballot.

State Sen. David Ige, D-16th (Pearl City, `Aiea), sponsored the bill by request after several young people approached him. He said he would have sponsored it himself but the young people could not explain why the age should be 25 and not 21 or 18.

“I said, `Tell me why you chose 25.’ And they basically said they thought 30 was too old and they thought 25 was better,” Ige said. “And, I said, for me, if you’re going to do it you ought to go to 18.”

The bill passed the state House on Monday and cleared the state Senate on Wednesday with just two dissenting votes. Only state Sen. Gordon Trimble, R-12th (Waikïkï, Ala Moana, Downtown), felt compelled to speak about it on the floor, mostly because he thought it was poor form for a proposed constitutional amendment to pass without any comment.

“Experience matters, and usually experience is acquired by age,” Trimble said.

Several young people told lawmakers in committee testimony that the bill would help attract the younger generation to the democratic process.

Jason Leue, from Youth Outreach! Hawai’i, put it this way:

To get the youth excited we need a young leader, and to get a young leader we need to give them the opportunity to run for governor.

We need to send a message to the youth that politics isn’t something just for their parents. I think that’s what we’re telling the young adults right now with our age limitation 30 to run for governor.

The abrupt marriage between clarifying corporate campaign contribution limits and public financing of Big Island County Council elections is apparently off.

At conference committee negotiations yesterday afternoon, state Rep. Blake Oshiro, D-33rd (`Aiea, Hälawa Valley, `Aiea Heights), submitted a new draft that contains the public-financing pilot on the Big Island and other campaign-finance changes but no tweak to corporate contribution limits.

State Sen. Brian Taniguchi, D-10th (Mänoa, McCully), said he was inclined to accept Oshiro’s draft, although he might want to split the issues into separate bills.

Oshiro, the vice chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, and Taniguchi, the chairman of the Senate Judiciary and Labor Committee, both said afterwards that the corporate contribution provision is likely dead.

“We wanted to give it one last try,” Taniguchi explained.

A welder for Austal USA said today that he has been fired for disloyalty for making critical comments about Hawaii Superferry in a radio interview on KKCR on Kaua’i earlier this month.

Wayne Jenkins, who has fought with the Mobile, Ala., based shipbuilder in the past over labor issues, claimed that shoddy work on the Alakai and a sister vessel now under construction could put passenger lives at risk. He also questioned whether a repair crew sent to the Islands to work on the Alakai in drydock had proper equipment or stayed long enough to do the job.

Jenkins, his union organizer, and a former Austal worker involved in a racial discrimination complaint against the shipbuilder were interviewed by radio hosts Katy Rose, Jimmy Trujillo and Jonathan Jay, who are Kaua’i activists that have protested the Superferry.

During the interview, Jenkins and the hosts mused about the potential danger from the Alakai, including the possibility the ship was so damaged it might sink.

But Jenkins never worked on the Alakai and had no first-hand knowledge about the repairs in drydock. He has worked on the second vessel and believes unqualified welders have been allowed to do some of the welding. He said his information about the Alakai came from his professional knowledge and in discussions with a supervisor.

Jenkins, who has been on vacation, said he was informed by Austal last week that he had been suspended because of the interview. He learned today in a letter that he has been fired.

“I think it’s really unfair,” Jenkins said. “What it basically says is that a person cannot voice their opinion, their First Amendment rights. They’re taking that away.”

Swan Cleveland, an organizer with the Sheetmetal Workers Union, said today that he has filed an unfair labor practices complaint against Austal on Jenkins’ behalf.

Austal confirmed that Jenkins was terminated but declined to comment further because the matter involves employee relations.

A spokeswoman for Superferry declined to discuss Jenkins’ comments in the radio interview when asked by The Advertiser last week.

The interview has caused a stir among several bloggers and activists who have picked over the Superferry project. Andy Parx, a freelance journalist and blogger on Kaua’i, first posted unconfirmed reports that Jenkins had been fired on his blog last night.

The state GOP sent out a response Thursday night from Ed Enos, a Windward Republican, to what the party described as the infighting over the platform.

Enos took on Eric Ryan, an `Ewa Beach activist who has been agitating for platform changes, and what he called the support for Ryan among the “Ron Paul crowd.” (GOP leaders had warned about the possible infiltration of their caucuses by faux Republicans loyal only to Paul’s presidential campaign. Remember: those guys who had all those YouTube videos?)

Here’s how Enos tells it:

Last Saturday’s platform committee meeting at GOP Headquarters caused quite a stir. But if you’ve been paying attention to local politics lately, the result of that meeting may not be all that surprising.

It’s no secret that a vocal minority of Ron Paul supporters are doing their best to advance their cause, via the established local Republican Party. You can call Ron Paul a Republican if you want. I see him as many others do and he is by any measure a Libertarian. He’s also very smart, in that he has used the “Republican” label to his advantage to ensure himself a position to voice his 19th century isolationist beliefs.

One need only review the team of supporters that have aligned themselves behind Mr. Ryan, to see without a doubt, the Ron Paul crowd is in Mr. Ryan’s corner. If you still aren’t clear on this, contact daniel.douglass@ronpaul2008.com.

Well, we weren’t clear, so we contacted Dan Douglass, Paul’s state coordinator. Here’s what he had to say:

Ed Enos’ somewhat incoherent letter sent by the state GOP asked for response from me in the second paragraph. The fact that (Jimmy) Kuroiwa, a long time Hawaii Republican and McCain for president leader, and many other Republican activists want significant change in the party speaks for itself.

Ron Paul supporters made up around a third of the 19 committee-persons of the minority vote on Saturday. Eric Ryan was one of the 19.

Enos went on about presidential candidate Ron Paul. Paul’s a 10 term Republican Congressman from Texas. You can research for yourself and come to your own conclusions about Paul’s Republican credentials. Here’s the official campaign site:

http://www.ronpaul2008.com/

Paul’s campaign has inspired many of his supporters to activism. Influencing the party’s platform is one of those areas. A handful of Ron Paul Republicans have been effective in promoting reforms along with many other Hawaii Republicans prior to this past Saturday’s meeting.

Traditionally many Republicans have espoused what may be identified as libertarian beliefs: self reliance, free markets, constitutional personal liberties and honest, transparent and less intrusive governance. These are ideals we have been promoting in the platform.