Saturday, December 16, 2006

Dr. Burke Makes the Rounds

Isaiah Washington sure made good use of his time in town this week -- and even rubbed elbows with the vice president. Nice work, Dr. Burke.

The "Grey's Anatomy" star was spotted at Morton's in D.C. on Wednesday night as he chowed down on steak (what else?) brought to him by a star-struck waitress. The next day, Washington served as master of ceremonies at the White House Summit on Malaria.

Later that night, the actor, 43, was mobbed by boldfaced names -- including Supreme Court Justices (and "Grey's Anatomy" fans?) Clarence Thomas and Antonin Scalia-- at Vice President Cheney's holiday party. And even though funnyman Darrell Hammond (who frequently impersonates Cheney on "Saturday Night Live"), veep daughter Mary Cheney and Sen. Trent Lott were in the crowd, our party source says that Washington was the most photographed person at the bash. Next to the Cheneys, of course.

Washington also turned up at Cafe Milano post-bash with Nationals players and fellow V.P. holiday revelers John Patterson, Brian Schneider and Ryan Zimmerman. Our spy says Washington looked "very thin" but handsome in his suit and downed a martini and a glass of red wine, chased with a big cigar during his several-hour sojourn at the restaurant.

Whew! Washington flew back to the "Grey's Anatomy" set yesterday. We're hoping he had time for a nap.

Uh-oh. Looks like Miss USA's in trouble!

The organizers of the Miss USA pageant said Thursday that they are evaluating "behavioral and personal issues" involving the current crown-holder and will determine her future within a week.

"Miss USA Tara Conner has not been dethroned," Paula M. Shugart, president of the Miss Universe Organization, said in a statement posted on the association's Web site in "response to recent reports." TMZ.com reported that pageant officials and NBC (which broadcasts the competition) met Tuesday to discuss Conner's alleged bad behavior and her conduct in New York City bars.

Miss USA spokeswoman Lark-Marie Anton told us yesterday that the pageant's winners receive guidelines on how they are to conduct themselves, and they're expected to follow them. "It's pretty much a job description," she said.

Anton said the 20-year-old, who was crowned in April, is shadowed by a chaperone at most official appearances. She declined to say why Conner is under evaluation and whether she is still fulfilling her Miss USA duties. At the moment, the organization is also controlling her media access. (Translation: Forget about trying to get her side of the story, at least for now.)

According to pageant rules, if Conner is stripped of her title, first runner-up Tamiko Nash (Miss California) will wear the crown and assume the duties for the remainder of her reign.

· Andy Card and John Sununu at Reagan National Airport on Thursday afternoon. (Were they headed to a former White House chiefs of staff convention together?) Former attorney general John Ashcroft and lobbyist Jack Quinn were also in the crowd waiting for their fog-delayed flights.

· A suit-clad Tucker Carlson and sweat shirt-sporting James Carville lunching separately at the Palm on Thursday. Our source says the "Ragin' Cajun" pulled up a chair and attacked Carlson's bread basket while the two exchanged pleasantries.

-- Korin Miller