Jeff Dufour and Patrick Gavin cover people, power and politics in the beltway each weekday. Email them at yan@dcexaminer.com .

Senate candidates: The cream of the crop



Monday, we took a look at the most beautiful people vying to take their place in the House of Representatives next year.
We couldn’t leave the Senate out, but we can tell you that the pickings were mighty slim. To begin with, there are only 33 Senate races this year, compared to 435 in the House, leaving the pool of potential head turners a bit thin.

“Besides, none of them are hot anyway,” said Jessica Cutler, author of “The Washingtonienne.” Be that as it may, we’re offering up four candidates for your approval.
Online Poll Using WebSurveyor











Rep. Harold Ford Jr.

Democrat, Tennessee

» Who is he?: Already serving in the House, the 36-year-old Ford now makes his first run for the Senate. “Harold is good looking,” says Erwin Gomez, beautician to the stars in D.C. and one of our resident experts. “I don’t know about his hair. ...”

» Chances of seeing him in the Senate: 50/50. Ford is running neck-and-neck with opponent Bob Corker to fill Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist’s seat.

Dwight Grotberg

Republican, North Dakota

» Who is he?: Grotberg was raised on his parents’ farm in North Dakota and went on to study agriculture in college. He continues to ply the family trade.

» Chances of seeing him in the Senate: Slim. Grotberg has managed to raise a meager $86,000 to his incumbent opponent Kent Conrad’s $5.9 million. The popular Conrad is expected to continue his winning streak by yet another large margin.

Tom Kean Jr.

Republican, New Jersey

» Who is he?: A former volunteer firefighter and EMT, Kean graduated from Dartmouth and now is serving in the New Jersey State Senate. Yet Gomez says, “We only have one Donald Trump in this world! You’re fired! You look too uptight.”

» Chances of seeing him in the Senate: 50/50. Spending far less than Democratic incumbent Bob Menendez, Kean has managed to turn New Jersey into the GOP’s best chance of a pickup.

Rep. Mark Kennedy

Republican, Minnesota

» Who is he?: Kennedy is a fourth-generation resident of Minnesota, currently serving his third term as a congressman from the state’s 6th District.

» Chances of seeing him in the Senate: Dwindling. Democratic nominee Amy Klobuchar is consistently scoring above 50 percent in the polls, with time running out for Kennedy.






Figurine fetches big dough on eBay



Here’s a Mark Foley story that has legs. With trousers around its ankles.

Monday night, an enterprising artist named David Johnson of SpectreStudios in Denver hawked a “one of a kind” Mark Foley action figure for $315.01 on eBay.

The description states that the 6-inch tall figurine “is a sculptural mockup in polymer clay. [I]t is not articulated. ... This is the only one.”

Sporting gray hair, a pink shirt, dark suit and colorfully patterned boxers, the Foley mockup holds a BlackBerry in his right hand and a bottle of wine (we assume) in his left hand.

The box in which it comes states clearly “Warning: Not for Children.”

As of press time Monday night, 27 bidders had battled each other for the figurine, which opened at $19.99.

In other Foley news Monday — will it ever stop? — a release by Parents and Friends of Ex-Gays & Gays suggests that the former congressman should get himself into a “sexual reorientation” program, rather than alcohol rehab.

The group’s Executive Director Regina Griggs said due to childhood abuse, many men “like Mr. Foley … never had a chance to fulfill their heterosexual potential.”

Make it stop.



Shell Oil honcho denies price-fixing on his watch



Shell Oil President John Hofmeister on Monday dismissed any suggestion that oil prices have dropped to improve Republicans’ lot in November.

Speaking at the National Press Club, he said, “I really respond with a smile on that conspiracy theory. We would not talk to the White House about pricing. The prices are determined by the market. Do prices go back up after the election? We don’t predict prices.”

When asked “In 15 years ... what kind of gas will fuel your car?” Hofmeister spared no time in responding jokingly, “Why not a bicycle?”



Will Redbirds help Dems convert red states to blue ones?



Superstitious Democrats may be rooting for the St. Louis Cardinals this week. That’s because in midterm elections over the past 20 years, the outcome of the world series has been an almost-perfect predictor of the outcome at the ballot box.

Since 1978, when the National League team has won, Democrats have gained. When the American League team has won, Republicans have done better.

The only exception: 1998, when a historical anomaly (the impeachment of President Clinton and the Republicans’ bungled handling of it) coincided with a historical regularity (the Yankees winning the championship).

Speaking of which, we note that the Carpetbagger Curse is still alive and well. After winning three World Series in a row from 1998-2000, the Yankees have not won since Sen. Hillary Clinton, D-N.Y., was elected after moving to the Empire State.

Similarly, when Robert F. Kennedy was elected to the Senate after moving to New York in 1964, the Bronx Bombers ended an impressive postseason run and went on a 12-year playoff drought.



Media mix



Spencer Abraham, the former Republican senator from Michigan and secretary of Energy, now heads the Abraham Group LLC, an international strategic consulting firm. This week, Abraham receives the Distinguished Achievement and Community Service Award from the René Moawad Foundation. We caught up with him via e-mail last week.

Q: What are you listening to on your iPod right now?

The Beach Boys

Q: What’s your favorite Web site?

www.realclearpolitics.com

Q: What book are you reading?

“Echo Park” by Michael Connelly

Q: What’s the last movie you saw?

“The Illusionist” and “Over the Hedge”

Q: What’s your favorite TV show?

“24”



Speakeasy



“Katherine Harris’s bid for the U.S. Senate bears more resemblance to a Monty Python skit than a campaign for high public office.” – An editorial in The Ledger of Lakeland, Fla.

Andrew White and Kelly Mahon contributed to this page.