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Author: Joe Garofoli

Obama: “Nobody is listening to your telephone calls. That is not what this program is about.”

Seeking to reassure Americans after recent revelations about the intelligence community’s surveillance program, President Obama said Friday in San Jose that “Nobody is listening to your telephone calls. That is not what this program is about.” “What the intelligence community is looking at is phone numbers and duration of calls. They’re not looking at names  

Those who survived a sex scandal. And those who didn’t

As he launches his run for Mayor of New York, former Rep. Anthony Weiner should have no problem overcoming public loathing. This is America. We are a forgiving nation. For the most part. Should history be our guide, Weiner will rise again. (Oh, you knew that hackery was coming sooner or later.) Think about Thomas  

Awkward questions Michelle Obama can ask Tim Cook at the State of the Union

Apple will be in the house again at Tuesday’s State of the Union — the house being First Lady Michelle Obama’s luxury suite. This time, it will be Apple CEO Tim Cook getting the prime seat, just as Steve Jobs’ widow Laurene Powell Jobs got the golden ticket in 2012. Now the First Lady is […]

Sierra Club to engage in civil disobedience for first time

How hot is the controversial Keystone Pipeline controversy getting? The Sierra Club is — for the first time in its history — going to engage in civil disobedience on Feb. 17 in Washington, D.C., which is also a day that greenies predict will be “the largest climate rally in history.” With Nebraska Gov. Dave Heineman […]

Obama’s second Inaugural funded by big corporate donors; less transparent

Four years ago, President Obama banned corporate and union donations from funding his first Inauguration. Not this time. This time, the man who railed on how Citizens United would “open the floodgates for special interests” by allowing unlimited contributions from corporations and “America’s most powerful interests” ….is accepting unlimited donations to his inaugural committee from […]

Corporations may be like people, too, sez SEC

Interesting stuff going down at the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, which is considering a requirement to force publicly traded companies to disclose political contributions. Whoa! That could be huge. But at the front of the Ticked-Off Line are trade associations like the U.S. Chamber, which dropped $30 milllllllllllllllllllllllion last year on campaigns to beat […]

Republicans ALREADY targeting Ami Bera, John Garamendi for 2014

Welcome back to the continuous campaign, where the fundraising and politicking never stops. That’s why the National Republican Congressional Committee just rolled out their list of 40 targeted seats for 2014 — it’s never too early to start shopping for Christmas — and on it are Northern California Democratic Reps. John Garamendi, D-Walnut Grove and […]

Translating Jerry Brown: “You cut the good, which in many respects is a bad.”

Guv Jerry Brown eschewed the national spotlight for most of the first two years of Jerry 2.0. It’s The New Jerry Thing. But he’s is taking a victory lap of sorts Tuesday night on the PBS NewsHour, talking up how he balanced California’s budget. “It’s fixed,” he tells PBS NewsHour correspondent and producer Spencer Michels, […]