The Quotable Rendell

Politico, the online political magazine, has a fun list of 10 political personalities who made 2008 memorable. Among them is Pennsylvania's very own, Gov. Ed Rendell, responsible for a slew of foot-in-mouth quotes throughout the past year.

Here's why Rendell made Politico's "Top 10 people we'll miss in 2009" list:

Gov. Ed Rendell (D-Pa.): The famously off-message Rendell became a cable news fixture during the 2008 cycle, particularly in the six-week run-up to the Keystone State's Democratic presidential primary.

He's a reporter's dream: a powerful, plugged-in pol who actually speaks his mind. A staunch backer of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, Rendell famously caused a stir when he told local media that "there are some whites who are probably not ready to vote for an African-American candidate" in Pennsylvania. Later, at the Democratic National Convention, Rendell soured the kickoff to his party's unity-fest when he complained about what he called the "embarrassing" pro-Obama tilt in the media.

He's the first to admit that his loose-lipped ways make him a liability in national politics.

We'll surely be hearing from Rendell again — he's already drawn post-election fire for saying homeland security appointee Janet Napolitano has "no life" — but he won't be a daily presence in our lives anymore. One more reason to look forward to 2012, or a Cabinet appointment that will catapult him back into the national spotlight.

Read the full list at the Politico Web site.

Originally posted at TONY PHYRILLAS