House Democratic Whip David Bonior D-MI has named Silicon Valley Rep. Zoe Lofgren D-CA to the position of At-Large Democratic Whip. "Zoe's energy and ideas are going to strengthen our Democratic leadership team," Bonior said. "She has worked very hard, and has become an active and influential Member of Congress." In her new leadership post, Lofgren will help develop the party's agenda and floor strategy, attend weekly Whip meetings, and participate in special Whip Task Force meetings when legislation is being prepared for the floor.

    Publisher Steve Forbes made history of a sort Mar. 16, becoming the first major party candidate to announce a presidential candidacy online. Forbes' pre-taped announcement speech was broadcast over the Web at his site, www.Forbes2000.com, a site complete with virtual precincts and Forbes e-postcards and desktop wallpaper. "This is going to be a new information-age campaign. I'm going to run the first full-scale presidential campaign in American history on the Internet because I want you to be involved every step of the way," Forbes said.

    Rules Committee boss Rep. David Dreier R-CA has jacked into a new source of power: GOPAC. Dreier has been named general chair of the Republican PAC made famous by Newt Gingrich. Dreier is also consolidating the California GOP behind Gov. George W. Bush R-TX's presidential campaign. Dreier replaces Rep. John Shadegg R-AZ at GOPAC.

    Computer magnate William Tauscher's messy divorce would likely be a private matter, if not for the fact that Tauscher is ending his marriage to Rep. Ellen Tauscher D-CA. Rep. Tauscher said in a court filing that she does "not trust Bill, as he continuously lied throughout the marriage." The couple is fighting over an $18 million estate. "Shame on the people who take personal tragedies and exploit them for partisan gain. If they want to attack me, attack my voting record... but leave my family and daughter alone," Rep. Tauscher told The Contra Costa Times.

    Yahoo! co-founder Jerry Yang is supporting Al Gore's presidential bid. The search engine king joins Kleiner, Perkins, Caufield and Byers partners John Doerr and Brook Byers on the list of Silicon Valley bigshots boosting the veep.

    Libertarian Party National Director Steve Dasbach tells National Journal's Technology Daily's People that the Mar. 11 New York Times article on the party's online success is a boon to the nation's third-largest political party. "The New York Times article will enhance the credibility of the Libertarian Party among the general public. I expect that people who use the Internet, but who don't really know much about the Libertarian Party, will decide to check us out," Dasbach says, adding that traffic to the party's Web site and its special anti-Know Your Customer project site is up considerably.

    Sen. Conrad Burns R-MT has sent a letter of apology to the Montana Equipment Dealers Association for using "a term pertaining to Arabs that I should not have used and which is widely considered offensive" during a speech before the association in February. Burns did not repeat the language in his in his letter, but MEDA Managing Director Brad Griffin later confirmed that Burns had called Arabs "rag heads." Burns added that his staff brought the gaffe to his attention and admitted he sometimes speaks faster than he thinks; in 1994, Burns used a highly offensive term to refer to the Washington, DC, African-American community while campaigning back home.

    Center for Democracy and Technology Executive Director Jerry Berman has been tapped for the Congressional Commission on Online Child Protection. The commission will look at options for parents, teachers and librarians in dealing with online pornography.

    CompTel/ACTA, the industry association created by the merging of the Competitive Telecommunications Association and America's Carriers Telecommunication Association, has named Pat Small its first vice president of public relations. Small was previously vice president of telecom/high-tech at Edelman Worldwide Public Relations, and has also served as director of media relations for the Cellular Telephone Industry Association.

    Roderick Kelvin Porter is the new acting chief of the FCC's International Bureau, succeeding Regina Keeney. Porter has served as deputy chief since 1994.

    Jason Mahler has left the staff of Rep. Zoe Lofgren for a new post at the Computer and Communications Industry Association.

    Vice President Gore continues to take hits from the GOP over his misstatement that he took "the initiative in creating the Internet" while in Congress. House Majority Leader Dick Armey R-TX led the rush, saying, "If the vice president created the Internet, then I created the Interstate highway system. When historians write about the Internet, I don't think they'll put the vice president in the same category as Thomas Edison." Others:

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