Politico

Hillary Clinton's campaign has tapped a network of more than 100 tech and telecom advisers to craft a policy agenda that echoes many of Silicon Valley's top priorities, from knocking down laws that limit innovation to defanging so-called patent trolls.

The breadth of her outreach to technology experts — not previously reported — marks yet another contrast with Donald Trump, who has offered few clues about who might have his ear on issues important to the tech sector, and whose positions on issues like immigration have alienated large segments of the industry. Even more than Barack Obama did eight years ago, Clinton conspicuously embraces Silicon Valley's view of the world and what it needs from Washington — a view that’s often at odds with long-standing interest groups such as taxi unions and big cable companies. Clinton’s tech advisers — divided into about a half-dozen working groups — provided input for the "technology and innovation" agenda that she released June 28.

The rematch between longtime Rep Mike Honda (D-CA) and upstart Ro Khanna to represent a large chunk of Silicon Valley is as tight as ever.

Khanna, an intellectual property lawyer who’s been backed by tech heavyweights like Sheryl Sandberg, Peter Thiel, Sean Parker and Sundar Pichai, leaned on his tech cred while conducting a Reddit “ask me anything” (AMA) during which he backed network neutrality and patent laws that promote entrepreneurship. In the top-two-advance primary in June, Khanna narrowly edged Rep Honda out, 38.3 to 38.1 percent. The primary results suggest Khanna has gained ground since his 2014 challenge, when he lost the primary by 20 points and went down in the general by three points. Rep Honda has made a name for himself championing policies supporting organized labor and low-income communities. But he’s been dogged by an ongoing ethics probe.

Tim Wu, the law professor and tech policy expert best known for coining the term “net neutrality,” has joined the Office of Management and Budget to work on economic competitiveness issues. Wu willwork closely with the National Economic Council. He had been working in the office of New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman while on continued leave from Columbia Law School.

Election 2016 isn't all about the White House so Politico is rolling out a series on congressional contests in which prominent techies are facing stiff competition. First up is Rep. Darrell Issa (R-CA).

An entrepreneur by trade who chairs the House subcommittee on Courts, Intellectual Property and the Internet, Rep Issa is getting an unexpectedly strong challenge from Doug Applegate (D-CA), an attorney and former US Marine who took 45 percent of the vote in a top-two-advance primary on June 7, while Rep Issa captured 51 percent. The incumbent has held the seat, covering parts of San Diego and Orange counties, since 2001, and proven to be a stalwart Republican presence in a state where Democrats dominate. During his time in Congress, Rep Issa has become known for his tech-savvy background and support for innovation, notably defending internet platforms during the SOPA fight in 2012 and backing Apple in its clash over backdoor encryption. Rep Issa has also proposed legislation to update H1-B visa policies, promote open data in government, and protect intellectual property. Because of his tech-friendly efforts, he's been lauded by industry groups like the Internet Association and CTA (Issa was once Chairman of the Board, back when the organization was still called CEA).

Rep Issa also has made a name for himself -- not always in a positive way -- for his aggressive, partisan chairmanship of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, where he garnered national headlines for going after the Obama Administration over issues ranging from the Benghazi attack to the "Fast and Furious" botched gun operation. But he never won a slam-dunk victory in any of his partisan crusades and eventually drew criticism even from within his own party. His successor at the helm of House Oversight, Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R-Utah), needled Rep Issa for a look-at-me leadership style that emphasized "big press releases" over hard-hitting reports. "Darrell Issa didn't do many reports," Chairman Chaffetz said in Dec 2014 , noting that his style would be different: "It's not the 'Jason Chaffetz Show.'"

Donald Trump's long shadow may not be a safe place for a Republican to reside in a blue state this fall. Rep Issa has previously called the candidate an "obvious choice" for President.

HillaryClinton's inner circle insists that any talk about what her administration would look like is premature. But the conversations are happening anyway. Here’s Politico’s rundown of some of the most prominent chatter, based on conversations with top Democrats, people who speak regularly to Clinton and her senior aides, as well as leaders in their respective fields.

Chief of staff: a choice between Cheryl Mills, Clinton’s chief of staff at the State Department, and Tom Nides, Clinton’s deputy secretary of state for management
Press secretary: Brian Fallon
Senior advisors: Jake Sullivan, Minyon Moore, Jennifer Palmieri, Huma Abedin, Neera Tanden, Ann O’Leary, Maya Harris, Robby Mook, and Marlon Marshall
Secretary of State: Wendy Sherman, Bill Burns, Nick Burns, Kurt Campbell, Strobe Talbott, or James Stavridis, if Sec John Kerry isn’t asked to continue.
Attorney General: Tom Perez, Janet Napolitano, Jennifer Granholm, or Tony West
Commerce: Gov Terry McAuliffe (D-VA) or Export-Import Bank President Fred Hochberg

Donald Trump suggested that his campaign may take away press credentials from The New York Times, his latest attack on the media over the course of his presidential campaign.

At a campaign event in Columbus (OH) on Aug 1, the Republican presidential nominee called the Times’ coverage of him “very dishonest” and suggested adopting the same ban on the newspaper as he has on The Washington Post. Trump revoked the Post’s press credentials in June after the newspaper published an article critical of Trump’s statements about a mass shooting in Orlando (FL). “It’s gotten a little better,” he said about the Post's coverage. “I should do it with the Times.”

Hillary Clinton will address the National Association of Black Journalists and National Association of Hispanic Journalists convention on Aug 5 in Washington (DC). "It is notable that Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton has recognized the 2016 NABJ-NAHJ Convention as a vital gathering to discuss her platform and the issues impacting black and Latino communities," said NABJ President Sarah Glover. "Presidential nominees and US presidents from both parties have attended NABJ annual conventions, including President Bill Clinton and President George W. Bush, and presidential nominees Barack Obama, Bob Dole and Al Gore. We're ecstatic to add the first woman nominee to our list." The groups also extended an invitation to Donald Trump to speak as well, but that his campaign has not yet responded.

Whether Hillary Clinton or Donald Trump wins the White House, one thing seems sure: The US will get a president with scant first-hand understanding of modern technology. Clinton's tech travails are all over the headlines, including the lax security of her home-brewed e-mail server and her documented struggles with fax machines — and the recently disclosed hacking of the Democratic National Committee's e-mails won't do much to burnish her party's image of cyber competence.

But Trump's hardly a candidate for the Geek Squad either, despite the prolific round-the-clock tweeting strategy he uses to dominate the headlines. He has boasted that he hardly ever sends e-mails — and, like Clinton, he often relies on staff to print news articles off the Internet. “I’m just not a believer in e-mail,” Trump said during a news conference during which he criticized Clinton's use of a private server when she was secretary of state. The tech-aloofness of the two nominees marks a sharp break from President Barack Obama, who fought to keep a mobile phone when he entered the White House, spends downtime surfing his iPad and wrote about his awe at the power of the Internet in his 2006 book “The Audacity of Hope.” That raises the prospect that the next occupant of the Oval Office — charged with making decisions on issues like encryption, the fight against a social-media savvy Islamic State, and the growing automation of the American economy — will be less familiar with consumer technologies than the average citizens who use them.

The Commission on Presidential Debates responded to Donald Trump and the Republican National Committee's complaints about the debate schedule with a message on July 31: The schedule is set. "The Commission on Presidential Debates (CPD) started working more than 18 months ago to identify religious and federal holidays, baseball league playoff games, NFL games, and other events in order to select the best nights for the 2016 debates," the commission said. "It is impossible to avoid all sporting events, and there have been nights on which debates and games occurred in most election cycles. A debate has never been rescheduled as a result."

Donald Trump and RNC officials have complained that two of the three scheduled presidential and one vice-presidential debates overlap with NFL games. The presidential debates are slated for Sept 26 at New York’s Hofstra University, Oct 9 at Washington University in St. Louis and Oct 19 at the University of Nevada-Las Vegas. The vice-presidential debate is set for Oct 4 at Longwood University in Virginia.

Republican Vice Presidential nominee Mike Pence (R-IN) said the Trump campaign is having conversations about lifting the blacklist it has applied to certain media outlets.

Speaking to radio host Hugh Hewitt, Gov Pence defended his own history of dealing with the news media, saying he authored legislation while in Congress to help protect journalists’ confidential sources. “We’re going to have those conversations internally and I fully expect in the next 100 days we’re going to continue to be available to the media, whether they’re fair or unfair," Gov Pence said. The Trump campaign has blacklisted certain outlets, including Politico, The Washington Post, The Huffington Post and others, from attending his events because of what he considers unfair coverage. CNN’s Chris Cuomo said he is blacklisted from the Trump campaign “because of how we conduct our interviews.”

Trump may be the Republican nominee, but the Republican National Committee refuses to get involved or even comment on Trump’s treatment of the news media, instead diverting all questions to the campaign.