Politicians know that all bets are on

By Glen Johnson, Globe Staff, 1/31/2002

ASHINGTON - The Super Bowl has triggered silly season in the nation's capital.

Senators Edward M. Kennedy and John F. Kerry yesterday bet their Missouri counterparts, Christopher Bond and Jean Carnahan, the Patriots will beat the Rams Sunday in New Orleans.

The stakes in the wager, which apparently doesn't violate betting laws? A Legal Sea Foods clambake vs. a ration of Ted Drewes Frozen Custard, a St. Louis specialty.

''The Rams have an excellent team, and their quarterback was the league MVP, but we all know that having two great quarterbacks is better than one,'' Kennedy said in a statement. Kerry asked simply, ''Custard?''

Not to be outdone, Representative Martin T. Meehan, Democrat of Lowell, made a bet with Richard Gephardt, the House Democratic leader. Meehan wagered a case of Sam Adams lager and a gallon of Legal's New England clam chowder against Gephardt's offer of a case of Budweiser, a supply of pretzels made by Gus's, and toasted ravioli, all St. Louis specialties.

''I went to Pittsburgh and watched as the Steelers underestimated the Patriots, and I will be there to watch the St. Louis Rams make the same mistake,'' Meehan, a 22-year season ticket-holder, said after he posed for photos with Gephardt.

In addition to the bets, Sunday's game has inspired plenty of armchair analysis. Kerry, ever clever with his words, predicts the Patriots will win by ''a score.''

Representative William Delahunt, Democrat of Quincy, also had a unique take in the debate about whether Tom Brady or Drew Bledsoe should start at quarterback.

In a statement, Delahunt predicted: ''Bledsoe starts, gets hit in the fourth quarter with game tied. Pats win on gutsy 12-yard Brady TD run.''