Must be the beautiful blue eyes ...

Covering the White House is not an easy beat. The hours are late, the travel can be brutal and the tug-of-war between the White House spin machine and journalists can wear down even the toughest reporter.

But White House spokesman Tony Snow, who has been on the job four months, might very well be out to change all of that and to put the “fun” back in “fundamentally, a frustrating job.”

Yeas & Nays reviewed the press briefing and press gaggle transcripts from Snow’s first four months on the job and compared them to those of Snow’s predecessor, Scott McClellan, during his first four months.

Under Snow, there were more than 330 percent more instances of laughter — as defined by the transcriber’s insertion of “(Laughter)” in the transcript — than under McClellan.

Have reporters fallen for the former Fox News commentator’s woo and charm? And — gasp! — could Snow actually be making the notoriously curmudgeonly task of covering the White House fun?

“It’s not that Tony’s necessarily a laugh riot,” says Ron Hutcheson, who covers the White House for McClatchy newspapers. “But he engages, and it’s a lot more fun to be in the room with somebody who’s engaging reporters.” Hutcheson says that McClellan, on the other hand, “was just cautious, cautious to a fault. He would retreat to the talking points and it was almost as if he didn’t listen to the question.”

Snow says that his humor is not intentional. “It’s just doing what I do, the way I do it,” he says. “For me, the job is a blast. I love the job and I think that’s part of it. And I enjoy the people out there. It’s not like I feel as if I’m among strangers. You’ve just got to be yourself when you’re doing a briefing.”

But is there any danger in being a bit too humorous?

“Well, I do like to have fun, but at the same time you don’t want to be doing stand-up as the spokesperson of the president and the leader of the free world,” he says.

Obama: A little off the top, Tom

The Senate has its own Oscar and Felix in the freshman class.

Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., the Democrats’ Next Big Thing, and Sen. Tom Coburn, R-Okla., the conservative hard-liner, have made an unlikely bipartisan pair this year.

The two celebrated their most recent success before reporters Thursday — a database bill that would shed light on government contracts and grants.

Amid the elation, the two even caught up on grooming tips.

“What did I tell you about your hair?” the buzz-cut Obama asked the shaggy-haired Coburn.

“4:30 today, it’s coming off,” said Coburn, running his hands through his gray mane. “I should save some for you in case you end up getting thin.”

The collegiality may be welcome for Coburn, who alienated many members over his rigid views on spending when he served in the House from 1994 to 2000. House Majority Whip Roy Blunt, R-Mo., alluded to Coburn’s tumultuous history in the lower body Thursday when he said, “if you were surprised at how quickly we moved a bill with Sen. Coburn’s name on it, imagine how surprised he was.”

Heat Index

Who’s hot or cold

Steaming

GOTV

“Get out the vote” efforts saved Sen. Lincoln D. Chafee, R-R.I., and the DNC is planning to spend more than it ever has during a midterm year on GOTV efforts. So look for your chauffeured limo to the polls on Election Day, courtesy of your local party of choice.

Hot

Incumbents

After predictions of a “throw the bums out” election, a new poll indicates that 60 percent of Americans would re-elect their own member of Congress, and Senate primaries gave big wins to embattled GOP moderate Chafee and 10-term Democratic Rep. Ben Cardin from Baltimore.

Lukewarm

The Democrat’s electoral “romp”

Dems may want to wait to measure for drapes in the GOP offices, as new polls give Republicans slightly more hope about November’s results and Rep. John Boehner predicts a GOP victory. Or is this all just the Sept. 11 talking?

Cool

Interns

With the fun summer batch now back to college, Washington offices are left with a bunch of distracted local students too busy complaining about tomorrow’s “killer exam” to concentrate on the envelope-licking. Hmph.

Raj and Rudy: Right?

Many of you know Raj Bhakta from his appearance on the second season of Manhattan mogul Donald Trump’s TV show, “The Apprentice.” But Bhakta is hoping that you’ll associate him with a different oversized New York personality: Rudy Giuliani.

Bhakta, who is running as a Republican in an effort to unseat Democratic Rep. Allyson Schwartz in Pennsylvania’s 13th Congressional District, is touting a recent Northeast Times article by reporter Tom Waring titled “Raj a rising Giuliani type?”

“I share much in common with the outlook of Mayor Giuliani,” Bhakta told Yeas & Nays. “I think it’s a very relevant comparison. “The basis is that, in both cases, we’re people of action. Giuliani has taken action in cleaning up New York City when it needed action, and Philadelphia needs representatives who are going to take similar action.”

Of course, Bhakta, who trails Schwartz in the polls, stands to benefit from a potential Rudy-Raj partnership.

“I look forward to having his support and help in the campaign,” he said.

Hizzoner Mr. Giuliani did not get back to us by press time on whether Bhakta would have it.