In the News

Rep. Eric Swalwell was elected by his House Democratic peers Friday to serve as regional whip for Northern California, Hawaii and the Pacific islands.

Each region's members elect a regional whip to work with Democratic Whip Steny Hoyer, of Maryland, in keeping Democratic members informed and in line on important votes. Swalwell, D-Dublin, in his first term, had been appointed an assistant whip to do a similar job among Democratic freshmen.

The Dublin Post Office was named Tuesday for the late James Kohnen, well-known public figure in Dublin and 30-year Army veteran who died May 29, 2012.

The action came after Dublin Congressman Eric Swalwell (D-15th) gained unprecedented bipartisan support of legislation authoring the name change of the post office facility, which is under the jurisdiction of the Pleasanton post office and is located at 6937 Village Parkway in Dublin.

Rep. Eric Swalwell was in Dallas on Friday for a House Homeland Security Committee field hearing on the Ebola virus.

The only person so far to be diagnosed with Ebola on U.S. soil, Thomas Eric Duncan, died Wednesday in Dallas. People with whom he came into contact are being watched carefully for signs of the disease.

U.S. Representative Eric Swalwell (CA-15) today announced that the Alameda County Sheriff's Office (ACSO) will receive a nearly $1 million federal grant to expand the Cherryland-Ashland Beyond Project which enhances neighborhood safety. The grant was awarded by the Department of Justice's (DOJ) Byrne Criminal Justice Innovation program. Swalwell sent a letter to the DOJ supporting the ACSO's grant application.

(09-20) 18:00 PDT Cabo San Lucas, Mexico -- Most Americans stranded in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico after a hurricane blew in to demolish the luxury paradise are now safely heading home, leaving behind them the vacation-turned-nightmare.

But even as roads opened and commercial flights were restored over the weekend, for some the nightmare hadn't yet subsided.

Ishqa Hillman still had yet to hear from her father, Christopher "Kit" Hillman, a San Francisco ironworker who had retired to Cabo.

Washington -- Almost 12 years after approving the invasion of Iraq, the House voted overwhelmingly Wednesday to grant President Obama authority to combat the latest offshoot of that war, the militant group known as the Islamic State.

A handful of House Democrats on Tuesday introduced a bill to protect people who write reviews on Yelp or similar online review websites.

The Consumer Review Freedom Act would prohibit companies from including clauses in their contracts that prevented people from writing critical reviews about them online, a tactic that some businesses have used to avoid online negative publicity.

You're entitled to your opinion – just be prepared for possible legal consequences if you share it online.

A growing number of companies now have "non-disparagement clauses" in their contracts or terms of use. They limit a customer's right to comment on social media sites such as Yelp about the product or service they purchased – even if that comment or review is truthful and accurate.

A non-disparagement clause might look something like this: