California’s U.S. Senators have laid their bet with Maryland’s over the outcome of Super Bowl XLVII between the San Francisco 49ers and the Baltimore Ravens this coming Sunday, Feb. 3 in New Orleans.

U.S. Sen. Barbara Mikulski, D-Md., and U.S. Sen. Ben Cardin, D-Md., fired the first shot with a trash-talking letter promising the Ravens will “stomp” the 49ers.

“You can be sure we’ll be cheering on Ray Lewis and the whole team in his last game as the Ravens fly high to victory!” the Maryland senators wrote. “In fact, we’re so confident in our Ravens that we’re willing to wager a world-class feast: some delicious Faidley’s crab cakes, Berger cookies and a cold bottle of Heavy Seas beer to wash down the delicious taste of defeat. And so they won’t look ruffled after the Ravens prevail, Senator Barb will even throw in a can of one of Baltimore’s favorite hair sprays.”

“We’re looking forward to a great game,” Mikulski and Cardin concluded. “While the 49ers may come in red and gold, they’ll be seeing nothing but purple when they leave!”

U.S. Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., and U.S. Sen. Barbara Boxer, D-Calif., swiftly took up the challenge, expressing “full confidence that the San Francisco 49ers will strike gold – and the Baltimore Ravens will flutter away in defeat – as we claim our sixth Super Bowl title.”

Feinstein and Boxer noted the 49ers continues a “tradition of excellence under reigning NFL Coach of the Year Jim Harbaugh and talented athletes who play with grit and heart, from our explosive young quarterback Colin Kaepernick and powerhouse running back Frank Gore to a hard-nosed defensive unit that is the envy of the entire league.”

”Of course, San Francisco sports fans have had many opportunities to cheer on our teams in championship games in recent years. In fact, after the San Francisco Giants swept the Detroit Tigers in the World Series in October, we enjoyed celebrating with Michigan chocolates and wine courtesy of Senators Levin and Stabenow, who were kind enough to make a similar wager,” Feinstein and Boxer wrote. “Now we look forward to once again enjoying the spoils of victory, and we can’t wait to sample savory Maryland crab cakes, Baltimore beer and Berger Cookies after the 49ers complete their quest for a sixth title.”

“In return, we are proud to bet some delicious Dungeness crab, Napa Valley wine, San Francisco’s finest sourdough bread and a selection of Northern California cheeses,” they wrote. “We feel that it is only fitting that crab is on the menu since you are likely to be feeling very crabby after a tough loss by your Ravens.”

From Rep. Mike Thompson, D-Napa, who chairs House Democrats’ task force on gun violence:

“The president and our task force agree that we need a comprehensive approach to reduce and prevent gun violence. Executive action can and should be part of the process, and many of the executive actions announced today will have a positive influence on reducing gun violence. Now it’s time for Congress to step up and do what needs to be done to save lives. Many of the policies that will have the greatest impact on reducing gun violence will require Congressional action.

“During the next several weeks our task force will examine the president’s proposals and the proposals of others. We will continue meeting with stakeholders on every side of this issue. And we will develop a comprehensive set of policy proposals that both respect peoples’ 2nd Amendment rights and help keep our communities safe from gun violence.”

From the National Rifle Association:

“Throughout its history, the National Rifle Association has led efforts to promote safety and responsible gun ownership. Keeping our children and society safe remains our top priority.

“The NRA will continue to focus on keeping our children safe and securing our schools, fixing our broken mental health system, and prosecuting violent criminals to the fullest extent of the law. We look forward to working with Congress on a bi-partisan basis to find real solutions to protecting America’s most valuable asset – our children.

“Attacking firearms and ignoring children is not a solution to the crisis we face as a nation. Only honest, law-abiding gun owners will be affected and our children will remain vulnerable to the inevitability of more tragedy.”

From Assemblywoman Nancy Skinner, D-Berkeley, who has introduced a bill to regulate ammunition sales in California:

“I applaud President Obama for presenting a comprehensive plan that will help reduce the gun violence ravaging our communities and, hopefully, stop the rash of mass shootings that have become an all-too-common occurrence.

“California has tough gun laws but our ability to address gun violence is undermined when one can bypass California rules by crossing state lines. Federal action is needed to ensure the effectiveness of our state laws.

“As public opinion shows, strong support for gun control exists nationally in favor of enforcement and regulations to bulletproof our communities from devastating gun violence.”

From Alan Gottlieb, chairman of the Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms:

“Suddenly Mr. Obama wants to get more criminal and mental health records into the NICS background check data base and get a permanent director for the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms. Where has he been for the last four years?

“Perhaps he was too busy during his first term, while his administration was running thousands of assault rifles, millions of rounds of ammunition and countless high capacity magazines to violent criminals and drug cartel thugs through his administration’s Fast & Furious program. Now he wants to take away our Second Amendment rights when he and his friends have put more assault weapons in the wrong hands than all of organized crime?

“These firearms have been used not only to kill a Border Patrol agent, but also hundreds of people including women and children. This policy has resulted in more deaths and carnage than all the mass shootings in the United States in last ten years.

“The measures being proposed by the president will not prevent a repeat of the Sandy Hook tragedy, and he knows it. The initials ‘B. O.’ stand for more than Barack Obama. They stand for the bad odor of his blame game.”

Lots more, after the jump…
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A California gun-rights leader sarcastically thanked U.S. Sen. Dianne Feinstein this morning for driving more people into the arms of the National Rifle Association with her promise to reinstate a federal assault weapons ban – and said the NRA is actually too liberal for his tastes.

Minutes later, news began to break about a shooting at a Kern County high school.

California Right to Carry president Charles Nichols of Torrance claimed in an e-mail that NRA leaders are “dancing with joy” as “100,000 people have joined the so called gun-rights organization in the last 18 days thanks to the ultra-liberal leftist Senior Senator from the left-coast state of California who announced that she will soon be introducing a bill that would either ban or require the registration of nearly every handgun, rifle and shotgun ever made. That’s a minimum of $2,500,000.00 into the coffers of the NRA from new memberships sold in just the last 18 days alone.”

But Nichols wrote that the NRA is unlikely to spend a lot of money fighting the legislation, and claimed the NRA has been too soft on past legislation and lawsuits.

“Ironically, the NRA also supports Gun Free School Zones despite what its spokesmen may say on TV,” he wrote. “What the NRA says to the public and what it says in legal briefs are two completely different things. … Senator Feinstein thinks it would be drastic but I suspect many members of the NRA believe that gun free zones should be abolished along with prohibitions on carrying loaded firearms in public.”

I got that email at 9:27 a.m. The Associated Press reports the shooting at Taft Union High School in Taft (near Bakersfield) happened around 9 a.m.

“Today comes word of another tragic shooting at an American school. I have visited this school over the years—in fact, my own father attended Taft Union,” Feinstein, D-Calif., wrote later this morning. “At this moment my thoughts and prayers are with the victims, and I wish them a speedy recovery. But how many more shootings must there be in America before we come to the realization that guns and grievances do not belong together?”

President Obama yesterday re-nominated 33 people for federal judgeships – including three for seats in California – whose original nominations had languished without action in the last Congress.

“Several have been awaiting a vote for more than six months, even though they all enjoy bipartisan support,” Obama said in a news release. “I continue to be grateful for their willingness to serve and remain confident that they will apply the law with the utmost impartiality and integrity. I urge the Senate to consider and confirm these nominees without delay, so all Americans can have equal and timely access to justice.”

Among those nominated again were San Francisco attorney William H. Orrick II, for a seat here in California’s Northern District; Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Beverly Reid O’Connell, for a seat in the Central District; and Sacramento County Superior Court Judge Troy Nunley, for a seat in the Eastern District.

U.S. Sen. Barbara Boxer, D-Calif., had recommended Orrick and Reid to the White House after an interview and vetting process by a bipartisan advisory committee, while U.S. Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., did the same for Nunley.

“I urge my colleagues to move swiftly to confirm these talented nominees, who are desperately needed to serve in judicial emergency districts,” Boxer said Thursday.

Orrick from 2009 to 2012 served as a counsel and deputy assistant attorney general for the U.S. Department of Justice’s Civil Division; earlier he was a litigator at the San Francisco firm of Coblentz, Patch, Duffy and Bass for 25 years. Obama nominated him June 11 and he was approved by the Senate Judiciary Committee on Aug. 2, but he never got a floor vote.

O’Connell has sat on the Los Angeles superior court bench since 2005; earlier, she had been an assistant U.S. Attorney in Los Angeles since 1995. Obama nominated her Nov. 14, but she never had a Judiciary Committee hearing.

Nunley has sat on the Sacramento superior court bench in 2002; earlier, he was a deputy state attorney general from 1999 to 2002, a Sacramento deputy district attorney from 1996 to 1999, in private practice from 1994 to 1996, and an Alameda County deputy district attorney from 1991 to 1994. Obama nominated him June 25 and he was approved by the Judiciary Committee on Dec. 6, but he never got a floor vote.

Elizabeth Emken, the unsuccessful Republican challenger to U.S. Sen. Dianne Feinstein in last month’s election, announced today that she finished her campaign without any debt.

Emken, of Danville, said her final financial report shows her campaign raised $1,112,077.53, with more than 10,000 donors contributing $100 or less. Final Secretary of State records show Emken receiving 4,713,887 votes, which means her campaign spent less than 24 cents per vote.

“It was my goal to finish the campaign strong and I’m proud of the hard work we did to model the same fiscal accountability that I promised to bring to Washington,” Emken said in a news release. “We maximized the vote with minimal resources, and made the most of our donors’ contributions.”

A Republican slate mailer company had sued her for breach of contract in October, claiming she still owed $65,000 yet had used campaign funds to repay a $200,000 personal loan she made to her campaign in the spring. Her spokesman today said the matter has been “settled to everyone’s satisfaction.”

And here’s the perfect place to say: I goofed.

I wrote a blog post right after the election positing that Emken had outperformed other, past challengers to Feinstein. But in my bleary state that day, I failed to account for the fact that past elections had third-party candidates and – due to our new top-two primary system – this year’s had only Feinstein and Emken.

In fact, Feinstein beat Emken this year by the largest victory margin she has ever had: 25 percentage points. Feinstein had beat Dick Mountjoy in 2006 by 24.4 points; Tom Campbell in 2000 by 19.3 points; Michael Huffington in 1994 by 1.9 points; and John Seymour in 1992 by 16.3 points.

From House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-San Francisco:

“No words can console the parents of the children murdered at Sandy Hook Elementary School or describe the pain and shock of such an unspeakable tragedy. No words can comfort the loved ones of those brutally taken from us today. All Americans share our prayers and our grief over these horrifying events.

“We are all stunned, shocked, and distraught by this tragic shooting, by this violent act, and by the loss of so many young children. Our hearts go out to the families and friends of the students, teachers, and educators killed and wounded in Newtown, Connecticut. The entire nation will continue to stand as a source of support to this community in the days and weeks to come.”

From Rep. Mike Honda, D-Campbell:

“Earlier today, another horrific gun tragedy struck our nation as innocent men, women, and children were senselessly shot at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut. My prayers are with the victims, their families and friends, and the communities impacted by today’s terrifying events.

“As an educator for 30 years, I know firsthand the importance of making a school a safe place where children can grow and learn. Having that sense of safety ripped from us, again, is both shocking and jarring. It is difficult to imagine what it feels like to be a parent that has outlived their child or to be part of a family inexplicably left with a gaping hole in their hearts. While exact details still remain unclear, there is no doubt that today is a somber day. A close-knit community, like countless communities all around our country, was violently attacked, and we will continue to feel the shocks of this violence for some time.

“This event, much like the numerous other shootings earlier this year, will undoubtedly lead to difficult discussions about safety, public policy and emergency preparedness. This self-reflection is natural, and it is my hope that we can finally take action to address the root causes of these horrific tragedies together, as a nation.”

From state Sen. Leland Yee, D-San Francisco:

“My thoughts and prayers go out to the children and families of Newtown. In a year with so many appalling acts of gun violence, this is the most shocking of such tragedies. While we do not have all the details behind this senseless and unconscionable massacre, it is a sad and horrific reminder of what is possible when guns get into the wrong hands. We must limit access to weapons that can result in such catastrophe and mass murder.”

From U.S. Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif.:

“I am horrified and incensed by today’s tragedy in Connecticut. These massacres don’t seem to stop—they continue on and on.

“When senseless mass shootings reach into our kindergartens and elementary schools, one has to question what is happening to America. Gun violence took the lives of more than 8,000 Americans last year, and today claimed the lives of at least 18 children.

“As I have said many times before—and now repeat in the wake of yet another tragedy—weapons of war don’t belong on our streets or in our theaters, shopping malls and, most of all, our schools.

“I hope and trust that in the next session of Congress there will be sustained and thoughtful debate about America’s gun culture and our responsibility to prevent more loss of life.”

“But today we mourn for those who have been killed and the families that have been devastated.”

From U.S. Sen. Barbara Boxer, D-Calif.:

“My heart breaks over this senseless tragedy that took so many innocent lives. My prayers go out to their families and to all those who were injured.

“This touches us all so deeply, and it is long past time that we enacted sensible gun laws and school safety legislation.”

From Gov. Jerry Brown:

“We all mourn the heartbreaking loss of those killed at Sandy Hook Elementary. We pray for their families and loved ones.”

From Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom:

“For those calling for the postponement of any discussion of gun and mental health policy in America – you are wrong.

“Just WRONG!

“We postponed after the President and his press secretary, James Brady were shot more than 30 years ago. We postponed after the tragedy in Columbine 13 years ago. We postponed after Virginia Tech five years ago. We postponed after Representative Gabriel Giffords was shot in 2011. We postponed in July when a mentally disturbed James Eagan Holmes opened fire in a crowded movie theatre. And earlier this week, people said it was too soon to talk about gun and mental health policy when a gunman opened fire at a crowded mall in Oregon.

“Today, President Barack Obama addressed the nation from the White House briefing room named for James Brady and now we turn to our political leaders to finally and decisively act.

“Prayers are important. We are a nation that always prays at times of great tragedy. But prayer is not enough as we learn in James 2 14-26, ‘What does it profit, my brethren, if someone says he has faith but does not have works…Faith without works is dead.’

“Today is a clarion call to all leaders, regardless of political party, to act purposefully. Senseless gun violence is not simply about gun control. It must also include meaningful discussion of mental health policy in America. Political parties must be realistic – Democrats can’t draw the line in the sand at banning all guns and Republicans can’t dig in on the status quo.

“The NRA and the gun lobby are not supportive the President and now is the time for him to give them a real reason. The President must call the question. Put the gun lobby on the bench. Call on every member of congress to step out from behind the money and power of the gun lobby and act before we are lulled back into a false sense of security and forget to have the conversation again until the next tragedy. There are families in Connecticut, Oregon, Virginia, California, Arizona, Colorado, Wisconsin and every other state that have suffered loss due to gun violence and they do not want a postponement this debate any longer.

“How many more people have to die before we decide the time is right to have this debate and take action? Now is a time for prayer…and leadership.”

Lots more, after the jump…
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Bay Area members of Congress are offering their constituents chances to win free tickets to President Barack Obama’s re-inauguration Jan. 21 in Washington, D.C., but one lawmaker wants applicants to sing for their supper.

“Please write a paragraph of at least 5 sentences, submit a video, or draw a picture suggesting an innovative idea either to put Americans back to work, or ensure that each and every child has access to a quality education,” Rep. Mike Honda, D-Campbell, asks 17th Congressional District constituents seeking tickets.

Entries (only one per person) must be posted as responses on the congressman’s Facebook page by Thursday, Jan. 3.

Other local members are doing it on a more straightforward lottery basis; you can apply only through your own House member, or through either of California’s U.S. Senators.

Rep. John Garamendi, D-Fairfield: Call 202-225-1880

Rep. Mike Thompson, D-Napa: Email here or call 202-225-3311 or 707-226-9898

Rep. Jerry McNerney, D-Stockton: Call 202-225-1947 or 209-476-8552

Rep. George Miller, D-Martinez: Apply here

House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-San Francisco: Call 202-225-4965

Rep. Barbara Lee, D-Oakland: Apply here

Rep. Jackie Speier, D-San Mateo: deadline already passed

Rep.-elect Eric Swalwell, D-Dublin: available in January

Rep. Anna Eshoo, D-Palo Alto: deadline already passed

Rep. Zoe Lofgren, D-San Jose: Call 202-225-3072

Rep. Sam Farr, D-Santa Cruz: Join stand-by list here

U.S. Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif: Apply here

U.S. Sen. Barbara Boxer, D-Calif.: Apply here

If leaving a voice-mail message, be sure to include your full name, address, city, phone number, e-mail address and number of tickets requested.

A shakeup in U.S. Sen. Dianne Feinstein’s state-office staff includes the hiring of a Bay Area elected official who is about to be term-limited out of office.

Outgoing San Francisco Supervisor Sean Elsbernd will become Feinstein’s deputy state director in January, working from her San Francisco office.

A supervisor since 2004 and a San Francisco native, Elsbernd, 36, also was elected chairman of the Caltrain board in 2010 and 2011 by his peers in San Francisco, San Mateo and Santa Clara counties. And from 2009 through this year, he served on the Golden Gate Bridge Highway and Transportation Board of Directors, which serves North Bay communities.

Feinstein said she’s “delighted” to welcome Elsbernd to her team to “lead our initiatives and outreach across Northern California. Sean brings a unique set of skills and experience to his new position, having served as a supervisor in San Francisco for eight years. In that capacity, Sean was vice-chair of the Rules Committee and chair of the Transportation Authority’s Finance Committee. He also served on the Budget and Finance Committee, the Health Service System Board and the Retirement Board.”

He replaces Trevor Daley, who is being promoted to state director upon the retirement of longtime director Jim Molinari. Daley, an Arcata native who has worked for Feinstein for more than 14 years, will continue working from the senator’s Los Angeles office.

Daley earlier had worked as a scheduler in the senator’s Washington office and a caseworker in her San Francisco office. As deputy state director, he has overseen Feinstein’s Los Angeles office and outreach efforts in Los Angeles, Santa Barbara, Ventura, Riverside, San Bernardino and Orange counties. Earlier in his career he worked for Los Angeles Councilmember Ruth Galanter.

Feinstein said Daley has done an outstanding job guiding her Southern California operations. “He has been particularly valuable in our outreach efforts to various constituency groups including business leaders, young entrepreneurs and the LGBT community, and I am counting on him to expand those efforts statewide.”

Molinari has worked on Feinstein’s Senate staff for 11 years, but first met her in 1978 when she was San Francisco’s mayor.

Back then, he wore a badge. He retired from the San Francisco Police Department as a captain after 27 years of service, but in 1994, Molinari was appointed U.S. Marshal for the Northern District of California by President Clinton. In 2001 he became executive director of the Northern California High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area.

“I’ve known Jim Molinari for 35 years, and during that time he has become a trusted and loyal advisor and, more importantly, a good friend,” Feinstein said. “I’m sad to see him go, but Jim has more than earned his retirement. I’m grateful for his service to California and our nation.”

The West Coast’s U.S. Senators today asked the Justice Department to do a refinery-by-refinery investigation into why gas prices spiked to more than $4 a gallon during May and October.

The letter to U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder from senators Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif.; Barbara Boxer, D-Calif.; Ron Wyden, D-Ore.; Jeff Merkley, D-Ore.; Maria Cantwell, D-Wash.; and Patty Murray, D-Wash., asks that the Oil and Gas Price Fraud Working Group probe any possible market manipulation or false reporting.

“A McCullough Research report released Nov. 15th in conjunction with a California State Senate hearing on California gas prices revealed information that showed that the price spikes in May and October occurred while crude oil prices were declining, inventories were increasing, and possibly in conjunction with misleading market-making information,” they wrote.

The report they cited found that some West Coast oil refineries may have been producing oil last May despite public reports that they were shuttered for maintenance. For example, McCullough’s analysis found that the Chevron refinery in Richmond emitted byproducts of petroleum production throughout May – yet public reports claim the refinery shut down production from May 12 to May 26.

The report found the October price spike added up to a 66 cent-per-gallon windfall profit for oil companies—or about $25 million a day. The difference between what drivers actually paid and what they should have paid exceeded $1 billion.

“West Coast families and businesses are reeling from elevated and extremely volatile prices at the pump, impacting family budgets, inflation levels, and overall economic activity,” the senators wrote. “We believe this situation demands the attention from the Working Group established in April 2011 specifically to ‘monitor oil and gas markets for potential violations of criminal or civil laws to safeguard against unlawful consumer harm.’ ”

The working group includes representatives from the Department of Justice, the National Association of Attorneys General, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, the Federal Trade Commission, the Department of the Treasury, the Federal Reserve Board, the Securities and Exchange Commission, as well as the Departments of Agriculture and Energy.

Feinstein in August had urged the Federal Trade Commission to launch an investigation of the sudden rise in case prices.

Read the full text of the senators’ letter, after the jump:
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Federal prosecutors say Democratic campaign treasurer Kinde Durkee should serve eight years and one month in federal prison for having embezzled more than $7 million from U.S. Sen. Dianne Feinstein and other prominent California elected officials.

Durkee, 59, of Long Beach, is scheduled to be sentenced Wednesday in Sacramento.

“Over the course of approximately 12 years, the defendant misappropriated millions of dollars from clients, used the money for her personal and business expenses, and prepared false campaign disclosure reports to hide the theft,” says the sentencing memo prosecutors filed last Wednesday. “This sentence will reflect the seriousness of the offense, provide just punishment, and afford adequate deterrence.”

A restitution figure should be ready by Wednesday’s hearing, prosecutors wrote.

Durkee pleaded guilty earlier this year to five counts of mail fraud. Her plea agreement noted that the sentencing range would be from 11 years and three months to 14 years, but also that prosecutors would recommend the low end of whatever range federal probation officers came up with.

Besides Feinstein’s campaign, other victims included the campaigns of Rep. Loretta Sanchez, D-Garden Grove; Rep. Linda Sanchez, D-Cerritos; state Sen. Lou Correa, D-Santa Ana; and Assemblyman Jose Solorio, D-Anaheim. There were at least 50 victims in all, prosecutors said.