Kevin Wolf/Associated Press

Democratic presidential hopeful Gov. Bill Richardson gets a round of applause at a candidate forum hosted by the Building and Construction Trades Department of the AFL-CIO in Washington, D.C., where he said he would appoint a union member to a top position in his administration. The event Wednesday was part of Richardson's multi-day swing through the East Coast for speaking engagements and fund-raisers.

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Will run for scraps

The New York Observer checked in on Gov. Bill Richardson's New York fund-raising trip Wednesday and found it a bit, well, sad. Under the headline "Bill Richardson Seeks Clinton Scraps," the story quoted the guv as saying, "I think the American voter or funder deserves to have a viable contest. So I appeal to funders that say, `I'm for Senator Clinton,' and I say, `OK, that's fine. But make me your second choice. Help me out, too.' "

Too bad, the story notes, because some people think Richardson is the best candidate, including Larry Sabato, the overly quoted poli-sci guy from the University of Virginia: "You look at those four (Clinton, Obama, Edwards and Richardson), and it's almost embarrassing, because he is clearly the most qualified to be president. It has got to bother him that people with far less experience seem to be dominating the landscape. Richardson hasn't made an impression on people."

Smashmouth smash back

At the "Media Matters" Web site, Eric Boehlert tore apart the ballyhooed "Politico" blog for various sins, including its March 7 hit piece on Richardson that implied he has woman trouble. "Bottom line: The highly suggestive Politico piece worked overtime implying Richardson has a behavioral problem (and more) with women. The allegation was supported by almost no facts."

At the "Media Matters" Web site, Eric Boehlert tore apart the ballyhooed "Politico" blog for various sins, including its March 7 hit piece on Richardson that implied he has woman trouble. "Bottom line: The highly suggestive Politico piece worked overtime implying Richardson has a behavioral problem (and more) with women. The allegation was supported by almost no facts."

Was he jellin' last night?

Richardson was the special guest on "The Daily Show with Jon Stewart" on Wednesday night and used most of his precious few minutes reliving - um, we gotta say it, kinda dryly - his way-back, almost-awful diplomatic mission with Saddam Hussein, whom Richardson at one point described as having "beady eyes." Hey, you can't slander the dead. The Saddam story was kicked off after Stewart asked how Richardson could overcome the "Madonna and Sean Penn" of the race - Hillary Rodham Clinton and Barack Obama (though he pointedly declined to say who was Madonna and who was Penn) - and that led to Richardson telling the oft-told story of unknowingly breaking Arab custom by showing Saddam the bottom of his shoe.

Once he finished with how he healed that insult, Stewart asked him: "Were you jellin' at that time?" Sigh. Richardson assured him that he was.

Al Gore is so grounded

"Wonkette" had some some fun at Richardson's expense, saying his speech Wednesday portending a "nuclear 9/11" displayed the kind of "crazy fear-mongering" that proves he's a serious candidate. "Richardson, who couldn't even keep track of laptops when he was Energy secretary, says as president he will secure the world's nuclear weapons to stop the constant accidental terrorism nuke attacks that are such a regular feature of our lives today."

She also liked Richardson's assessment of whether Gore should step into the race: "I like Al Gore; he looks very healthy and prosperous," Richardson said with a laugh. "He should stay where he is."