Cecil Landau Heftel (September 30, 1924 – February 4, 2010) was an American politician and businessman from Hawaii. A member of the Democratic Party, Heftel served in the United States House of Representatives from 1977 to 1986, representing Hawaii's 1st congressional district.

Early years

Heftel was born in Chicago, Illinois; his maternal grandparents were from Russia and his paternal grandparents from Poland. He attended Roosevelt High School in Albany Park, Chicago, then obtained his bachelor's degree from Arizona State University in 1951. Heftel then started law school at the University of Utah and as a Root-Tilden Scholar at the New York University, but never completed the degree.

Heftel settled in Honolulu and established Heftel Broadcasting. He owned KGMB-AM-FM-TV and several other television and radio stations across the country. From 1943 to 1946, Heftel served in the United States Army. The Act aimed to stimulate economic growth by significantly reducing income tax rates. It passed the House of Representatives in a 323–107 vote, the Senate via a voice vote, and it was signed into law by President Ronald Reagan on August 13, 1981. However, Heftel voted against the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1981. The Act decreased federal spending and increased military funding. Despite his vote against it, the bill passed the House of Representatives in a 232–193 vote, the Senate via a voice vote, and it was signed into law by President Ronald Reagan the same day.

Heftel resigned on July 19, 1986, to run for governor, but lost the Democratic primary to John Waihee. Heftel blamed the loss on a smear campaign accusing him of involvement in drugs and sexual relations with "young males and females," suggesting that Heftel was a bisexual pedophile. Democrats long have asserted that the smear came from Republicans looking to run against Waihee as an easier-to-defeat opponent. Many in Hawaii political circles, however, believe the smear was orchestrated by a more powerful political machine that was afraid of Heftel's honest, no-nonsense approach.

Post congressional career

In 1992, he was a supporter of the presidential campaign of Ross Perot.

In 1998, he briefly returned to the political realm, authoring a book, End Legalized Bribery, in which he attempted to prove that the current state of campaign finance corrupts politicians, prevents qualified individuals from running for office, and costs citizens billions of dollars in pork barrel spending and corporate welfare. The book also contained arguments in favor of a national Clean Elections law and mandatory free commercial airtime for political candidates.

After 18 years out of the spotlight, the 80-year-old Heftel made a successful return to elective politics by being elected in November 2004 to the state Board of Education for the Oahu-At Large seat.

Death and legacy

Cecil Heftel died on February 4, 2010, from natural causes in San Diego, California. He was 85. (Numerous websites claim he died February 5, but his widow says he died on February 4.)

On June 13, 2011, U.S. Rep. Colleen Hanabusa introduced legislation to designate the post office at 4354 Pahoa Avenue in Honolulu as the "Cecil L. Heftel Post Office Building".

References

  • Cecil Heftel – a tribute by former employee John Rook
  • Some background on Cecil Heftel by John Rook

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