Well, here’s at least one thing that Rep. Mike Honda, D-San Jose, and his Democratic challenger, Ro Khanna of Fremont, can agree upon: Hosting Super Bowl L in 2016 at the new Levi’s Stadium – in the heart of the 17th Congressional District they’re vying to represent – is a good thing.

From Honda:

“I am thrilled that the country’s premier sporting event will be coming to Silicon Valley in just a few years’ time. Santa Clara is home to some of the most innovative tech firms in the world, and Levi’s Stadium is a shining example of commerce, entertainment, and sustainable technology coexisting and thriving. As Santa Clara’s representative to Congress, I was proud to advocate for this opportunity with the team’s ownership and local leaders. The only news that could make this event more exciting for South Bay sports fans is if the 49ers make it to the big game.”

From Khanna:

“Today’s announcement that the 49ers’ new stadium in Santa Clara will host Super Bowl L is great news for the franchise, its relentlessly supportive fans, and the entire Bay Area. This state-of-the-art stadium is already creating thousands of jobs in the 17th district — and I expect the 2016 Super Bowl will be another big shot in the arm for our economy.”

Ro Khanna, the former Obama administration official who’s challenging fellow Democrat Rep. Mike Honda in the 17th Congressional District, has a fundraiser scheduled for Thursday night in San Francisco with some of Silicon Valley’s big names.

The top hosts are Ron Conway, a famed investor who is now special adviser to the San Francisco-based SV Angel investment firm, and Sean Parker of Napster and Facebook fame.

Also involved are Salesforce.com founder and CEO Marc Benioff, who has hosted fundraisers for President Barack Obama; Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer and her husband, Zach Bogue; Matt Cohler and Peter Fenton from Benchmark Capital General Partners; Napster developer Shawn Fanning; Dan Rose, Facebook’s vice president of business development and monetization; Dropbox general counsel Ramsey Homsany, formerly a VP at Google; and SV Angel founder and managing partner David Lee.

The cost is $2,600 for supporters, $5,200 for sponsors; the 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. reception is being held in a private room at a North Beach restaurant.

Honda, 71, started the year with about $78,000 cash on hand and raised about $214,000 in the first quarter so even the money he raised in the first quarter doesn’t put him anywhere close to the $1 million bankroll that Khanna built in one blockbuster quarter back in 2011, when most folks thought he would run to succeed (but not challenge) Pete Stark.

Khanna, 36, of Fremont, raised only $18,000 in the first quarter of this year, but he was trying to remain somewhat under the radar; he didn’t formally announce his candidacy until April 2. This fundraiser might help him deliver on his promise of a much more aggressive and lucrative second quarter.

Khanna – a deputy assistant secretary in the Commerce Department from 2009 to 2011, now of counsel to Silicon Valley law powerhouse Wilson Sonsini – may be hobnobbing with the tech elite but he’s not neglecting his grassroots, either. He’s scheduled to hold the latest of his community meet-and-greets over Memorial Day weekend: a potluck lunch from 1 to 2:30 p.m. Saturday, May 25 in Almaden Quicksilver County Park along San Jose’s southern edge.

The battle for the 17th Congressional District continues as Rep. Mike Honda, D-San Jose, rolls out a new batch of endorsements and Democratic challenger Ro Khanna fires up his digital grassroots.

Honda on Tuesday announced the endorsements of state Senate President pro Tempore Darrell Steinberg, Assembly Speaker John Perez, Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson, Controller John Chiang, Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones, Treasurer Bill Lockyer, Board of Equalization member Betty Yee, and 14 current and former state lawmakers. He’d previously announced he has Attorney General Kamala Harris’ endorsement, while Khanna last month announced he has Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom’s nod.

Perez said Honda “has been a thoughtful and effective leader, with a distinguished track record of bringing both parties together to find solutions for the very difficult challenges facing our country. Our state is lucky to have such a phenomenal representative fighting for us in Congress, and I am proud to support him for reelection.”

And Torlakson said Honda “is working to improve science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) education in our classrooms, which will provide our children with a 21st century education and keep our country a leader in the global economy. I am proud to support Mike’s campaign for Congress and look forward to continue working with him to ensure that each and every child has the opportunity to get a quality education.”

Honda said he’s grateful for the state officials’ support: “We will continue working together for quality jobs, good schools, and a bright future for California’s families.”

Meanwhile, Khanna is continuing his effort to “bridge the gap of digital and traditional involvement” by inviting people to become “digital advocates” to spread word of his campaign throughout Silicon Valley. The campaign’s first digital training for volunteers is scheduled for 7 to 9 p.m. tonight, Tuesday, May 7, at 43255 Mission Blvd. in Fremont; more trainings will be held in the coming months.

And Khanna will hold a meet-and-greet to answer district residents’ questions at noon this Friday, May 10, at 3333 Bowers Ave., Suite 130 in Santa Clara.

More than 100 House members from both sides of the aisle have signed on to co-sponsor a bill that would require background checks for all commercial gun sales.

Rep. Mike Thompson, D-Napa, chairman of the House Democrats’ gun-violence task force, and Rep. Pete King, R-N.Y., introduced H.R. 1565 on April 15, two days before the Senate rejected the identical Manchin-Toomey amendment.

“We won’t take ‘no’ for an answer when it comes to passing commonsense laws that keep guns from criminals, terrorist and the dangerously mentally ill,” Thompson and King said in a news release today. “This debate isn’t over. The American people deserve for this bill to be signed into law.”

The bill would expand the existing background check system to cover all commercial firearm sales, including those at gun shows, over the internet or in classified ads; it would not cover private, person-to-person sales, as California’s law does.

This widening of background checks is tempered by several nods to those concerned about Second Amendment rights: The bill bans the government from creating a federal registry and makes the misuse of records a felony, punishable by up to 15 years in prison. It also lets gun owners use a state concealed-carry permit issued within the last five years in lieu of a background check, and allows interstate handgun sales from licensed dealers.

And it improves the National Instant Criminal Background Check System by offering incentives to states to improve reporting of criminals and the dangerously mentally ill and by directing future grants toward better record-sharing systems; federal funds would be reduced to states that don’t comply.

The bill has been referred to the House Judiciary and Veterans’ Affairs committees.

The King-Thompson bill’s original co-authors are Mike Fitzpatrick, R-Pa.; Pat Meehan, R-Pa.; Carolyn McCarthy, D-N.Y.; and Peter DeFazio, D-Ore.

From the greater Bay Area, co-sponsors include Reps. Anna Eshoo, D-Palo Alto; Sam Farr, D-Santa Cruz; John Garamendi, D-Fairfield; Mike Honda, D-San Jose; Jared Huffman, D-San Rafael; Barbara Lee, D-Oakland; Zoe Lofgren, D-San Jose; Nancy Pelosi, D-San Francisco; Jackie Speier, D-San Mateo; and Eric Swalwell, D-Pleasanton.

The locals who haven’t signed on are Reps. Jerry McNerney, D-Stockton; and George Miller, D-Martinez. I’ve reached out to their offices to find out where they stand on the bill, and will update this item accordingly.

UPDATE @ 1 P.M. TUESDAY 5/7: McNerney and Miller both have signed on.

Following in the footsteps of former colleague Pete Stark, Rep. Mike Honda has spoken out on behalf of a “National Day of Reason” this Thursday, May 2, to counter the government-sponsored National Day of Prayer.

“The National Day of Reason celebrates the application of reason and the positive impact it has had on humanity,” Honda, D-San Jose, declared in the Congressional Record last Thursday. “It is also an opportunity to reaffirm the Constitutional separation of religion and government.”

The American Humanist Association says support from Honda and from Rep. Eleanor Holmes Norton, D-D.C., is particularly notable this year in light of the recent controversy over the refusal to include secular representation at the official memorial service honoring the victims of the recent Boston bombings.

The group says the National Day of Prayer Task Force’s state purpose to represent “a Judeo-Christian expression of the national observance” is exclusionary.

“Our elected officials dishonor their office and their constituents when they promote and attend divisive events that tell a growing minority of Americans that they aren’t worthy of full citizenship,” AHA Executive Director Roy Speckhardt said in a news release. “Our secular government has no business endorsing expression of some beliefs while excluding others.”

The National Day of Prayer was created in 1952 by an act of Congress to be held each year on the first Thursday of May. The AHA created the National Day of Reason “to celebrate reason — a concept all Americans can support — and to raise public awareness about the persistent threat to religious liberty posed by government intrusion into the private sphere of worship.”

Stark – who was Congress’ only avowed atheist, and who was unseated last year by fellow Democrat Eric Swalwell – had issued several National Day of Reason proclamations while in office. Honda describes his religious belief as Protestant Christian.

U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan arrives tomorrow, Tuesday, April 30, for a three-day Bay Area visit to highlight the need for more high-quality early learning programs and innovative teaching strategies.

Duncan tomorrow will tour and host a media availability at San Francisco’s Cross Cultural Family Center, which provides child-care services in cross-cultural settings — emphasizing the big role family and community play in promoting positive development of young children. After that, he’ll speak at the American Educational Research Association’s 94th annual meeting in San Francisco, delivering remarks on major issues facing students, educators, policymakers, and other education stakeholders.

On Wednesday, Duncan is scheduled to join Rep. Mike Honda, D-San Jose, at Fremont High School in Sunnyvale to help kick off a nationwide effort to improve early education. The initiative follows the release in February of a “For Each and Every Child” report by the 27-member Equity and Excellence Commission, which was formed under legislation authored by Honda.

Duncan also is scheduled Wednesday and Thursday to deliver remarks at the New Schools Venture Fund’s annual summit, an event at San Francisco’s Everett Middle School, and at the Education Writers Association’s National Seminar at Stanford University.

Duncan is touting the Education Department’s new blueprint for Recognizing Educational Success, Professional Excellence and Collaborative Teaching (RESPECT), which among other calls for teacher salaries to be competitive with professions like architecture, medicine and law, more support for novice teachers and more career opportunities for veterans.

After months Rep. Mike Honda rolling out high-profile endorsements, the fellow Democrat who’s challenging him announced today he has one of California’s statewide electeds in his corner: Ro Khanna has Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom’s support.

“I’m proud to support Ro. I know he will govern from a place of courage and authenticity,” Newsom said in a statement issued by Khanna’s campaign. “He has many innovative ideas to grow California’s economy and to apply technology to make government better for all his constituents.”

Khanna, 36, of Fremont, said he’s grateful to be endorsed by Newsom, whom he called “a public servant who represents all the best qualities of the 17th District. He is truly a pioneer in finding ways to technologically transform government to achieve a more open and efficient democracy.”

Khanna also said Newsom’s “early leadership on same-sex marriage makes him a public figure to admire and emulate.”

Making politics more tech friendly and vice versa is a key theme in Khanna’s campaign, just as it is of “Citizenville,” Newsom’s recent book on how to modernize government and increase political participation among the nation’s increasingly diverse citizenry. And both Khanna – a former Obama administration Commerce Department official – and Newsom have tried to cast themselves as younger, more dynamic alternatives to an older political dynamic.

Khanna just formally announced his candidacy a few weeks ago, but rumors have been flying for many months. Honda, D-San Jose, used that time to roll out a series of endorsements from the likes of President Obama, House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, current and former chairs of the Democratic National Committee, and almost all of California’s House Democrats.

One of the Bay Area’s House freshmen was among the region’s top fundraisers in the first quarter of 2013, according to newly filed Federal Election Commission reports.

Rep. Eric Swalwell, D-Pleasanton, raised $262,810 in the first three months of the year, leaving him with $222,932 cash on hand as of March 31.

On its face, that’s more even than the $207,030 that House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-San Francisco, collected in individual contributions to her campaign committee. But Pelosi also transferred in more than $136,000 from her Nancy Pelosi Victory Fund, which itself raised $671,400 in the first quarter. (Now THAT’s some serious scratch; don’t mess with the big dog, Congressman Swalwell.)

Still, Swalwell’s first-quarter fundraising outstripped that of every other Bay Area House member including Mike Honda, D-San Jose, who raised $214,000 while already in full campaign mode due to the challenge posed by fellow Democrat Ro Khanna.

Swalwell might also face a fellow Democrat in 2014: state Senate Majority Leader Ellen Corbett, D-San Leandro, who like Swalwell had hoped to succeed Pete Stark in the 15th Congressional District but chose not to run against him last year. Corbett, who’s favored by many of the same local Democrats who had backed Stark in 2012, raised $16,201 in the first quarter of this year and had $114,963 cash on hand as of March 31.

Here’s a readout of the rest of the greater Bay Area delegation’s first-quarter haul, looking only at their principal campaign committees:

Barbara Lee, D-Oakland: $69,482 raised, $29,804 cash on hand

George Miller, D-Martinez: $79,253 raised, $215,537 cash on hand

Mike Thompson, D-Napa: $209,566 raised, $1,357,504 cash on hand

Jerry McNerney, D-Stockton: $125,004 raised, $114,001 cash on hand

Zoe Lofgren, D-San Jose: $45,240 raised, $571,704 cash on hand

Sam Farr, D-Santa Cruz: $32,650 raised, $70,731 cash on hand

Anna Eshoo, D-Palo Alto: $50,186 raised, $319,929 cash on hand

Jackie Speier, D-San Mateo: $34,728 raised, $976,878 cash on hand

Jared Huffman, D-San Rafael: $95,152 raised, $116,503 cash on hand

On the heels of his well-bankrolled challenger’s campaign kickoff rally this weekend, Rep. Mike Honda announced Monday that he raised about $214,000 in this year’s first quarter toward his 2014 re-election campaign.

Honda, D-San Jose, faces a challenge in the 17th Congressional District from fellow Democrat Ro Khanna of Fremont, a former Obama administration Commerce Department official. Khanna raised a record-setting $1.2 million in the final quarter of 2011, when his plan was to succeed (but not challenge) Pete Stark in the 15th Congressional District; Stark was unseated by fellow Democrat Eric Swalwell last year, and now Khanna will try to do the same to Honda.

But Honda, who since the start of this year has been rolling out high-profile endorsements including those of President Barack Obama and almost all California House Democrats, seems ready to put up a hell of a fight.

His campaign said Monday that he raised $213,944.74 from 345 donors from Jan. 1 through March 31, and has hired a formidable fundraising team to hit wallets near and far. Madalene Xuan-Trang Mielke, founder and principal of Arum Group LLC, will direct national fundraising efforts and Shari Rubin-Rick and Brittany Kneebone Feitelberg of Integrated Fundraising Strategies will guide the California money operation.

“In the last 90 days, we’ve added finance talent to build upon our on-going fundraising operation and we are moving ahead aggressively with face-to-face and online fundraising,” campaign spokesman Dan Cohen said in a news release. “In the second quarter, the Congressman will travel for fundraising events to Chicago, New Jersey, New York, and Los Angeles, and Mayor Ed Lee will co-host an event in San Francisco.”

Among the contributions Honda’s campaign touted are those from actor George Takei of “Star Trek” fame; Men’s Wearhouse founder George Zimmer; and officers or employees from tech companies including McAfee, Phillips Electronics, Qualcomm, and Semiconductor Equipment and Materials International (SEMI), a global trade association.

“This is a Congressman who works both for the people and the drivers of innovation in Silicon Valley,” Mielke said in the release. “He is known as a trusted voice to grow jobs, help families, and improve education. People at every level want to be a part of keeping Rep. Honda in Congress,” she added.

Honda started the year with about $78,000 cash on hand, so even the money he raised in the first quarter doesn’t put him anywhere close to Khanna’s $1 million bankroll. Khanna raised only $18,000 in the first quarter, but he was trying to remain somewhat under the radar (he didn’t formally announce his candidacy until April 2) and promises a much more aggressive second quarter.

Meanwhile, Khanna – who formally announced his campaign earlier this month – held the first public event of campaign Sunday at DeAnza College in Cupertino. The “Rally with Ro” featured a performance by a local dance troupe, as well as speeches from supporters including two members of Khanna’s campaign committee: longtime local labor leader Sergio Santos and Lindsay Lamont, a student who took one of Khanna’s classes at Stanford. And, of course, the candidate himself gave a broad outline of why he’s in this race.

“In Silicon Valley, we reject labels and respect out-of-the-box thinking,” Khanna said. “We judge a person based on the merit of their ideas, not their party or their seniority or their title. Isn’t it time we had a Congress capable of doing the same?”

Khanna ran through a series of policy points geared toward Silicon Valley’s needs, such as “tax rules that incentivize companies to invest here at home instead of parking money overseas;” a need to “simplify government regulations at all levels so that businesses choose to create jobs in Sunnyvale and Santa Clara instead of Ireland or Singapore;” tech-oriented education system that teaches code to elementary school students; and immigration reform that welcomes and retains job creators.

“The world looks to Silicon Valley as a place for innovation, unencumbered by past struggles along national, racial, or religious lines. It represents America at its best; the 21st century at its best,” he said. “If you believe, then, as I do, that Silicon Valley not only can, but must shape American politics; that from here we can build a new politics for a new century, grounded in the founding ideals that define our nation; then I ask you to join this campaign.”

Honda’s campaign on Friday had offered up a roster of Silicon Valley politicians (including San Jose Councilman Ash Kalra, Fremont Mayor Bill Harrison and Santa Clara Mayor Jamie Matthews); business and labor leaders (including South Bay Labor Council CEO Ben Field, Root Square CEO Shelly Kapoor Collins and Yonja Media Group CEO Dilawar Syed); and others who’ll sing Honda’s praises as a champion for the region. Honda himself was at the California Democratic Party Convention in Sacramento this weekend, doubtlessly shoring up what few party-politico endorsements he doesn’t already have.

Read Khanna’s complete remarks as prepared, after the jump…
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As Ro Khanna – the former Obama administration official who announced last week that he’ll challenge fellow Democrat Mike Honda in 2014 – prepares for his first public campaign event, Honda has announced he’s been endorsed by 34 other California House Democrats.

In a news release issued Thursday, Honda said he and his House endorsers “are working with President Obama to help create jobs, improve our schools, and ensure California’s continued leadership in technology and innovation. I’m eager to continue this work and grateful to have the support of my colleagues.”

It’s just the latest in a series of high-profile endorsements that Honda has rolled out in the first few months of this year, including that of President Obama.

The only Bay Area House members who aren’t on Honda’s list of endorsers are Anna Eshoo, D-Palo Alto, and Eric Swalwell, D-Pleasanton.

Swalwell’s absence isn’t so surprising, given he just won his office by ignoring the party’s wishes and unseating veteran Rep. Pete Stark in 2012 much as Khanna hopes to do to Honda in 2014. In fact, Swalwell should be quite pleased that Khanna is running against Honda in the 17th Congressional District; Khanna initially had hoped to succeed Stark in the 15th Congressional District after his expected retirement in 2014, and some thought he might challenge Swalwell instead.

Eshoo’s absence from Honda’s list of endorsers seems more remarkable, given her district’s Silicon Valley similarities to Honda’s.

Khanna, meanwhile, is planning a “Rally with Ro” for 2 p.m. Sunday in the Sunken Garden on DeAnza College’s campus, 21250 Stevens Creek Blvd. in Cupertino. The event “will bring together community residents and key campaign supporters to hear Ro’s forward-looking vision for the district,” his campaign says.

He’s positioning himself as a younger, more-tech savvy alternative to Honda with a better appreciation of Silicon Valley’s needs; watch for a speech that touches on tax and regulatory policies that would foster innovation and job creation, and education polices that would produce a tech-trained workforce.