Anti-telescope protesters oppose US attorney pick for Hawaii

By AUDREY McAVOY
Associated Press

HONOLULU (AP) — Some Native Hawaiians are objecting to President Joe Biden’s choice for U.S. attorney in the 50th state, saying Clare Connors treated dozens of elders like criminals when her office prosecuted them for blocking a road while protesting the construction of a telescope in Hawaii. The protesters consider the peak of Mauna Kea sacred and said the elders were exercising their constitutionally protected right to protest. Connors says she is honored with the nomination but declined to comment on the opposition because her confirmation process is pending. Connors has been Hawaii’s state attorney general since 2019.