Mainstream news political news and opinion

- 1:19 am
LOS ANGELES (AP) -- Over the past 12 years, Josh Libresco's health insurance premium has increased almost eight-fold for his family of four.... »Read  »E-mail story

In this article: Darrel Ng, Barack Obama, Steve Poizner,

- 12:00 am
Rep. Murtha, the first Vietnam veteran to serve in Congress, called in 2005 for an immediate pullout of U.S. forces from Iraq. He also delivered billions in federal dollars to his home state. ... »Read  »E-mail story

In this article: George W. Bush, Dick Cheney, Nancy Pelosi,

Editorial - 12:00 am
The automaker's Green Police spot drives home a disturbing notion about environmentalism and the future. Iwatched the Super Bowl in the chilled air of the ... »Read  »E-mail story

Editorial - 12:00 am
Two proposed initiatives would go a long way toward restoring the Golden State. Eight years ago, California was the world's fifth-largest economy and surging. ... »Read  »E-mail story

In this article: Fred Keeley, Steve Westly,

Editorial - 12:00 am
Businesses are in business to make money. Benevolence is not the guiding principle. Several great Damon Runyon stories take place in a little speak-easy ... »Read  »E-mail story

Editorial - 12:00 am
Even in these troubled times, Haiti has every right to make sure children are protected. The 10 American Baptist missionaries arrested on charges of abducting ... »Read  »E-mail story

Editorial - 12:00 am
Scorn and shame, not jail, is the appropriate punishment for those who lie about military service. Especially at a time when the United States is fighting two ... »Read  »E-mail story

Editorial - 12:00 am
The city's new mayor, Mitch Landrieu, faces continuing rebuilding challenges but may be more politically adept than outgoing Mayor Nagin. The New Orleans ... »Read  »E-mail story

Editorial - 12:00 am
Saab: Meghan Daum's column on Feb. 2 about Saab said that Kurt Vonnegut owned a Saab dealership in the 1970s. He owned the dealership in the 1950s. »Read  »E-mail story

California - Feb. 8, 8:49 pm
The top spenders were Caltrans, with $10.4 million for vehicles, and the DMV, with $1.7 million for furnishings. An additional $2 million went to conferences and meetings, report shows. ... »Read  »E-mail story

In this article: Air Resources Board, Erin Shaw, Stanley Young,

California - Feb. 8, 8:36 pm
Mayor Jim Dear reportedly shuts speakers' microphones down with a before their allotted three minutes are up. 'It's a very unique complaint,' a district attorney's official says. ... »Read  »E-mail story

In this article: Jim Dear, Mike Gipson,

Editorial - 12:00 am
President Barack Obama said that he wants to eliminate the 'don't ask, don't tell' policy on gays in the military so gays can serve openly. Like good soldiers, the secretary of Defense and chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff deferred to their... »Read  »E-mail story

In this article: Lottery, Barack Obama, Sarah Palin,

Opinion - Feb. 8, 5:38 pm
The Legislature may take up reforming state worker pensions as soon as this year, Senate President pro Tem Darrell Steinberg, D-Sacramento, has said. We would welcome Mr. Steinberg's leadership on the issue, but, after hearing him interviewed, we... »Read  »E-mail story

In this article: CalPERS, Lottery, Darrell Steinberg,

Editorial - Feb. 8, 5:32 pm
Amid worldwide challenges to global warming theory, bipartisan opposition is forming in Congress as prominent Democratic voices join Republican critics of the Obama administration's pending greenhouse gas regulations. Two powerful Democratic... »Read  »E-mail story

In this article: Lottery,

- 12:18 am
Lawmakers are fed up with the state Employment Development Department, saying its technology staff is set to rack up $53 million in cost overruns on projects funded with federal stimulus money and is behind on assisting the unemployed. The ... »Read  »E-mail story

In this article: Charles Calderon, Jose Solorio, Teri Takai, unemployment insurance,

- 12:00 am
Casey Stone says if the Williamson Act ceases to protect agricultural land from high assessments, 'the incentive will be to just develop the state' and California's status as the No. 1 agricultural state will end. Ranchers in Yolo County might have ... »Read  »E-mail story

In this article: John Gamper, Williamson Act, John Young,

- 12:00 am
Daniel Lee, an automotive student at Sierra College, fears he won't be able to finish his degree; the automotive program is among those that may be cut.A packed board meeting inside the Sierra College theater last week offered a glimpse of the many ... »Read  »E-mail story

In this article: Scott Lay, Legislative Analyst's Office, Jack Scott, water,

- 12:00 am
RANDY PENCH Bee file, 2009 Mayor Kevin Johnson said he believes his new plan will 'resonate with the entire community.' Sacramento Mayor Kevin Johnson has moved away from his strong-mayor initiative and will ask the City Council tonight to place a ... »Read  »E-mail story

In this article: Steve Cohn, Kevin Johnson,

- 12:00 am
El Dorado Irrigation District officials moved Monday to restructure the district's debt after approving scaled-back rate increases last week. District officials over the past month announced a number of steps to boost revenue and cut costs in an ... »Read  »E-mail story

In this article: Ted Gaines,

- 12:00 am
The Legislature's ideological polarization is often cited by critics – correctly – as one of its major deficiencies. Uber-liberal Democrats and ultra-conservative Republicans occupy all but a handful of the Legislature's 120 seats, ... »Read  »E-mail story

In this article: Juan Arambula, John Garamendi, Abel Maldonado, Ken Mettler, Pedro Nava, Arnold Schwarzenegger, state budget, Dan Walters,

- 12:00 am
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has released a partial list of guests to his closed-door lunch with legislators last month, and revealed who picked up the tab for their steak-or-salmon feeding. Public notices filed by the Governor's Office show the ... »Read  »E-mail story

In this article: Arnold Schwarzenegger, Jack Scott,

- 12:00 am
The plot thickened Monday in the story of GOP state Sen. Abel Maldonado's bid to be seated as lieutenant governor. Three Democratic members of the Assembly announced they'll oppose Maldonado for various reasons. Assemblyman Pedro Nava, D-Santa ... »Read  »E-mail story

In this article: Assembly Democrats, Abel Maldonado, Pedro Nava,

- 12:00 am
California Insurance Commissioner Steve Poizner dispatched a letter Monday to executives at WellPoint, the parent company of Anthem Blue Cross, urging them to postpone rate increases until May 1 so an independent actuary can investigate. ... »Read  »E-mail story

In this article: Steve Poizner, Anthony Wright,

- 12:00 am
Two investment firms under investigation in California's public pension fund scandal agreed to forfeit a combined $19 million Monday to settle a pension corruption probe in New York. The firms, Markstone Capital Group and Wetherly Capital Group ... »Read  »E-mail story

In this article: Fred Buenrostro, CalPERS, CalSTRS, Ed Hernandez,

Opinion - 12:00 am
Many Californians have long bemoaned the back-room deals where political honchos drew electoral districts to protect friends and punish enemies, making many districts less competitive that they would otherwise be. Want to change that? Well, ... »Read  »E-mail story

In this article: Board of Equalization, Elaine Howle,

Opinion - 12:00 am
California is on the cusp of financial Armageddon. Finding a solution to the state's $20 billion budget hole should be priority No. 1 for state lawmakers, regardless of party. Yet at the Capitol these days, the major sideshow is state Sen. Abel ... »Read  »E-mail story

In this article: John Laird, Abel Maldonado,

Opinion - 12:00 am
We've always known that America's reign as the world's greatest nation would eventually end. But most of us imagined that our downfall, when it came, would be something grand and tragic. What we're getting instead is less a tragedy than a ... »Read  »E-mail story

In this article: Newt Gingrich,

Opinion - 12:00 am
As our nation's capital recovers from yet another massive blizzard, the problem of unregulated snow can no longer be ignored. It's time for Congress to set limits on the crystalline mayhem that descends through the atmosphere, wreaking havoc on all ... »Read  »E-mail story

Opinion - 12:00 am
When first lady Michelle Obama decided to make the 'obesity epidemic' among American youth part of her agenda last Tuesday, she took a bold step toward sparking a needed dialogue on the health and well-being of our children. Most parents would ... »Read  »E-mail story

In this article: Barack Obama,

Opinion - 12:00 am
MANNY CRISOSTOMO mcrisostomo@sacbee.com A crash involving a California Highway Patrol car and a big rig closed southbound Interstate 5 for eight hours Saturday.Freeway shutdown unwarranted Re 'Accident injures CHP officer, shuts I-5 lanes near ... »Read  »E-mail story

In this article: John McCain, Tom McClintock, Dan Walters,

- 12:00 am
Federal and state lawmakers called Monday for a closer examination of Mercury Insurance Group in the wake of a state report that suggests the firm may have engaged in illegal practices, including deceptive pricing and discrimination against military ... »Read  »E-mail story

In this article: Hector De La Torre, Kathy Fairbanks, Carla Marinucci, Steve Poizner, Harvey Rosenfield, Loretta Sanchez,

- 12:00 am
More than 10,000 San Francisco city workers - from librarians and gardeners to secretaries and street cleaners - would be laid off and most rehired for jobs with shorter hours under a controversial plan being examined by Mayor Gavin Newsom. The ... »Read  »E-mail story

In this article: John Avalos, Gavin Newsom,

Opinion - 12:00 am
After saying yes to a nuclear materials swap, Iran now says no, signaling it will refine the uranium on its own. Guessing the minds of the country's leaders and its bomb-making ambitions is as confusing as ever. For months Iran has toyed with a deal ... »Read  »E-mail story

Opinion - 12:00 am
Vaughn Walker almost lost his chance to reach the federal bench because of claims that he was anti-gay and hostile to civil rights. Two dozen House Democrats, led by Rep. Nancy Pelosi of San Francisco, opposed his nomination because of his alleged ... »Read  »E-mail story

In this article: Nancy Pelosi, Proposition 8,

Opinion - 12:00 am
The barrier to health care Last week, Anthem Blue Cross announced to many of its individual policyholders that it would be increasing their premium rates by up to 39 percent ('Anthem Blue Cross raises premiums,' Feb. 6). As a pharmacy intern, I see ... »Read  »E-mail story

Opinion - 12:00 am

Opinion - 12:00 am
It was a principal's worst-case scenario: School was starting in a few days and I still had an open position in seventh-grade math. I didn't want to hire a teacher who was lacking traditional certification, but I agreed to interview Nate Geller, a ... »Read  »E-mail story

Opinion - 12:00 am
The last time my relatives in Iran sat before a U.S. consular officer in an effort to obtain a visa to visit the United States - their second unsuccessful attempt - I waited anxiously by the phone and in front of my computer for word on the ... »Read  »E-mail story

Debra Saunders - 12:00 am
In the circle of lawyers and judges I know, U.S. District Judge Vaughn Walker is a giant. He is a brilliant jurist, legal eagles will tell you, who has insightful, and often unexpected, opinions. He's funny and charming - and he's gay. As Walker has ... »Read  »E-mail story

In this article: Proposition 8, Andrew Ross,

Editorials - Feb. 8, 7:34 pm
It's encouraging that San Jose's elected leaders have worked out a compromise with labor groups over the makeup of the two boards governing employee pension plans. »Read  »E-mail story

In this article: Chuck Reed,

Editorials - Feb. 8, 7:34 pm
In the power struggle playing out today between Santa Clara County Assessor Larry Stone and Supervisor George Shirakawa over an appointment to an important assessment appeals board, Stone has taxpayers' interests on his side. »Read  »E-mail story

In this article: Ken Yeager,

Opinion - Feb. 8, 5:08 pm
To the surprise of no one, California finds itself again with multibillion dollar deficits and no clear way to meet the shortfall. »Read  »E-mail story