This morning on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe” host Joe Scarborough took a break from blindly bashing the NYT and pointed out that a few of the guests were dressed like GOP presidential hopeful Mitt Romney. In this case, Scarborough could at least point to hard evidence by flashing a picture up on screen as they panned to NYU Prof and former Rep. Harold Ford Jr. (D-Tenn.) and Random House’s Jon Meacham.

“There is a trend,” began Scarborough directing his attentions to Ford. “You may say he is the worst thing ever for the United States of America, but you’re wearing the Romney this morning. You know you’re wearing the Romney.”

He then turned to Meacham. “Even Pulitzer Prize winning authors are wearing the Romney,” he said, eying him. Meacham easily caught on saying, “You should see Harold’s garage elevator. It’s remarkable, actually.”

If there’s one clear thought in this blistering late Monday afternoon post, it’s that Esquire‘s Charles P. Pierce, a journo since 1976, hates Washington punditry. Whether it’s actually in Washington or not. What really incenses Pierce is basically any utterance from Random House Exec. Editor and former Newsweek Editor Jon Meacham, who’s actually based in New York and can often be found at the fancy media enclave Michael’s if Pierce wants to catch up with him. Pierce critiques a piece by Meacham published in TIME Monday asking if Newt Gingrich could be the next FDR. Meacham answers the question with this: “Highly unlikely, but let’s remember today’s dwarf is sometimes tomorrow’s giant.”

A sampling of Pierce’s post that includes a crack on Politico‘s Mike Allen:

“I mean where in the name of god do I go with this kind of fanzine bullshit? (And you had to know Mike Allen would be wrapped up in there, too. With the advent of that promised e-book, we may be close to the event horizon of Washington suck-up-itude.) Meacham’s work here is what Walter Lippmann would’ve produced if he’d worked for Tiger Beat.”

Something else that’s abundantly clear: Pierce’s strong dislike for Politico and that’s putting it mildly. A headline on a post this morning reads: “Stuff in Politico That Makes Me Want to Guzzle Antifreeze, Paul Ryan Edition.”

This is starting to border on the bizarre.

Jon Meacham, Executive Veep and Editor at Random House Publishing and formerly the Editor of Newsweek, spends more time at Michael’s Restaurant in Manhattan than he does anywhere. If we didn’t know better, we’d assume his daily schedule was: 1. brush teeth 2. appear on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe,” then 3. lunch at Michael’s and repeat. Is Meacham leading his own weird Groundhog Day?

As a matter of fact, he’s headed there today for lunch. “He’s actually coming today,” said longtime GM Steve Millington when we phoned. Asked if Meacham is their best customer, he hemmed and hawed and chose his words carefully: “He is an outstanding, lovely guest of ours for sure.” Why does Meacham frequent the restaurant so much? “Because I think he sees a lot of people he knows and he is networking now because he wants to be in amongst the people that work in the same field as he does.” Milligan says hundreds of media types flood the restaurant daily.

Indeed Michael’s loves Meacham, but it appears the love is unrequited, at least publicly. Meacham has been tweeting since April 17, but it appears that he has never — not one single measly tweet — ever mentioned Michael’s. But as you’ll notice below, they have mentioned him six times in the past month. He was also spotted at the media-centric eatery by our friends at FishbowlNY in March getting chummy and eating burgers with FNC Prez Roger Ailes.

Monday: “In the House: Jon Meacham.” (tweeted by @michaelsnewyork)

Oct. 4: “In the house: @jmeacham with Luke Janklow”

Oct. 6: “In the house: @jmeacham with Mort Janklow”

Oct. 11: “In the house: @jmeacham”

Oct. 12: “In the house: @jmeacham with Lynn Nesbit”

Oct. 19: “In the house: @jmeacham with Eric Simonoff”

What makes it impossible for Meacham to stay away? Aside from rubbing elbows with media bigwigs, the following…

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When I spoke with The Daily Caller reporter Alex Pappas Thursday afternoon, he mentioned that his boss, Tucker Carlson, had consulted with him on what Carlson should say about him when approached. I told him that wasn’t legal. “I told him he had to say all bad things,” Pappas assured through a slow drawl. A Mobile, Ala. native, he graduated college and began working for the the Mobile Press Register. A year and half ago he’d heard from D.C. contacts that Carlson had a new website. On a whim, he sent in his resume. To his amazement, he got the job and started in on the ground floor. But in December of 2010 he left for the Washington Examiner. Back in Mobile he’d covered local news. “I love local news,” he said, explaining the draw of the old-time newspaper track. “They know I’m a young guy and I was trying to figure out what I wanted to do.” Carlson let him go but immediately wanted Pappas back. “We’ve lost a number of people over the past year and a half, but he’s the only one we’ve aggressively wooed back,” he said, explaining that he mounted “Operation Homecoming,” in which they slowly lured him back to the The DC, “mostly with promises of more and better office parties.” About two months into his new job, Pappas received an email from Carlson saying that Gov. Tim Pawlenty had entered the 2012 presidential race. “You want to come back?” Carlson asked. “At that point I was so fresh into the job, but I’d been a political nut for as long as I could remember. I couldn’t get the email out of my mind.” A total of four months after he left, Pappas returned to The Daily Caller. “It’s a great fit for me,” he said. “It definitely feels like I’m back home.” His 80-something Grandma Reedy is also relieved. As a Fox News junkie, she loves Carlson. “It made her year that I decided to come back,” he said.

If you were a carbonated beverage which would you be? Coke in a glass bottle.

How often do you Google yourself? Google alerts do it for me.

What’s the worst thing you’ve ever said to an editor? My computer just crashed. I’ve lost my story.

Who is your favorite working journalist and why? Tucker Carlson is the best writer I know.

Do you have a favorite word? ubiquitous.

What word or phrase do you overuse? Roll Tide. How so? It’s a football slogan from the University of Alabama. I didn’t go there but I’m a big fan. [Pappas attended the University of the South in the mountains of Sewanee Tennesee.]

Who would you rather have dinner with –  MSNBC’s Chris Matthews or FNC’s Chris Wallace? I’d play Hardball.

You are ordered to go on a road trip to an undisclosed location. You can go with White House Spokesman Jay Carney or Bo, the President’s Portuguese Water Dog. No ones feelings will be hurt. Who do you take? Carney. It would be great for The Daily Caller to get some exclusives from the White House. I don’t know how much of that we’d get from Bo.

What’s the name of your cell phone ring? Classic phone remix.

It’s 3 a.m. and you get up to use the bathroom or get a drink of water. Do you check your BlackBerry? I check my phone several times throughout the night.

What word do you routinely misspell? Initiative.

What swear word do you use most often? All of them.

If you weren’t a journalist what would you be? I’d write movies and TV shows.

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.) 50 Cent, Grover Norquist, [FishbowlDC's] Betsy Rothstein and [WaPo's] Ezra Klein.

When you pig out what do you eat? All types of fast food.

When did you last cry and why? When asked to do this interview.

Find out how often Pappas checks his BlackBerry after the jump…

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Licht, Brzezinski, Mike Allen, Mark Leibovich, Louis Burgdorf

If the idea of Mark Leibovich‘s impending book release strikes fear in your heart, we’ve got some bad news for you.  You’re sleepless nights won’t end anytime soon.  “I’ve finished about five pages,” the star scribe told FishbowlDC last night at a book party for “Morning Joe” EP- turned-CBS News VP, Chris Licht.

Hosted by Tammy Haddad, Constance Milstein, Jon Meacham and Kevin Sheekey, the event packed the parlor of the Jefferson Hotel with a guest list that included MSNBC’s Mika Brzezinski and Joe Scarborough, CBS’s Chris Isham, HuffPo’s Howard Fineman, Bob Woodruff, Hilary Rosen, Politico’s Jim VandeHei, Patrick Gavin and Mike Allen, WaPo’s Jonathan Capehart, Sally Quinn, MSNBC’s Louis Burgdorf, Kelley McCormick, MTP’s Betsy Fischer, Janet Donovan, Wash Life’s Kevin Chaffee and John Arundel, Examiner’s Nikki Schwab and Anne Schroeder Mullins.

FishbowlDC also caught up with a delightful David Shuster who shared a few secrets about his investigative website project after we swore to keep the info offline for now.  But the most interesting insight of the night was gleaned from what wasn’t said:  When asked if “Morning Joe” might follow him to CBS, Licht swerved and ultimately dodged the question, leaving guests to wonder if the show’s rumored move is more than simple speculation.

For info on Licht’s book, “What I Learned When I Almost Died,” click here and check out video from his bash here.

L: Anne Mullins, Patrick Gavin, Brzezinski, Scarborough R: Licht & David Shuster

Republican Strategist Alex Castellanos asks a question during Q&A.

*All images by Bruce Vartan Boyajian/Haddad Media.

Just because you weren’t invited to Chris Licht‘s book party at the Jefferson Hotel tonight, doesn’t mean you have to miss out on Jon Meacham‘s interview with the author and new VP of programming for CBS News.  Meacham’s chat, as well as remarks from Licht’s former colleagues and MSNBC “Morning Joe” hosts Joe Scarborough and  Mika Brzezinski, will be streamed live to the Web, courtesy of WHCInsider.com.

The program will begin at 7:00 pm and end at 7.30. You can watch the LIVE video in the player below or on WHCInsider.com.  To read an excerpt from Licht’s  “What I Learned When I Almost Died,” click here.

Live Broadcasting by Ustream

On Thursday, May 26th, Constance Milstein, Jon Meacham, Kevin Sheekey and Tammy Haddad will raise a glass to honor the release of “What I Learned When I Almost Died” and author Chris Licht.

In his book, Licht, co-creator and original executive producer of MSNBC’s “Morning Joe,” recalls the story of his fast-paced, Jerry Maguire-style career and how it came to a screeching halt when one day he heard a pop in his head and learned he’d suffered a near-deadly brain hemorrhage.  He spent eight long days in a hospital bed thinking about how his life had almost been cut short.  The book tells what happened next.

To celebrate Licht, his book, and his life, friends and colleagues will gather at The Jefferson Hotel from 6.30 – 8.30 pm (invite only).  For more about Licht or “What I Learned When I Almost Died,” click here.

In his first story for TIME, Jon Meacham address a simple question: “What if there’s no hell?”

He looks at the “growing furor” over a new book by a pastor who says there may be no hell and that anyone can have a place in heaven no matter their sins. Meacham writes that Bell’s book, Love Wins, “has ignited a new holy war in Christian circles and beyond…. To take away hell is to leave the church without its most powerful sanction.” The pastor says, “I have long wondered if there is a massive shift coming in what it means to be a Christian. Something new is in the air.”

Read the story here.

WaPo‘s Ezra Klein’s lips took center stage last night during his interview with Charlie  Rose. Perhaps the black background set off those pillows of flesh that look like house made glistening veal medallions. Or maybe Klein wears lip gloss?

So suggested Mediaite’s Rachel Sklar on Twitter last night. She wrote, “Kids, that was a terrific @CharlieRoseShow. Now, if he’d only book more women,” and linked to this. (Even with gloss, Ezra doesn’t count.)” She continued, “This is a great and illuminating Charlie Rose. I like how Jon Meacham frames things historically. Tho Ezra Klein needs less lipgloss.”

When asked for comment by FBDC, Sklar said she was only joking about Klein’s lips. She now thinks it was a Blistex reaction. “Oy I was just being funny,” Sklar said. “I didn’t actually think he was wearing, like, a shimmer frost, it was more the sheen of a Blistex (which I favor, btw). I just noticed as I watched (and I watch a lot of Charlie Rose, and as I noted, there are a lot of men on Charlie Rose!) Actually I have never even thought about makeup for the Charlie Rose show before. So that’s an indicator of how little Blistex must have actually been glistening on his lower lip to trigger my notice.”

We sent Klein a note to offer him a chance to comment. As you might imagine, he hasn’t returned the email and it’s doubtful he will since he claims to have cut FishbowlDC off for the more dignified pastures of CJR.

In the meantime, Sklar wants to emphasize how great the Rose show was last night…

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Tammy Haddad, Ted Greenberg and Jon Meacham will join hoteliers Connie Milstein and JC de La Haye Saint Hilaire to celebrate the publication of Ron Reagan‘s new memoir, “My Father at 100,” marking the 100th anniversary of President Ronald Reagan‘s birthday.  The event will be held on January 24th at the Jefferson Hotel from 6.30-8.30 pm and is strictly invitation-only.