Internal Affairs: If this is how Carl treats his friends"... Saturday, September 20, 2008 By the Mercury News In San Jose's political circles, Carl Guardino is one of the most effective advocates there is. But there have long been stories that the brand of persuasion practiced by the president and CEO of the Silicon Valley Leadership Group sometimes includes harsh treatment of those who cross him. Given Guardino's influence, those tales are usually told privately. Happily for those of us in the gossip business, San Jose City Councilman Pete Constant is made of more forthcoming stuff. The blunt-talking retired cop says Guardino, whom he calls a longtime friend, verbally blistered him in public, then stalked off mid-sentence during a recent fundraiser for Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger. Constant fired off a doozy of a letter to Guardino on Sept. 8 recounting the incident. What ticked off Guardino? Constant opposes Guardino's latest project, a one-eighth-cent sales tax measure on the November ballot to help operate a proposed BART line from Fremont to the South Bay. Among other things, Constant says in the letter that Guardino told him angrily "you come to our events, then you treat us like this." Constant took the comment to mean that Guardino considers Constant to be in SVLG's debt. "If, in fact, the SVLG expects that there is a quid pro quo for participating in events, please take my name off your list," Constant snapped in the letter. "I can honestly say that in my professional and public life I have never been treated so disrespectfully in public as that Thursday evening," Constant continued. "Your angry, condescending and demeaning tone was uncalled for and unfortunately witnessed by others." Both men say they have since made nice. After receiving Constant's letter, Guardino met with the councilman over coffee last Friday. He told IA that disagreements happen, but declined to specifically address what he called a "30-second-interaction," as he put it. "It was apparent that we weren't having our best moments and I disengaged so that 30 seconds wouldn't be prolonged," Guardino said.   Internal Affairs is compiled by Mercury News staff. Edwin Garcia, Joshua Molina and Scott Herhold contributed. Send tips to internalaffairs@mercurynews.com, or call (408) 271-3638.