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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Haley shoots down Colbert Senate hopes

South Carolina’s governor appears to have closed the door on appointing Stephen Colbert to the U.S. Senate, all because the comedian didn’t know the state drink was milk.

During “The Colbert Report” on Thursday, Colbert urged his fans to send Gov. Nikki Haley messages on Twitter with the hashtag “SenatorColbert” telling her why he would make a great senator from his home state. Haley is appointing a senator after Jim DeMint announced he is resigning at the end of the year.

Colbert, who plays a mock conservative pundit on his show, also gave Haley four reasons he was the perfect choice.

“You want somebody young, somebody conservative, somebody from South Carolina, maybe somebody who had a super PAC,” Colbert said, ticking off the choices by putting down a finger until the final one was left pointing at himself.

Thousands of messages poured into the governor’s official Twitter account. She responded on her favorite social media site, Facebook, writing on her page that she appreciated Colbert’s interest and all the tweets.

“But you forget one thing, my friend. You didn’t know our state drink. Big, big mistake,” Haley wrote, adding a link to a video of her April appearance on Colbert’s show where the host did not know milk was the official state beverage.

Williams arrested near Sacramento

Comedian Katt Williams has been arrested in Northern California on a felony warrant related to a police chase.

The Sacramento Bee reports that Williams was arrested Friday night in Dunnigan, about 25 miles north of Sacramento, by Yolo County deputies.

The paper says he was released from the county jail Saturday after posting bail.

The sheriff’s department confirmed Williams’ arrest late Saturday, but staffers on duty didn’t have details.

The California Highway Patrol said Williams fled officers on a three-wheeled motorcycle on Nov. 25 after being spotted driving on a downtown Sacramento sidewalk.

The CHP said Williams was asked to stop and refused, leading to the pursuit.

The CHP said Williams nearly hit five people during the chase, which police ended for safety reasons.

The birthday bunch

Actor Tommy Kirk is 71. Singer Chad Stuart (Chad and Jeremy) is 71. Singer Jessica Cleaves (Friends of Distinction) is 64. Country singer Johnny Rodriguez is 61. Actress Susan Dey is 60. Actor-director Kenneth Branagh is 52. Actress Nia Peeples is 51. TV chef Bobby Flay is 48. Singer-guitarist J Mascis (Dinosaur Jr.) is 47. Country singer Kevin Sharp is 42. Actress Raven-Symone is 27.