Quotes of the Day

“As a reporter I didn’t think it was appropriate. It didn’t seem part of my job. …The tide of history only moves forward when everybody is fully visible. …I didn’t want to send a message that there was anything I was ashamed about or unhappy about or uncomfortable with.“ — ABC and CNN’s Anderson Cooper on coming out as gay on his new live ABC talk show Monday.

CBS’s new donut reporter: Mark Knoller 

“Questioned about eating a donut, [Paul] Ryan, a fitness advocate, said ‘I don’t hate sweets, I just don’t love them.’” — CBS Radio White House Correspondent Mark Knoller. And then in a moment of serious analysis he analysis, he adds, “Will this draw votes. Talking donuts on his campaign plane, GOP VP Candidate Paul Ryan says ‘I loved Cap’n Crunch when I was a kid.’”

Reporter runs into The Hulkster

“No joke: Hulk Hogan just sat down next to me in the terminal at Manchester airport.” — NationalReviewOnline‘s Robert Costa.

Ouch!

“Bill Frist is getting divorced, which is very pro-marriage.” — Daily Kos‘s Markos Moulitsas.

Radio host wants Granholm alarm clock

“I need Jennifer Granholm to come to my house and bellow my children out of bed tomorrow morning” — NPR’s Michele Norris. Granholm is the former Michigan Gov. and host of “The War Room” on Current TV.

Hate mail involves elbow and Obama’s ass 

“@JakeSherman @jmartpolitico @maggiepolitico u r such a hack it should be embarrassing. But ur not bc ur elbow deep in Obamas ass.” — Joey Pender.

Important Q to Ponder: “Do we really need to waste peoples’ airwaves on convention bounce BS? How about poverty? How to create jobs? Danger of a One Percent Court?” — The Nation‘s Katrina vanden Heuvel.

Journos get food/drink obsessed

“So tempted to stockpile a ton of Punkin Ale to prepare for October…” — Politico Publicist Olivia Petersen.

“I finally found fish tacos in my neighborhood that I liked. You have no idea how much this helps a bad month so far.” — NJ “The Hotline’s Chris Peleo-Lazar.

“Food gods be praised! Just feasted on some muurland blue crabs and corn!” — BuzzFeed’s D.C. Bureau Chief John Stanton.

“Can someone back me up on the fact that apples and honey are totally a thing for Rosh Hashanah?” — NPR’s Brenna Williams.

Convo Between Two Journos

FNC’s Peter Doocy: “Whoa. Dinner just got deep #fortunecookie”

FNC’s Shannon Bream: Beans and bacon it is!

Peter Ogburn contributed to this report.

 Quotes of the Day

“When did fact checking and journalism go their separate ways?” — Comedy Central Daily Show Host Jon Stewart to NBC Newsman Tom Brokaw, who appeared on the show last night. His reply: “Everything is so compressed, everything happens with warped speed.”

Speaking of fact checking…“Unfortunately when you look at some of the fact checking, they’re partisan, which is not what a fact check is supposed to be.” — FNC’s Steve Doocy on Wednesday morning. At which point Gretchen Carlson chimed in, “It’s kind of sad when you have to have a fact checker to check the fact checker to check the fact checker, but anyway…

Yeah, anyway, The Atlantic‘s Molly Ball gets snappy about facts, saying, “Why is everyone so sure facts don’t matter? Journo self-loathing? Or do we think voters are stupid & illiterate?”

From one reporter named “Ben” to another: Are we fighting?

“Top #DNC2012 moment: running into @BuzzFeedBen and having him ask: ‘Are we fighting about something on Twitter? I can’t remember.’ No!” — Politico‘s Ben White who is referencing BuzzFeed Political Editor Ben Smith.

Journo takes backhanded stab at the Romneys

“You know what this first lady knows nothing about? The price at the pump when you fill up a couple of Cadillacs.” — MSNBC’s Richard Wolffe.

An Important Q to Ponder: “Michelle has become a terrific speaker. But why should that matter — or whether Ann Romney loves her husband — in picking a president?” — Washington Pollster  Stu Rothenberg.

Reporters geek out on C-SPAN

“There is nothing better than the old convention clips playing on @cspan. Love hearing these old speeches.” — WaPo‘s Aaron Blake.

“C-SPANis running clips of past Democratic keynotes. Gotta say, I’m digging the trip down memory lane as #DNC12 is about to convene.” — Jennifer Dlouhy, energy reporter for The Houston Chronicle and Hearst Newspapers.

Rave Reviews for Michelle

“Michelle speech offers a devasting contrast of where the Obamas came from with Romney’s privilege without uttering one nasty word. #DNC2012″ — WaPo Columnist EJ Dionne.

“Will be surprised if Dems don’t switch to live video from White House of Pres Obama and daughters applauding FLOTUS speech.” — CBS White House Radio Correspondent Mark Knoller.

“Is it gauche to wonder why #FLOTUS beloved dad didn’t try riding #dressage to help alleviate his #MS symptoms? #justasking” — Editorial Promotions Manager at Chronicle of Higher Education‘s Amy Alexander.

“I’ve never heard such a well delivered speech by a first lady ever.” — CNN’s Anderson Cooper.

“Barack Obama always jokes that Michelle gives the better speech. I’m starting to think that’s actually true.” — WaPo‘s Ezra Klein.

“Notice how FLOTUS makes her strong points without raising her voice. Very effective. #dnc2012″ — Mother Jones D.C. Bureau Chief David Corn.

Oh no she didn’t! Jo Anne Reed (a.k.a. Mrs. Ralph Reed) kicks Obama to the curb during FLOTUS’ convention speech: “Michelle Obama loves her husband more today than four years ago…well at least someone does…we don’t!!”

Meanwhile…CNN’s Lisa Desjardins announces that FLOTUS’s pretty orange sleeveless frock was designed by Tracy Reese. And HollywoodLife.com Editor-in-Chief Bonnie Fuller puts in a giant plug for the First Lady’s well-toned arms: “Michelle Obama has set sleeveless trend 4 all of female newscasters.”

The Eyebrow Observer

“Tim Kaine’s eyebrow is out of control.” — The Daily Caller‘s Matt Lewis.

The Random But Nonetheless Poignant Observer

“I see both Malia and Sasha are rocking skinny jeans after 10pm.” — ABC7′s Jummy Olabanji.

Funky reporting admission

“A source told me tonight that he has ‘personal knowledge’ of everything he told me. That’s comforting.” — Politico‘s Jake Sherman.

Say hello to Lisa Rowan, a fashion blogger for Goodwill of Greater Washington and an online communications consultant. She contributes to the Goodwill’s fashion blog and represents the organization at events and workshops. She also writes about vintage and consignment clothing for Quarterlife202.com. Rowan formerly worked as a Community Host for TBD, but as Robert Allbritton‘s Titanic began to sink, she was laid off in March. She earned a B.A. in history from the University of Maryland and is expected to earn an M.A. in Arts and Liberal Studies from Georgetown in December, 2013. Rowan was kind enough to photograph her favorite item of clothing. She wrote in late one night to say, “I’m back and full of sangria! 1. Dress photo attached. I didn’t even Instagram it, but I did do my best to make the sparkles stand out. It’s tough when all your walls are yellow or ivory. Maybe you can run it through Blingee? 2. Resume attached for your reference. It’s pretty boring. 3. [Re: TBD] I got laid off when everyone else did. I left in mid-March, about halfway through the marathon of last-day ‘happy’ hours. (We called them ‘sad hours.’)” Follow Rowan’s unique, self-deprecating wit on Twitter at @Lisatella. As for her photograph, she says: “Please note that I don’t actually have jaundice and that one of my weak points is naming image files.”

If you were a carbonated beverage, which would you be? Champagne.

How often do you Google yourself? With Google Alerts, self-Googling comes to you!

What’s the worst thing you’ve ever said to an editor/boss (or vice versa)? “My dad gave me the same advice.”

Who is your favorite working journalist and why? Elizabeth Holmes, style reporter at the Wall Street Journal. She can embrace the fun side of her beat, but has her thumb on related economic issues, too.

Do you have a favorite word? I like a lot of words. Playing favorites would be unfair.

Who would you rather have dinner with – CNN’s Anderson Cooper or ABC’s Katie Couric or Dr. Phil. Tell us why. Anderson Cooper would be the sassiest. And he sounds like a picky eater, which would make me look like a culinary adventurer in comparison.

The Earth’s human population is dying out and you must save it. You will spend a romantic evening with either Gabby Sidibe (“Precious” etc..) or Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee (D-Texas). Who will it be? (Neither is not an option.) Gabby Sidibe. Hollywood!

What swear word do you use most often? Fucking.

You’ve just been told the big news: You get to have your own Sunday morning talk show. Who will be on your roundtable? (Pick four journalists or pundits types.) Ann Curry, Brian Williams, Amanda Hess, The Rev. Al Sharpton. I think Amanda and Al would get along great.

On a serious note for a moment, if you could have dinner with a person who has died, who would it be? Peter Jennings.

Who is your favorite Boybander and why? (Ezzy, Hazy, Weigel, Attackerman, Beutler) Are these not those boys from One Direction?

When you pig out what do you eat? Cookies. So many cookies.

What is your absolute favorite item of clothing in your closet? We want the fabric, the brand, the store and the price if possible. If it’s a certain kind of underwear we don’t want to know about it. On one of my last vintage buying trips to an undisclosed location, I found a slinky evening dress by Palm Beach designer Ann Herwig that’s from some time in the early 1960s. It’s got a scoop neck, an open back, and ivory sequins from shoulder to toe. I bought it for $60, had the zipper repaired, and kept it for myself. God only knows when it will ever make it out of the closet.

Pick one: Mad Men, Scandal or True Blood. Mad Men.

Have you ever had a tarot card reading? No.

Have you ever had a near-death experience? I have felt like death on a number of occasions, but have never actually approached it.

Ever been arrested? No.

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It’s Friday, which means it’s time for another installment of: “Ask Piranhamous Anything.” And we do mean anything. Send your queries to FishbowlDC@mediabistro.com. This isn’t an advice column — Piranhamous doesn’t know what the hell you should do with your life any more than you do — and worse, he doesn’t care. Try to keep your questions short — we want to keep this fun, simple, funny and insightful.

1. What the hell do you make of author and former TWTer Rich Miniter and Daily Caller Executive Editor David Martosko going to Morocco together?

On the week when The Hill’s 50 Most Beautiful is announced you often forget about their lesser known list of 50 Most Bob’s Big Boy Look-A-Likes, so that’s for bringing up this year’s winner and runner-up. To be completely honest, much like a solid BM, I don’t spend a lot of time thinking about these guys after I flush. They can have each other…no one else wants them.

2. What’s your take on journalists injecting themselves into their stories or making themselves the stories as is the case of CNN’s Anderson Cooper coming out of the closet or Mediaite’s Tommy Christopher revealing that he has autistic children?

Cooper being gay was about the worst kept secret in Washington, everyone knew it and no one really gave a damn. Much less well known is the story of Tommy Christopher. Not about his children, but who he is. Never before has someone gone by so many names who wasn’t in the witness protection program, and still no one knows who he is.

3. What’s your reaction to Norah O’Donnell moving to the CBS Morning show with Gayle King? Should Oprah be jealous?

Oprah should be jealous of no one. But given the Kristen Stewart/Robert Pattinson situation, she might want to keep an eye on Stedman.

Two weeks ago Politico suspended its White House Correspondent Joe Williams for going on national TV and declaring that Mitt Romney is more at ease with white people among some “dick” slurs about the presumed Republican presidential nominee and his wife on Twitter.

Seemed like a no-brainer, right? Except nothing is simple when a journalist hires a lawyer, or in this case, already has one waiting in the wings.

The suspension wore on for another week until the peaches over at Politico said they and Williams had reached a mutual conclusion that he should move on. We soon learned that won’t happen until Williams lands another job. Then, on the morning of July 4, we learned that Williams assaulted his ex-wife in February, pled guilty to assault in May and is on probation until November. Politico won’t say what they knew or when they knew it. For now, Williams remains on the payroll.

Enter CNN “Reliable Sources” host Howard Kurtz, the nation’s premier media journalist, who isn’t exactly known for his expediency. Just ask ex-Rep. Anthony Weiner (D-N.Y.). It took Howie five days to deem that story worthy of covering. Strangely, Kurtz felt no need to interview Williams for two consecutive Sundays after news of his suspension broke on June 22. But suddenly three weeks later, he’s all hot for Williams. What’s the sudden draw? Could it have been Williams’ absurd appearance on Russia TV where the ladies gave him a free pass to blame the right wing media for his problems? The only new news on Williams last week was the assault on his ex-wife. We thought maybe Howie might do something crazy for a media reporter and ask him about it.

Wrong. Howie wondered about the reporter’s “personal” problems. Williams, of course, said his “personal problems” have nothing to do with his professional failings and that sites such as ours crossed a line. Kurtz: “Did you want to stay at Politico?” Williams: “I understand their decision, I understand what led them to have us come to this kind of a conclusion of the situation.” Kurtz: “So you were forced to leave, you didn’t have a choice.” Williams: “I had a choice but the choices weren’t good. …They said for me to come back and have them have confidence in me … would have been a little bit tricky, especially after all this stuff had come out.” So what were the choices? Who knows if there even were any? Howie never bothered to ask. For the umpteenth time Williams said his words on Romney were “inartfully phrased.”

One tiny question: WHO CARES, HOWIE? This is repeated puke. At this point Williams has talking points for his talking points.

Finally Howie asked about “problems in his personal life.” Despite the fact that Williams released a public statement detailing his version of specifically what happened, Howie didn’t bother.  Williams bizarrely equated his situation to CNN’s Anderson Cooper coming out of the closet last week because who knew Cooper was gay? “I think my personal life was brought into the situation unfairly,” Williams said, beginning what was several minutes of whining about how everything that happened was not his fault. “I think it was much in analogous to [sic] Anderson talking about how his sexuality had become an issue and he wanted to dispel that,” he said. “…I don’t think what my personal life involves has anything to do with how I do my job. It has everything to do with how I protect my children, how I protect other people who are involved in the situation, that I believe crossed the line.”

Howie “fired” back: “But didn’t you make yourself fair game? Once you become under scrutiny people are going to look at all aspects of your life.” At this point Williams pulled out his blame the right wing media talking points, although it’s peculiar: FBDC isn’t a right wing site. But let’s listen in as Williams barfs up more lunacy: “The media on the right decided that this was an issue and did so without context, without giving opportunity for a fair response and without examining the entire context.” Read more on Williams’ victim mentality and continued whining.

It’s no secret that Howie won’t ask the tough questions or prep himself enough to ask proper followups. But this was low even for Howie. He gave Williams the easiest ride in the world and another chance to recycle his blame the right wing media talking points. Congrats Howie! Even Russia TV has you beat.

And that’s just embarrassing.

Quotes of the Day

What Politico‘s Mike Allen calls the “best part of opening your door” at Aspen’s swank Hotel Jerome.” He’s attending the Aspen Ideas Festival. See Playbook here.

Important Q to Ponder: “Calling NoVa historians! Is it 1) Tyson’s Corner 2) Tysons Corner or 3) Tysons’ Corner? And who is Tyson(s)?” — Mr. Norah O’Donnell, i.e. Chef Geoff, husband to CBS’ Chief White House Correspondent.

D. Shuster takes to Storm Complaining

“Storm + 72 hours: still no Internet service in NW DC. Hey @Verizon, are you pulling a full PEPCO? Embarrassing. AT&T working fine.” — Current TV’s David Shuster.

Writer gets naked

“It’s Naked Time at Casa Blymire. Thermostat says it’s 85 degrees inside. #thisissooooooomebullshit” — Takoma Park, Md. freelancer Carol Blymire.

Weingarten lashes out at FBDC writer on Twitter

“I mean.  Sure I’m childish.  But, coming from a man with shit next to his name, it hardly stings.” — FBDC’s Peter Ogburn on being called “childish” and “lame” and an “asshole” by WaPo‘s Gene Weingarten. His insults came in after Ogburn wrote a review of his Sunday column on a plastic duck in which he suggested that the Pulitzer-Prize winning Weingarten might need to be placed in a home.

Blogger wants drugs

“Boo, I forgot to ask the dentist for good drugs today. Time to down some Nyquil.” — Conservative activist and blogger Lisa De Pasquale, who writes The Lotus Blog.

HBO’s ‘The Newsroom’ gains another critic

“So why is the pacing on #Newsroom so slow? It feels like each scene has been stretched to fill another few minutes.” — foreign policy reporter Laura Rozen.

Journo proud of NPR performance

“I’m on NPR. I don’t sound like a total moron. Phew!” — Brian Wolly, Digital Editor for Smithsonian.com.

Convo Between Two Media Types

Media Research Center’s Brent Bozell: “Can @andersoncooper give us his expert opinion on teabagging now?” Bozell links to this story about Cooper making a vulgar tea-bagging joke regarding Conservatives on an AC360 program in April. CNN’s Anderson Cooper came out of the closet Monday in a letter to The Daily Beast‘s Andrew Sullivan.

Brad Phillips, a.k.a Mr. Media Training: “Wow what a jerk.”

Quotes of the Day

Journo turns “Rachel” into a verb

“Will ‘Rachel’ at 9:15pmish. My @maddow debut.” — WaPo‘s Jonathan Capehart.

Question to Ponder: “How big does your house have to be to be a compound? #kennedys #romneys” — TPM Founder and Editor Josh Marshall.

Humblebragalicious Shuster has friends on the right?

“Look, when I do talk to my more intellectual friends on the right, and I do have some…” — Lefty journo David Shuster filling in as host of Current TV’s “Full Court Press” this morning in a segment bashing Fox News. Later he added, “By the way, full disclosure, I worked at Fox News in 96 to about 2001, but the organization changed and it was starting to trend in a certain way that I felt uncomfortable with. So it was sort of a mutual agreement that I would leave. I was eager to leave. I had caused enough trouble over there that they were eager to have me leave.”

Whoa! Journo praises Amtrak?

“Endless #Amtrak ride wasn’t endless after all. Remarkably gracious staff, calm passengers made slow, dud-engined ride oddly pleasant.” — National Review‘s Kathryn Lopez.

CNN’s Anderson Cooper hints at sexual orientation

“Anderson Cooper sort of outed himself on Kathy Griffin‘s show. Woman jokes they’re dating. AC: ‘Hate to break it to you, not gonna happen.’” — Politico‘s Jennifer Epstein.

Convo Between Two Journos: Cillizza to face dental procedure

This morning’s conversation is between WaPo’s Nurse Jackie impersonator Chris Cillizza and CNN’s Lizzie O’Leary. Let’s hope to God Cillizza live tweets the procedure.

Cillizza: Things I would rather do than get a wisdom tooth pulled tomorrow: anything.

O’Leary: Don’t be a wuss. plus, the drugs are awesome.

Cillizza: I am a wuss.

Politico producer weighs in on color of green tea

“Green tea is really more of a yellowy-orange, wouldn’t you say? #thursdaythoughts” — Politico web producer Leigh Munsil. She may have a point here.

Bureau Chief unashamed of liking ‘The Newsroom’

“So it seems I am destined to be the only person that will like @HBO’s #Newsroom. But I’m prepared for that.” — Yahoo! News‘ Washington Bureau Chief David Chalian.

Malcolm Mitchelle displays his bruschetta appetizer, while Dr. Hakki displays his appetizer, breast implants. Photo credit: David Phillipich.

“The days of Greta Van Susteren taking time to recover are over.”

Spoken like a true plastic surgeon, these are the words of Dr. Ayman Hakki, who opened up his Luxxery Medical Boutique Wednesday afternoon in Waldorf, Md. to old and new patients who wanted treatments or just a closer look at the latest in plastics. In his thoughts above on the latest plastic trends involving journalists, he’s referring to FNC’s Van Susteren going under the knife in 2002 year for a blepharoplasty or eye-lift that landed her on the cover of People. She had a month off before starting her job at FNC and began with a polished face. The event, “Botox & Bites,” featured chef Malcolm Mitchell preparing delectable tuna tartare. Mitchell appeared in season eight of the Food Network’s reality show “Star.”

A party like this is on some level surreal. It isn’t easy mustering an appetite amid before and after pictures of boob jobs, busts of breasts and actual silicon patties scattered around the office. At one point an implant was being tossed around like a water balloon. That was reason enough for the distraction of Mitchell, who created an array of Food Network-quality hors d’ oeuvres like the tartare along with bruschetta and salmon on endive.

The Hakki’s themselves have all the makings of a reality show. “Can you believe she’s 58 years old?” asks Hakki, beaming at his wife, Hiba, who is COO of the company. Without a shred of makeup, the wife does look a decade younger. Their daughter, Dannia, their publicist, says she has never had any work done, but would in a heartbeat if she noticed forehead lines. We’d name the show “Keeping Up With the Luxxerians.”

Midway through the afternoon, Hakki sat down with FishbowlDC for a grilling on journos and plastic surgery. With a Luxxerious clinic in Georgetown as well as Waldorf, he has treated many Washington area journalists. Of course it’s hush-hush — he never specifically discusses his clientele.

But he has opinions and a good eye for detecting who has had work and who has not. Hakki says the biggest trend among journalists involves taking fat from say, your love handles or any other part of your body where you don’t want it, and putting it in the middle of your face. “More people are doing mid-face fat transfer along with liposculpture with a side of Botox fillers and peaks,” he said. “With age, the first thing is mid-face central emptiness which makes people look haggard. This is mid-face harvesting a person’s own fat, letting it decant, transferring multiple layers very minute almost beads of pearl fat lobules in order to fill out the central face.”

In English, this is a non-surgical face lift. The cost ranges from $5,000 to $15,000 depending on the extent of the service. Getting Botox or fillers is far cheaper — the range is $300 to $700.

Hakki uses Kim Kardashian, who attended the past two White House Correspondents’ Dinners, as an example of what you want if you get work done. “When I look at Kim Kardashian I feel that she looks much better and has a fuller mid-face,” he said. He points to a combo of “filling first and lifting last.” He says he watches many TV journos such as CNN’s Anderson Cooper and assesses whether they’ve had any work done. “I can assure you that he has not had Botox on his forehead,” he said, not realizing Cooper had a show on the subject the other day and admitted as much. He said he prefers for his forehead to have lines. But, Hakki added, “I can assure you that Joe Biden had Botox before the debate with Sarah Palin. I was thinking ‘Oh Joe! No. No.’ I thought he was overdone centrally and underdone peripherally. It gave him a pull that almost looked like a leer that wasn’t attractive.”

He points to Kenny Rogers‘ eyelids as another example of what not to do. “You can tell Kenny Rogers had his eyelids done,” he said. “His mom was like why Kenny why Kenny?” The problem, says Hakki, is they addressed the bags without looking at the rest of the face.

Gone are the days when people have to worry about looking like Joan Rivers, he said. But fears loom large and he’s heard them all. Hakki sees success in the moment in which your own mother sits down with you for Thanksgiving dinner and can’t tell you’ve had anything done, but knows you look good.

Hakki says there’s always an emotional component to his work. For example, if a patient ever says she wants to remove her frown lines because her husband doesn’t like them, he refuses to do anything. “If the patient says they are doing it for someone else I won’t do it,” he says.

Oh, come on. Can’t he be convinced? What if they want it for themselves and someone else? He smiles a big Hakki smile, but he’s dead serious. “If they mention another person before themselves, I won’t do it.”

See Hakki’s wife after the jump…

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Quotes of the Day

“I went once and I refused to ever go again.” — CNN’s Anderson Cooper commenting on the White House Correspondents’ Dinner this week. The crowds and chaotic nature of the event disturbed him most.

“Enjoying a bloom before getting ready for work.” — WaPo designer Tim Wong.

Roland razzes commentator for pathetic facial hair

“Seriously, S.E. Love ya dearly, but that thing on Will’s face ain’t a beard! It’s random strands of hair.” — CNN and Washington Watch host Roland Martin to S.E. Cupp regarding Will Cain, a contributor to CNN, The Blaze and NationalReview.com.

HuffPost reacts to FNC’s ‘The Five’

FNC’s “The Five” chatted about what they consider the obvious tension between Arianna Huffington and President Obama. They also take turns bashing HuffPost. For example, Gret Guftfeld said Arianna should give Obama the chance to work for her and not pay him.

“HuffPost DC watches The Five talking abt the Huffington Post #euphoria” — HuffPost‘s Sam Stein.

“‘The Five’ is attacking HuffPost right now. I’m crying.” – HuffPost‘s Amanda Terkel.

“As you might imagine, we are LOLing like crazy @ The Five right now.” — HuffPost media writer Jason Linkins.

Journo marvels at neighbor’s tight pants, ties

“Oh hipster man who lives across the street, your tight pants and bow ties never fail to amuse me.” — Greenwire‘s Jessica Estepa.

Reporter tries to coax frozen laptop

“#thatawkwardmomentwhen you find yourself audibly coaxing your laptop to unfreeze. Even my most honeyed pleas don’t work with this one.” — NJ‘s Alexandra Jaffe.

Priceless: Conservative reporter rags on Michelle Obama

“Cost of Ann Romney’s shirt to herself: $990. Cost of Michelle Obama’s Spain vacation to taxpayers: at least $467,585.” – NationalReviewOnline‘s Jim Geraghty. (Fab or Fug? Ann Romney would obviously make a fantastic FishbowlDC spokeswoman, but we have to call fug on that shirt.)

We now have the details for the Jeopardy “Power Players” edition that is coming to D.C. It tapes this weekend and starts Saturday morning. The first round will see MSNBC’s Chris Matthews battle Lizzie O’Leary from CNN and former POTUS Press Secretary, Robert Gibbs. Their game will tape at 10am ET. After that, Fox News’ Dana Perino will battle CNBC’s David Faber and basketball player Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. Because when we think Washington D.C. power players, we think Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. After that, BBC’s Katty Kay faces down Fox’s Chris Wallace and Dr. Mehmet Oz. Again, Oprah’s doctor isn’t the first person that pops to mind when we think D.C. Power Players but he can talk poop with the best of ‘em. Following that meeting of the minds, CNN’s Anderson Cooper meets MSNBC’s Kelly O’Donnell and NYT columnist and all-around big-brain Thomas L. Friedman. The final matchup tapes at 6:35pm ET and features MSNBC’s Chuck Todd, comedian Lewis Black and Chicago Tribune’s Clarence Page.