In his op-ed in the New York Times today, former Gov. Mitt Romney (R) tells executives at the struggling automakers to "Get rid of the planes, the executive dining rooms — all the symbols that breed resentment among the hundreds of thousands who will also be sacrificing to keep the companies afloat."

Sounds like he's on the same page with U.S. Rep. Brad Sherman of California who earlier today asked the CEOs from the Big Three testifying at a House committee hearing to "raise their hand if they flew here commercial." When none did, he continued: "Let the record show, no hands went up. Second, I'm going to ask you to raise your hand if you are planning to sell your jet in place now and fly back commercial. Let the record show, no hands went up."

If the Secretary of State gig doesn't work out for U.S. Sen. John Kerry (D), maybe he'd go for Secretary of the Interior? That's one possibility according to Marc Ambinder.

Last week the Massachusetts Turnpike Authority Board recommended toll hikes to address debt associated with the Big Dig, while some legislators are expected to introduce legislation to increase the gas tax. 

Neither option is even remotely politically popular.

By a 4 to 1 margin (78 to 19 percent), residents say they oppose raising the gas tax to pay for Big Dig debt, according to a Survey USA poll. By a slightly smaller but similarly overwhelming 76 to 23 percent, they also oppose expanding tolls.

Below is video from U.S. Sen. Ted Kennedy's brief press availability in Washington earlier today.

MSNBC news anchor Contessa Brewer observed: "Ted Kennedy looks great. We saw him really struggling after he'd been in the hospital earlier this year...can you believe the improvement we're seeing in just what seems like his vitality...?"

Mike Huckabee is pulling no punches against his former GOP presidential rival Mitt Romney.

UPDATED - Politico's Mike Allen says if John Kerry leaves the Senate, he won't be heading to the State Department, even if Hillary Clinton says no to the reported offer. The remaining short-list below the fold.

This week's Winners & Losers. | CLICK HERE

It turns out Senator Ted Kennedy and President-elect Barack Obama haven't always had the best relationship. Kennedy was quite miffed with Obama for straying on a bipartisan agreement of liberal and conservative senators to vote down amendments to their immigration reform plan. Despite wide assumptions that Kennedy broke his neutrality over disgust with Bill Clinton's behavior on the stump, Newsweek's exclusive story on the presidential race has the senior senator offering up a one-word answer for why he endorsed Obama in late January. That word?

Now's about the time when John Kerry should be staking his claim to the chairmanship of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. But that's not the Washington buzz.

There's a developing story from NBC-Wall Street Journal GOP pollster Neil Newhouse to keep an eye on today. A post-election survey last night found 29 percent of all voters want Mitt Romney as the next leader of the Republican Party, followed by Mike Huckabee at 20 percent and 12 percent for Sarah Palin. of those surveyed believed Palin should be the GOP's new leader. Among Republican voters, Romney took 33 percent, Huckabee 20 percent and Palin 18 percent.