What an ingrate.
When he was seeking the Democrat presidential nomination last year, Barack Obama gladly accepted the endorsement of U.S. Sen. John Kerry , D-Mass.
But provided the opportunity last week to offer a subtle thanks for that support, the president declined to do so.
News crews followed Obama and Vice President Joe Biden to a Virginia restaurant where the two men ordered lunch. Obama asked for a cheddar cheeseburger, cooked medium-to-well done.
As for the condiment, the president could have given a plug to Heinz ketchup as a gracias to Kerry and his wife, Pittsburgh pickle princess Teresa Heinz.
Instead, as the cameras rolled, Obama ordered his burger with mustard. Spicy mustard.
Obama's condiment choice caught the attention of Fox News Channel's Sean Hannity , who showed a clip of the president's request, followed by an old Grey Poupon commercial from the '80s.
Taunted Hannity: "I hope you enjoyed that fancy burger, Mr. President!"
REMINDER: YOU'RE A DEM NOW, SENATOR. Arlen Specter apparently is having difficulty remembering that he now puts on his uniform in the visitors clubhouse.
Such was the case last week, when the newly minted Democrat had to furiously backtrack after voicing support for Republican Norm Coleman in the battle over Minnesota's contested Senate seat. (The Minnesota Supreme Court will decide soon whether Coleman or Democomedian Al Franken is the winner of a race contested for the past six months.)
Just days after switching from Republican to Democrat, Specter said this to The New York Times Magazine: "There's still time for the Minnesota courts to do justice and declare Coleman the winner."
Bet Harry Reid loved hearing that.
We're guessing the Senate majority leader from Nevada quickly reminded Specter which locker room he now dresses in for the political arena. Specter quickly admitted the comments were a mistake.
"In the swirl of moving from one caucus to another, I have to get used to my new teammates," he told the Congressional Quarterly Web site. "I conclusively misspoke."
If Specter is this confused at the relatively young age of 79, what's he going to be like if he wins another term next year and is still in the Senate at the ripe old age of 86?
TOOMEY TAKES IN THE BUCKS. Meanwhile, the Republican Senate candidate who caused Specter to turn all fraidy-cat, Pat Toomey , is showing considerable fundraising prowess.
In the first 20 days since announcing his candidacy, Toomey raised more than $500,000. The sizeable sum wasn't from just a few corporate donors, either -- there were more than 4,000 individual contributors, according to the Toomey camp.
RIDGE RESIDENCY ISSUE. Nearly overlooked in former Gov. Tom Ridge 's decision Thursday not to run for the Republican Senate nomination was a probable sharp thorn in the side of his potential campaign: Ridge's primary residence these days is in Chevy Chase, Md.
True, Ridge still maintains a home in Erie as well, but that probably wouldn't have prevented problems had he decided to mount a Senate bid.
We seem to recollect a residency issue causing problems for former Sen. Rick Santorum in his spectacular re-election flameout in 2006. Santorum kept a Penn Hills address although he actually lived in Virginia.
RIDGE REDUX⢠Ridge might not want to run for the U.S. Senate, but apparently there's nothing in the Pennsylvania Constitution to prevent him from running again for governor next year.
Or at least that's the way Ken Gormley , the interim dean of the Duquesne University School of Law, sees things.
"As I read it," Gormley told the Philadelphia Daily News Friday, "our constitution has never precluded the possibility that a governor may sit out for a while and then be elected again to that office, although it has never been tested to my knowledge."
Relax, Tom Corbett . Take a deep breath, Pat Meehan . Ridge hasn't even remotely hinted he's interested in the Republican gubernatorial nomination next year.
DeSANTIS COULD GRANT US SOME SENATE SEAT INTRIGUE. With Ridge having removed himself from consideration, we've heard that Mark DeSantis -- Pittsburgh's Republican mayoral candidate in 2007 -- is mulling entering the Senate race.
While the possibility is interesting, we're not convinced the idea has traction.
Although DeSantis had the most successful showing of any city GOP mayoral nominee since 1965, he still was trounced, 63 percent to 35 percent, by Democrat Luke Ravenstahl .
At least DeSantis wouldn't have any residency worries if he runs. He lives Downtown.
SENSE OF HUMOR . A wisecracker who was alarmed during a recent Pittsburgh Pirates homestand when he saw Pittsburgh Steelers kicker Jeff Reed heading toward a sink in a men's room at PNC Park said he hoped the paper towel dispenser was full.
The quip caused Reed, 29, to chuckle. Reed pleaded guilty to two citations for criminal mischief and disorderly conduct after throwing a tantrum over an empty paper towel machine at a Westmoreland County convenience store in February. He agreed to pay fines totaling $544, including restitution to replace the towel holder, according to court documents.
Reed went into the men's restroom at Sheetz on Route 22 in New Alexandria shortly before 3 a.m. Feb. 14, according to state police, who said Reed started banging on the towel dispenser after discovering it was empty.
Reed, who joined the Steelers in 2002, has been a member of two Super Bowl championship teams.
DOWN BUT NOT OUT. George Snyder , who was booted off the ballot in the race for magisterial district judge in North Huntingdon, has purchased a full-page ad in a few editions of the weekly Norwin Star to declare himself the "favored candidate."
Voters who want him to serve will have to write in his name. Both a Westmoreland County Common Pleas judge and a Commonwealth Court judge ruled Snyder's nominating petitions were invalid because he listed a storage unit along Route 30 as his home address.
Snyder claims to have family roots in North Huntingdon that go back four generations, but he voted last fall at an Allegheny County precinct. Snyder says he has been campaigning and will welcome write-in votes.
Three-term incumbent Magisterial District Judge Doug Weimer and attorney David Strazinsky are the only candidates certified to appear on the ballot.
FERTILE GROUND. Trial attorney Geoffrey Fieger has found Pennsylvania to be fertile ground since he won a $12.5 million settlement last year for the family of Michael Ellerbe , 12, of Uniontown. State police fatally shot the boy on Christmas Eve 2002.
Fieger has started advertising his Michigan-based law firm in commercials on local television stations.
Pittsburgh attorney James Ecker , hired by the family of Nicholas Haniotakis , 33, of the South Side, who was shot and killed by police, reportedly has consulted with Fieger about the case. State Trooper Samuel Nassan and city police Sgt. Terry Donnelly shot Haniotakis after he allegedly tried to strike them with his vehicle. Tests showed Nassan fired the fatal bullet.
Ellerbe, who was unarmed, was shot fatally by Nassan as the boy ran from a stolen vehicle. A police review absolved Nassan and Cpl. Juan Curry of wrongdoing in Ellerbe's death, but a federal jury in Pittsburgh found against the troopers and awarded the boy's father $28 million. Pennsylvania State Police settled the case for $12.5 million, the largest payout in the agency's history.
-- compiled by Tribune-Review staff
