…or, as an astute tipster put it, “Congressman McChokey Gets Help From Congressman McSmacky.” MORE »

This is getting ridiculous. The Tuesday papers say New York State power broker and GOP Congressman John Sweeney has a little domestic-violence problem, and the Albany newspaper has the 2005 police report (PDF) to prove it.

Gaia M. Sweeney, 36, told a trooper that her husband had grabbed her by the neck and was pushing her around the house, according to the document.

The NY Daily News goes with “knocking her around the house,” which is more dramatic. MORE »

• Heard on the Hill: Ricky Martin on the Hill to talk about human trafficking, won’t break into song… The Distilled Spirits Council and the Scotch Whisky Association is throwing a party for Prince Andrew (not the Nazi). [Roll Call]
• Yeas and Nays: Heath Shuler, former Redskin, current Congressional candidate, owes a shitload of back taxes… LAT: “Bourbon drinkers tend to be Republican; gin is more often a Democrat’s drink.” Tell that that to… uh, us. [Examiner]
• Reliable Source: O Magazine declares David Gregory, Barack Obama, Fareed Zakaria, and Patrick Fitzgerald to be among the 50 “Sexiest Men Alive.” [WP]
• Rush & Molloy: Chaos at FoxNews as marital problems between Brit Hume and wife/DC bureau head Kim lead to her departure from the bureau. [NYDN]
• Under the Dome: Rep. Chris Dodd (D-CT) is Catholic, wife is Mormon. Dodd: “At Bob Jones University, we are now a two-cult family”… “Rep. John Sweeney (R-N.Y.) has proudly accepted a $1,000 contribution from a strip-club owner.” [The Hill]

• Heard on the Hill: Tom DeLay sent out an email asking his friends to support Sara Evans on Dancing With the Stars… Rep. David Dreier (R-CA) showed up to work with a black eye yesterday. It was from a minor operation. [Roll Call]
• Yeas and Nays: The following members of Congress recorded with Kelly Clarkson yesterday: Joseph Crowley, Mary Bono, Mark Foley, Connie Mack, Steny Hoyer, Stephanie Herseth, Charles Gonzales, and Marsha Blackburn. [Examiner]
• Under the Dome: Rep. John Sweeney’s campaign spent $660 on cigars. [The Hill]
• Rush and Molloy: Hillary Clinton, after hearing that Karl Rove had her office exorcised: “I’m speechless.” [NYDN]
• Fresh Intelligence: Raul Castro is totally gay. [Radar]

* Names & Faces: Barbara Bush skipped the WHCA dinner. [WP]
* Page Six: Harvey Weinstein, MTV exec John Sykes, and Madisan Square Garden owner Jim Dolan are collaborating on Clinton’s 60th birthday party. . . Al Gore: “If I had half the communications skills of Karenna, I’d be halfway through my second term right now.” [NYP]
* Lloyd Grove’s Lowdown: Ludacris chilled with Antonin Scalia. [NYDN]
* Fox 411: Jason Binn threw a Capitol File party opposite the Bloomberg bash; Clooney, Rove, Albright made appearances. [Fox News]
* Heard on the Hill: Rep. John Sweeney (R-N.Y.) defends his participation in a frat party. . . Julia Thorne, first wife of John Kerry, dies of cancer. [Roll Call]
* Rush & Molloy: Pataki will launch his presidential campaign this week. [NYDN]
* Inside Politics: Powell asked for more troops to be sent to Iraq. [WT]

We gave this a quick link yesterday evening, but, of course, it’s worthy of further investigation. Because it’s fucking hilarious. MORE »

* What the fuck happened to the John Sweeney I used to know? Where’s the spirit? Where’s the guts, huh? “Ooh, we’re afraid to go with you Bluto, we might get in trouble.” [Hotline Blog]
* What does Derek Whittenburg (motorist) think of the Senate Democrats stunt? “They’re high, or whatever.” [Jalopnik]
* That old retired journalists are decrying Wikipedia only makes us love it more! [CNN]
* On a slightly related note: We are increasingly sure that “addicted to oil” is not a metaphor, but a very serious physicial condition afflicting many of our elected represenatives. [PublicEye]
* Hooray! Thanks to the tireless efforts of our anti-American journalists, the TV on Air Force One will be changed to CNN. [AJC]

MORE »