Rep. Anthony Weiner (D-N.Y.) had some fighting words for Connecticut's Independent senator on Thursday night during an appearance on "The Daily Show with Jon Stewart."

Stewart praised Weiner for his passionate defense of a medicare buy-in, saying, "Lieberman said because you're so for the medicare buy-in, and he singled you out, then that's why he would vote against it.

"My question for you is this: Is he a d***?"

Weiner paused, "Yes, John" he said.

The lawmaker then laughed and shook his head, as though he were about to qualify what he'd just said, as politicians often do when they realize they've said something that could be controversial.

But instead of saying something nice about Lieberman, Weiner just went on to talk more about healthcare policy. 

Lieberman's office declined to comment on Weiner's statement.

Rep. Kendrick Meek (D-Fla.) will join performers Wyclef Jean, Mary J. Blige, Ludacris and Justin Bieber Friday night in a concert and telethon in Miami to raise funds for Haitian earthquake relief efforts.

The event, dubbed "SOS Saving Ourselves—Help for Haiti” will be hosted by Queen Latifah, Sean "Diddy" Combs and Pharrell.

The Senate hopeful made news last month when he was one of the first U.S. lawmakers to visit Haiti after the quake, traveling there alone with little more than a backpack and staying for three days, filming rescue efforts and reporting on what he saw.

"SOS" will air simultaneously on BET, MTV, VH1 and CENTRIC at 8:00 p.m. Proceeds from the event will go directly to Yele Haiti, CARE, Project MediShare and Children's Safe Drinking Water.

White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs had a laugh with reporters on Thursday, telling them that he prepped for press briefings with "a couple margaritas," adding "same as you guys, right?"

The quip was in response to joking hoots from the White House press corps of "We want Bill!", a reference to deputy press secretary Bill Burton, who filled in behind the podium this week while Gibbs was on the road with President Barack Obama.

"Hey, I'm all for [Burton filling in], man," said Gibbs. "I've got a -- I've got a couple margaritas getting warm right now anyway, so I'm happy to."
 
Gibbs quickly backtracked, however: "That's just a joke, Mom. We're not doing that at work."

The Senate held its last vote of the week at 3:30 p.m. Thursday to give lawmakers enough time to catch flights before the snow starts falling.

Forecasters are predicting that Washington will get a foot of snow and possibly more, with precipitation beginning sometime Friday morning.

"I'm just worried about the airport in Indiana," said Sen. Richard Lugar (R-Ind.) as he hustled back to his office after the final vote.

The White House recently released a recipe for the apple pie that President Barack Obama has called "the best pie I've ever tasted." With its many steps, this dessert makes a perfect culinary project for a snowed-in Washington weekend.

White House Executive Pastry Chef Bill Yosses shared some of his secrets with Obamafoodorama, including pre-baking the bottom shells, cutting the apples into chunks (not slices), and using plenty of lard, which, as writer Eddie Kohan points out, is technically no worse for you than butter.

In an AP interview last summer, when Obama was asked to reveal a secret about the White House, he responded, "The pastry chef makes the best pie I've ever tasted, and that is causing big problems for Michelle and myself. I mean, whatever pie you like, he will make it, and it will be the best pie you've ever eaten."

The photo here was taken at Obama's Aug. 4 birthday party, and two of the pies can be seen in the lower left.


White House Apple Pie

Ingredients for the crust:
3 cups All-Purpose flour
1/4 cup sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
10 ounces unsalted butter, cold, cut into small chunks
3 ounces lard, cold, cut into small chunks
1/2 cup ice water

For the filling:
2 pounds apples, peeled, cored and cut into chunks
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup honey
1/3 cup cornstarch
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
Zest and juice of 1 lemon

For the egg wash:
1 egg
1 teaspoon salt
Sugar, for sprinkling

Method

To make the crust, in a food processor pulse together the flour, sugar and salt. Add the butter and lard, then pulse briefly until the mixture forms small crumbs. Add the ice water and pulse just until a dough forms. Divide the dough into 2 pieces and shape into discs. Wrap each disc in plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 1 hour or overnight.

When chilled, to prepare the pie shell, on a floured surface roll out one disc to a 14-inch circle using a rolling pin. Transfer the dough to a lightly greased, deep 9-inch pie pan, leaving a 1 inch overhang. Refrigerate the crust in the pan for at least 30 minutes or overnight.

When ready to bake the bottom crust, heat the oven to 375 F. Line the cold crust with foil and fill with baking weights, rice or dry beans to hold it in place. Bake the pie shell for 30 minutes and remove from oven. Leave the oven on once the crust is done.

While the crust is baking, prepare the filling. In a large saucepan, toss together the apples, sugar, honey, cornstarch, vanilla, cinnamon and lemon zest and juice. Let sit for 20 minutes.

Bring the fruit mixture to a boil over medium heat. Cook, stirring occasionally to prevent sticking, until the fruit thickens. Let cool.

When the bottom the filling has cooled, pour the it into the baked crust. Roll out the second disc of dough to about 12 inches.

In a small bowl, beat the egg with the salt. Use a pastry brush to brush the egg on the edges of the cooked crust. Place the top crust over the filling. Using a fork or crimper, gently crimp the top crust, sealing the pie around the edges.

Slit the top of the crust with a paring knife in several places to create steam vents. Brush egg wash over the crust, then sprinkle with sugar. Bake for another 30 to 40 minutes, or until the filling is bubbling and the top crust is golden brown. Let cool for 1 to 2 hours before serving.

Servings: 8

Rep. Mike Rogers (R-Mich.) offered former talk show host Conan O’Brien a job on Thursday morning, according to Business Insider.

At an Energy and Commerce subcommittee hearing on the NBC Universal-Comcast merger, Rogers said, "To my friends at NBC, I have an opening for a constituent humorist specialist. If Conan would call my office, we could probably arrange to help you all out in any way we could possibly do that.”

O’Brien left his position as host of the Tonight Show on Jan. 22 after a legal battle with NBC and former Tonight Show host Jay Leno.

"I just thought Conan has some time on his hands and that my constituents could use a laugh from one of the funniest guys in show business," Rogers said when he returned from the hearing.

Tai Shan the panda left the National Zoo this morning for China by way of Dulles International Airport in Virginia. Tai Shan, who was born here on a warm Saturday afternoon in July 2005, was originally nicknamed “Butterstick” because he was born so small and nearly hairless.
 
An ITK spy noticed one woman at the zoo sobbing yesterday during Tai Shan’s last full day at the zoo.
 
Tai Shan’s cousin Mei Lan will also head to China. Good thing both are headed out before Friday’s blizzard, which is predicted to dump almost two feet of snow on the area.