Dick Costolo says small businesses have been banging down the door for access to Twitter ads.

Undeterred by Republican protests, Mark Pearce said he will urge the board to approve the new rules now that it has a full component of five members after President Barack Obama bypassed the Senate to fill three vacancies.

We keep our eye on the prize, Pearce said in an interview with The Associated Press. Our goal is to create a set of rules that eliminate a lot of waste of time, energy and money for the taxpayers.

One change Pearce wants is requiring businesses to hand over lists of employee phone numbers and emails to union leaders before an election.

He also wants the board to consider other rule changes it didnt have time to approve before it lost a quorum last year. They include the use of electronic filings and quicker timetables for certain procedures.

My personal hope is that we take on all of these things and consider each one of these rules, Pearce said. We presume the constitutionality of the presidents appointments and we go forward based on that understanding.

GOP leaders have challenged the recess appointments as unconstitutional, saying the Senate was not technically in recess when Obama acted. Republicans had threatened to block confirmation votes on any nominees to fill the three NLRB vacancies, saying the board was making too many union-friendly decisions.

If the board decides to propose the new rules, they would expand on sweeping regulations approved in December that speed up the process for holding union elections at work sites after unions collect enough signatures from employees. Those rules are slated to take effect on April 30.

While the first round of rules won praise from union leaders, business groups claim they allow ambush elections that wont give employers enough time to talk to employees about whether to choose a union.

Business groups and their Republican allies say the latest push confirms their fears that the new board now led by three Democrats and two Republicans will approve even more rules that make it easier for unions to organize new members.

I knew this was going to happen, said Rep. Trey Gowdy, R-SC, a member of the House Committee on Education and the Workforce. The NLRB has lost all pretense of objectivity in my judgment.

White House officials say Obama was justified in going around the Senate since some Republicans had vowed to block any nominations in order to paralyze the NLRB. The five-member board is not allowed to consider cases or rules unless it has a quorum of at least three members.

Randel Johnson, the US Chamber of Commerces vice president on labor issues, said he is surprised the board would try to adopt even more new rules that businesses fiercely oppose.

If theyre going to go forward on that basis, I think that removes any pretense at all that they are not in the back pocket of the union movement, Johnson said.

AFL-CIO spokeswoman Alison Omens called Pearces comments a reasonable, balanced approach to ensure that every person has a voice on the job.

The board is obviously taking modest steps to create a level playing field and bring stability to a process thats been outdated, Omens said.

Republicans in Congress are vowing to put more pressure on the agency, with at least two hearings on the NLRB recess appointments planned next month before the House Committee on Education and the Workforce and the House Judiciary Committee.

If the board is determined to continue advancing its pro-union agenda, House Republicans will continue to maintain aggressive oversight, said Brian Newell, spokesman for education committee Chairman John Kline, R-Minn.

Pearce said he wants the NLRB to become a household word for all workers, not just those affiliated with organized labor.

We want the agency to be known as the resource for people with workplace concerns that may have nothing to do with union activities, he said.

He said many workers dont understand that they can seek recourse with the NLRB to protect rights that exist outside of union protections.

After a thrilling game against India that ended in a tie, Sri Lanka will look to put an end to their winless streak in the CB series, when they play against Australia in their next ODI.

Skipper Jayawardene is confident that his side will come good, and that they have taken the positives from the three narrow defeats so far. However, he admits there were mistakes and the time has come to rectify them.

Sri Lanka have often crumbled in crunch situations, and that is where the team needs to cope up, the captain feels.

The next game against Australia will be Sri Lankas fourth and even if they do well, they will still need to perform better in the second leg of the series to secure a berth in the finals.

But the optimistic captain says he isnt thinking too much about the later stages, but is in fact, concentrating on one game at a time.

These awards recognize and honor outstanding small businesses in the community with 50 or fewer employees.

Nominees must have had a Hawaii General Excise Tax license for no less than two years and show business leadership in a changing economic environment, create a quality work environment for their employees, exhibit the aloha spirit and exemplary customer service, develop partnerships with other sectors of the community and demonstrate other exceptional qualities or traits.

This years program includes six award categories: Exceptional Small Business of the Year – 10 or fewer employees, 11 to 25 employees, and 26 to 50 employees; Outstanding Nonprofit Business (50 or fewer employees); Young Small Business Person of the Year (under age 40 as of March 29, 2012); and Lifetime Achievement Award for any individual doing business in Maui County for more than 20 years.

Completed nomination packets must be received at the Maui County Business Resource Center in Maui Mall on or before noon on Friday, March 16.

Nomination forms are available at the Maui County Business Resource Center, Maui Chamber of Commerce and American Savings Bank, Bank of Hawaii, Central Pacific Bank, and First Hawaiian Bank branches. The form is also available online at www.mauicounty.gov/mcbrc and www.mauichamber.com, as well as on the Maui County and Maui Chamber of Commerce Facebook pages.

All finalists and winners will be honored at an awards dinner on Thursday, March 29, at King Kamehameha Golf Clubs Waikapu Ballroom, where photographs with Mayor Alan Arakawa will be taken and presented to all finalists.

Winners will receive a Mayors Small Business Award winner decal, a certificate from Arakawa and the Maui Chamber of Commerce, a commemorative plaque, and the company or businesspersons name listed in press releases sent to the media.

Small businesses are the true job generators, and they risk a great deal to open their doors, create jobs, grow and stimulate our economy, said the mayor.

Maui County is fortunate to have many successful small businesses who are known for their entrepreneurial spirit, innovation and ingenuity. I look forward to honoring them through these awards and to sharing their resilience and resourcefulness with others as shining examples of the strength of our community.

Chamber President Pamela Tumpap said, Mauis small businesses are at the heart of our community, and they have gone through a lot these past few years to still be standing. We look forward giving them well-deserved credit and honoring their tremendous accomplishments and investment in our community with Mayor Arakawa and his team.

For more information about nominations, call 873-8247. Call the chamber at 244-0081 for additional details on sponsorships or event tickets.

Obama arrives in San Francisco today for a series of high-dollar fundraisers, including one with 20 supporters at the Mark Hopkins Intercontinental Hotel. Price of admission: $35,800 per person.

But an Obama campaign official declined to say who will get such intimate access to the president. Reporters are banned from the event but can attend two others today. The days take will go to the Obama Victory Fund, a fundraising committee authorized by Obama for America, his re-election campaign, and the Democratic National Committee.

White House spokesman Adam Abrams said the Mark Hopkins gathering is closed because the president is hosting a roundtable discussion with a small group of people to benefit his campaign. Since the president is not planning to deliver formal remarks, this event will be closed to press.

But Kathy Kiely, managing editor of the nonpartisan Sunlight Foundation, which analyzes the influence of money on politics, said that is a contradictory message to send because this president said his administration is going to be transparent. If you say youre going to be open, be open.

Besides, Kiely said, the check-writers names are required to appear in campaign fundraising disclosure documents within weeks.

The White House Correspondents Association believes all of the fundraisers the president attends should be open to the press, said Caren Bohan, its president and a White House correspondent for Reuters.

The administration has fallen short of its transparency pledge elsewhere, analysts said.

Earlier this month, the administration said that Cabinet secretaries will be attending fundraisers for Priorities USA, the top super PAC supporting Obamas re-election. Super PACs may accept unlimited contributions directly from corporations, labor unions and individuals.

Wednesday, Sen. Mike Enzi, R-Wyo., asked Obama to reconsider allowing Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius to attend super PAC fundraisers, saying it is particularly inappropriate for someone involved in implementing the health care law.

John Wonderlich, policy director at the Sunlight Foundation, said that while Cabinet officials have long participated in fundraisers, when its for unlimited sums of money, the calculus is different. Wonderlich called on Obama to lean on Priorities USA to promptly disclose when top officials attend fundraisers.

Said White House spokesman Abrams: Just like in previous administrations of both parties, administration officials and Cabinet members in their private time can and do engage in political activity. There are various rules governing these activities and our administration officials follow them.

Socialization Daze focuses on leisure activities, friends, interactive games and common interests.

The event will facilitate, promote and encourage people with disabilities to be more socially active and to:

» Meet and talk about shared experiences.

» Build and maintain new and previous friendships.

» Increase confidence about participating in already existing leisure activities the community has to offer.

For more information call Jeff Boles or Emily Papperman at 272-2433, e-mail flic@clarityconnect.com or visit www.fliconline.org.

Blood drive

The American Red Cross, Get Your GreenBack Tompkins and Cornell Cooperative Extension of Tompkins County will hold a blood drive from 9 am to 3 pm Feb. 17 at the Cooperative Extension office, 615 Willow Ave.

Blood donations have the potential to enable a premature baby to live, a burn victim to recover, a cancer patient to be treated, an accident victim to survive or a transplant candidate to receive a life-saving organ.

Walk-in blood donations are welcome, however, appointments are appreciated.

Healthy blood donors may give blood as often as every 56 days.

Donors should allow up to one hour for the blood donation process to be completed.

To register, call 272-2292.

For more information, visit www.redcrossblood.org/donating-blood/donation-faqs or

www.redcrossblood.org/donating-blood/eligibility-requirements.

A press secretary to the Prime Minister has quit after it was confirmed there was a leak to the tent embassy about Tony Abbotts whereabouts and comments.

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(CNN) — Two years ago, the Supreme Court upended the rules for campaign finance, unleashing a tsunami of unregulated, unrestricted and undisclosed spending that has, in effect, allowed donors to buy elections. The full impact of this decision is just now becoming clear, and its bad both for Americas businesses and for our democracy.

By a 5-4 majority, the Supreme Court affirmed that money is essentially speech — a notion first addressed in Buckley v. Valeo in 1976 — and it outlawed nearly all restrictions on independent spending by corporations or other groups, including unions, to influence elections. Such restrictions are unconstitutional violations of free speech, the court said, and are prohibited by the First Amendment.

You might expect business owners to welcome the elimination of these restrictions, but if so, youre about to be surprised. A recent poll conducted by Lake Research found that 66% of a random sample of 500 small-business owners believe the Citizens United decision was mostly bad or somewhat bad for small business. Since small businesses create 70% of new jobs in the private sector, according to the Small Business Administration, their view should matter a lot.

The French president, Nicolas Sarkozy, said on Friday that France and Afghanistan have agreed to ask Nato to bring forward the handover of all combat operations to Afghan forces to 2013.

Sarkozy also announced an accelerated exit for France, the fourth-largest contributor of troops in Afghanistan – marking a break from previous plans to adhere to the US goal of withdrawing combat forces by the end of 2014. The proposal comes a week after four unarmed French troops were killed by an Afghan soldier.

Sarkozy, alongside Afghan president Hamid Karzai who was in Paris for a previously planned visit, said France had told the US of its plan, and will present it at a meeting next week of Nato defence ministers in Brussels. He said he would call the US president, Barack Obama, about it on Saturday.

The new idea floated by Sarkozy would accelerate a gradual drawdown of Nato troops that Obama has planned to see through until the end of 2014.

Sarkozy said France will withdraw combat troops by the end of 2013, a reversal from his repeated commitment in recent months to stick with other allies on a US-led schedule.

At the same time, he said France will restart its training missions of Afghan troops. After the shootings on 20 January, he suspended the training and joint French military patrols with Afghan forces.