George Mitrovich is president of two leading American public forums, The City Club of San Diego and The Denver Forum. In addition, he chairs for the Boston Red Sox The Great Fenway Park Writers Series, as well as chairing the team’s annual birthday tribute to Jackie Robinson.

A writer and contributor to leading North American newspapers, he is also a public speaker of note, with four speeches published in Vital Speeches of the Day -- a distinction held by few Americans.

Long active in San Diego civic affairs as well as the faith community, he served as president of the San Diego County Ecumenical Council, an organization of 125 Christian churches.

Mr. Mitrovich was a press aide to Senator Robert F. Kennedy in the presidential campaign of 1968. He has an extensive history in local, state and national politics.

Blog Entries by George Mitrovich

Of Roadside Bombs And Afghanistan

Posted November 20, 2009 | 04:53 PM (EST)


On Sunday night 60 Minutes ran a story entitled, "The Deadliest Weapon." Before that broadcast and the story reported by Bryon Pitts, I had been ambivalent about the war in Afghanistan. But after watching 60 Minutes I decided America cannot win -- no matter how long we stay or how...

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Rules for Public Speaking

2 Comments | Posted October 30, 2009 | 06:54 PM (EST)


I have a friend with whom I share an important compact. Here it is:

Whenever a speaker begins his or her remarks by saying, "I'm not a public speaker", my friend and I will, at that point, get up and leave. Why? If you think you're not...

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Rules for Public Speaking

Posted October 29, 2009 | 01:13 PM (EST)


I have a friend with whom I share an important compact. Here it is:

Whenever a speaker begins his or her remarks by saying, "I'm not a public speaker", my fiend and I will, at that point, get up and leave. Why? If you think you're not...

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The Truth They Dare Not Speak

Posted October 19, 2009 | 05:44 PM (EST)


Since the Clinton administration I have repeatedly warned about the triumph of Wall Street and the defeat of Main Street, the destruction of the Middle Class and the dismemberment of the poor; acts of economic terrorism that undermine the very foundations of our democracy - for no democracy can long...

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Health Care & Town Halls

12 Comments | Posted September 2, 2009 | 02:09 PM (EST)


At the tribute to Senator Ted Kennedy Friday night at the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library, Senator Chris Dodd of Connecticut, Mr. Kennedy's closest friend in the Senate, told a story of how he recently underwent prostate cancer surgery and when he came out of recovery his first phone call...

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Health Care & Town Halls

11 Comments | Posted September 1, 2009 | 05:34 PM (EST)


At the tribute to Senator Ted Kennedy Friday night at the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library, Senator Chris Dodd of Connecticut, Mr. Kennedy's closest friend in the Senate, told a story of how he recently underwent prostate cancer surgery and when he came out of recovery his first phone call...

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Senator Ted Kennedy: American Patriot

Posted August 28, 2009 | 03:06 PM (EST)


The death of Senator Edward Moore Kennedy marked the end of a remarkable era in the life of our country. Camelot, a time of hope, grows distant, its memories receding. The brothers are gone - John, Bobby, and Ted. If America lasts 1,000 years we shall never again see their...

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White Police Officers and Black Men

2 Comments | Posted July 23, 2009 | 06:29 PM (EST)


Jim Parker is a friend of mine. He lives in Weymouth, Massachusetts, a Boston suburb. We met a couple of years ago at a Red Sox Fantasy Baseball Camp in Ft. Meyers, Florida. He's a conservative Republican, a lovely guy, and a favorite of mine. He calls me "Captain" --...

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A Father's Day Remembrance

Posted June 19, 2009 | 01:20 PM (EST)


On the day my father died I was 1,200 miles away.

I had gone to the hospital the morning before in San Diego to visit him. In his room I held his hand, said a prayer, kissed his forehead, and told him I loved him.

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Who Should we Blame for California's Failure?

98 Comments | Posted June 4, 2009 | 02:59 PM (EST)


Do not let the sun go down on your anger.
Ephesians 4:26

I do my best to follow the biblical injunctions of the Christian New Testament, but when it comes to the state of California and letting the sun go down on my anger, I am, in this and...

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California: Failed State

7 Comments | Posted June 2, 2009 | 08:20 PM (EST)


Do not let the sun go down on your anger.
Ephesians 4:26

I do my best to follow the biblical injunctions of the Christian New Testament, but when it comes to the state of California and letting the sun go down on my anger, I am, in that...

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A Very British Scandal

2 Comments | Posted May 20, 2009 | 10:31 AM (EST)



Politics is the noblest profession.
-- Robert F. Kennedy

There's a great row going on in the UK. Members of Parliament (MPs) have been outed. The Daily Telegraph has published a series of exclusives stories on reimbursements sought by MPs for various expenses, ranging from, in American...

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Say It Ain't So, Manny

4 Comments | Posted May 11, 2009 | 11:27 AM (EST)


At 10 minutes before noon last Thursday Jimmy Parker, a businessman from the Massachusetts town of Weymouth, walked into the Absolut Clubhouse at Fenway Park in Boston and asked, "Captain, have you heard the news about Manny Ramirez?" "What news?" "MLB suspended him 50 games for using steroids."
...

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President Obama: Up to Now

Posted April 29, 2009 | 03:31 AM (EST)


Today Barack Obama completes the first 100 days of his presidency. Ever since Franklin D. Roosevelt and his famous 100 days it has been a benchmark for measuring presidents.

Is it silly to judge the 1,461 days of a presidential term by the first 100 days?

Quite.

...
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Smog Checks & Chastened Idealism

Posted April 8, 2009 | 11:26 AM (EST)


My first job in politics was as an assistant to the Lt. Governor of California in the Pat Brown years. Hard to believe it was 43 years ago.

I came to politics and government with a great deal of idealism. I truly believed people committed to public service...

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The Jackie Robinson of Economists

Posted February 25, 2009 | 06:43 PM (EST)


Some of us warned early on the American economy was going down and not likely to recover in the foreseeable future.

Late last year government economists would tell us we're in a "recession", but I contend what's happening cannot be defined either by monetary definition or...

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Proposition 13 & Ungovernable California

Posted January 7, 2009 | 04:30 PM (EST)


"You haven't lived until you've died in California." -- Mort Sahl

The Los Angeles Times wants to know, "Can anyone govern California?"

There's a one-word answer. The answer is no.

The state is too big and the competing interests so conflicted that it...

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Mark Teixeira & Baseball's Fantasy World

Posted December 31, 2008 | 11:50 AM (EST)


The United States is in an economic crisis. No one knows its magnitude - not at the White House, not at the Treasury Department, not at the Federal Reserve, not on Capitol Hill, and least of all on Wall Street; whose principals, by their opulent lifestyles and moral rot, are...

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Caroline Kennedy in the Senate

Posted December 21, 2008 | 06:32 PM (EST)


Caroline Kennedy has expressed an interest in being appointed to the U.S. Senate seat being vacated by Senator Hillary Clinton's designation as secretary of state by President-elect Obama.

Why not?

Well, some people think it's a bad idea. They say her interest...

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Of Markets & Morality

Posted December 4, 2008 | 01:39 PM (EST)


William Kristol, editor of the conservative Weekly Standard and New York Times columnist (a reflection of the Times' desire to balance its editorial page, but Bill Safire he is not), wrote recently about the economy for the Times. Apparently he now believes no one knows what's really going on in...

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