Unfortunately for Mr Hashimoto, he is unlikely to be granted an open season for agency shooting.
Faced with a deteriorating economy, the Hashimoto government has fallen back on conventional policies.
Hashimoto and Watanabe, and their lieutenants, have been locked in discussions, seeking agreement on policies.
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In the run to his bolt from the DPJ Ozawa Ichiro paid Hashimoto a high-profile visit.
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As a result, Mr Hashimoto's image as a strong man has taken something of a battering.
The last of his lieutenants to be made prime minister were Ryutaro Hashimoto and Mr Obuchi.
After some early gains by Mr Hashimoto, Mr Koizumi now seems to be inching ahead.
Yet Toru Hashimoto, the 42-year-old mayor of the huge city of Osaka, does not.
The public standing of the prime minister's other foe, Mr Hashimoto, may have also peaked.
Mr Hashimoto's campaign follows his order forcing teachers in Osaka to stand for the national anthem.
In a speech last year Mr Hashimoto said: "What Japan needs now is dictatorship".
The prospect of a big win in July has silenced Mr Hashimoto's critics within his party.
The second thing Mr Hashimoto is expected to do is to shuffle his cabinet.
Mr Koizumi was from the establishment but Mr Hashimoto is a true outsider (see article).
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Mr Hashimoto outlined what he intends to say during a recent speech in Tokyo.
Much of what Mr Hashimoto wants is so ambitious that it verges on the fantastical.
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That's good news for Hashimoto, 60, who has played no small role in boosting LDP fortunes.
And many will never forget the newspaper photograph of Kantor holding a sword to Hashimoto's throat.
The result of the non-binding referendum, while gloomily predicted, has plunged Ryutaro Hashimoto's government into further confusion.
Piqued, Mr Hashimoto is now suggesting that the finance ministry be stripped of its tax-collecting powers instead.
"Japan is determined to take necessary economic-stimulus measures, " Hashimoto told the Asia-Europe summit in London last week.
Ryutaro Hashimoto's ruling Liberal Democratic Party aims to introduce a package of bills in the next session.
Growing support for him and his organization give Hashimoto power that other politicians are seeking to share.
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Mr Hashimoto has a different way of showing that he means business, but it is equally effective.
Kan established himself on the national stage after Ryutaro Hashimoto appointed him Minister of Health in 1996.
All of which means Mr Hashimoto could be in a bit of a quandary after the election.
The coalition will be fractious, and pushing through a Hashimoto programme will prove a very tall order.
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But Hashimoto says the ministry must come on board with other Japanese ministries to work out details of a ban.
The weapon was a gift from the American, and Hashimoto-san was teaching him how to use it.
They have raised concerns at home and abroad that Japan is effectively leaderless and that Hashimoto should resign.
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