Where have all the liberals gone? President Obama, who as a Democratic senator accused the Bush administration of violating civil liberties in the name of security, now vigorously defends his own administration's collection of Americans' phone records and Internet activities.
Senate Democratic leader Harry Reid said he thinks Congress has done sufficient intelligence oversight. His evidence? Opinion polls.
House Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi defended the programs' legality and said she wants Edward Snowden prosecuted for leaking details of the secret operations.
Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., chairwoman of the Senate intelligence committee, accused Snowden of treason and defended false testimony given to her committee by the director...
"Inclusive" and "diversity" are the buzzwords in corporate America these days. Inclusive generally means that people should not be made to feel purposely left out, and diversity refers to the many differences -- whether they be religious,...
President Obama's newly designated national security adviser, Susan Rice, and his proposed United Nations ambassador, Samantha Power, are political loyalists. They are also known as liberal interventionists -- emotionally seared by...
We tend to remember leaders in characteristic poses. For Pope Benedict XVI, the college professor, it was delivering a much-misunderstood lecture at the University of Regensburg, which made controversial reference to Islam. For Pope...
Eric Holder is in a mess of his own making. Two weeks ago, the attorney general testified to the House Judiciary Committee in categorical terms: "With regard to potential prosecution of the press for the disclosure of material, that is not...
Bob Dole must be some kind of prophet. Not 72 hours after Fox News aired the former Republican leader's suggestion that the GOP put out a "closed for repairs" sign, Michele Bachmann announced that she's going out of business. Just like...
Call it the revenge of the 1 percent. President Obama bested Mitt Romney by portraying his Republican opponent as a rich businessman who used offshore tax havens and ran enterprises into the ground without regard for working people. On...
Let us stipulate that now might not be the best time -- with IRS officials exposed for abusing power, caught in self-serving deceptions, invoking their constitutional right against self-incrimination -- to dramatically expand the authority...
Modern conservatism comes in two distinct architectural styles. The first seeks to build from scratch, using accurate ideological levels and plumb lines, so every wall is straight and every corner squared. The goal of politics is to apply...
It's that time. If you're a teacher in a school with a large concentration of Hispanic students, you're doing end-of-year reviews and preparing for final exams -- and you have kids trickling up to you to let you know they won't be around...
At the end of a truly dismal week in his presidency, President Obama remains lucky in one crucial category: his opposition. It has been only a matter of days since two scandals -- the IRS harassment of conservative groups and the...
Suppose that the Environmental Protection Agency were to admit offhandedly that the fluoridation of water had only modest communist mind-control effects. Or the United Nations were to concede it has been running fleets of black helicopters...
Is it just me or is Tony Stark on a health kick? In the third "Iron Man" -- a series that spent its first two installments glorifying the reckless life of a spoiled, rich genius -- Stark, the man inside the metallic exoskeleton, seems to...
Silva family files federal claim (5)
The family of David Silva announced Friday it has filed its long-expected federal civil rights claims against the Kern County Sheriff’s Office, six sheriff’s deputies and a sergeant, two California Highway Patrol officers, the county and the state alleging excessive police force killed him.
Key green light for California high-speed rail (4)
SACRAMENTO -- The California High-Speed Rail Authority won approval Thursday from a federal railroad oversight board to start construction this summer on the first leg of what would be the nation's first bullet train.
CSUB awards Haggard, Owens top honors (4)
He’s Dr. Merle Haggard now. The bad-boy hero of the rebel strain of music that put Bakersfield on America’s cultural map half a century ago did something Friday he hadn’t done since he was 9: He sat still in school.
The Panama-Buena Vista Union School District Tuesday night unanimously approved a contract of employment to hire Kevin Silberberg as its new superintendent.
Local attorney arrested in shooting of his wife
A Bakersfield attorney’s rocky marriage, marked by a divorce suit and a history of loud, public arguments, reportedly erupted into violence early Wednesday morning when police say he turned a gun on his wife and fired.
'Duck Dynasty' trio fits the bill
They don't look any more like millionaires in person than they do on television's A&E Network, but Hoffmann Hospice's bet on the cast of the reality show "Duck Dynasty" paid off Sunday.
Coroner's office identifies woman found dead in garage
A woman found dead in a southeast Bakersfield garage Tuesday was identified Friday as 18-year-old Mia Ramirez of Bakersfield.
Sheriff's Office makes arrest in homicide
After a search that lasted much of Tuesday afternoon, the Kern County Sheriff’s Office arrested a man on suspicion of homicide in connection with the discovery of a woman’s body in a southeast Bakersfield garage.