Jack of Harts

The reduced tourism coming in from the mainland greatly affected the Hawaiian economy during the Second Great Depression, but it was not the locals’ primary concern. They had a local political crisis that was far more important to them. Having ousted one governor for high crimes against Hawaii, with prosecutors eagerly waiting to pounce on him with a legion of lawsuits that would easily total life in prison, they had to weather another campaign season to replace him. The leading candidates of the two dominant parties of the time led vitriolic campaigns accusing each other of everything from being idiots to traitors. Then the press began reporting that the investigation into the ex-governor’s participation in under-age sex rings had expanded to their circles as well. That set off a feeding frenzy in the competing news services that went further into the gutter and effectively destroyed their campaigns. It was a divisive time for Hawaii.