Clout: Now Toomey can laugh about 'Sanford for VP' suggestion

IT TAKES serious preparation to run for the U.S. Senate in Pennsylvania. A candidate must be ready for whatever question comes his way, both about the state's future and his own past.

A sense of humor helps, too.

Here's proof:

Former U.S. Rep. Pat Toomey is facing U.S. Rep. Joe Sestak in the general election.

We here at PhillyClout world headquarters were doing some research this week when we stumbled upon a January 2008 transcript from MSNBC's "Hardball with Chris Matthews."

Toomey, then head of the conservative Club for Growth, was sussing out the 2008 presidential field. He took some shots at former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee and said some nice things about former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani.

But what stopped us in our tracks was Toomey's suggestion for the job of vice president if U.S. Sen. John McCain won the GOP nomination later that year.

"Mark Sanford would be a great choice," Toomey said.

That's the same Mark Sanford, governor of South Carolina and one-time darling of the GOP, who demolished his career and marriage by flying to Argentina for a rendezvous with a paramour while his staff thought he was hiking the Appalachian Trail.

We were impressed with Toomey's skills when he appeared last week at Daily News columnist Stu Bykofsky's Candidate Comedy Night. So we called Toomey's campaign to see if he would crack wise about the perils of political prognostication.

Toomey spokeswoman Nachama Soloveichik knew all about the "Hardball" recommendation before we could even mention Sanford's name yesterday.

That's good prep work. Here's what Toomey had to say when we asked about the Sanford plug:

"I was talking about vice president of Argentina."

Cruz vs. Ramos over, for now

The long-running political feud between state Rep. Angel Cruz and Jonathan Ramos wrapped up last week, when a Common Pleas judge dismissed a challenge filed by Ramos in the May 18 Democratic primary election for the 180th District seat.

One of the three voters Ramos used to file the challenge didn't live at the address where he was registered to vote, leaving the legal action unsustainable.

The state Attorney General's Office opened an inquiry in June about the Election Day disputes.

PhillyClout is not at all surprised to find Cruz and Ramos still itching for a fight. Both men say they have investigations running on the other guy.

And Ramos, who has run twice against Cruz and lost by just 124 votes in this year's primary, vows another try in two years.

"Based on all the evidence, the judge would have overturned the election," said Ramos, who complained that Cruz and his brother had intimidated some voters, that other voters who were not registered as Democrats had been allowed to cast ballots in the race and that at least one dead person had voted. "There's no doubt in my mind."

Cruz accuses Ramos of playing political games. "I think he used the judicial system and the electoral process as a joke to defame me as being corrupt and doing something dirty," Cruz added.

Quotable:

"It may be those 2,000 people are so distraught that I won't be their governor that they can't go on." - Gov. Rendell, who leaves office in January, joking about 2,000 more state workers than normal putting in for retirement this year.

Staff writer John Baer contributed to this report.

Have tips or suggestions? Call Chris Brennan at 215-854-5973 or e-mail brennac@phillynews.com.

Check out the Clout blog at: www.phillyclout.com.