CNN

Pennsylvania Sen. Arlen Specter's brought Capitol Hill police to his rowdy town halls on Tuesday.

Lewisburg, Pennsylvania (CNN) – Tough crowds asking pointed questions is not the only concern Sen. Arlen Specter has as he holds town halls all across his home state of Pennsylvania.

He's also concerned about his personal safety, which is why he brought along some United States Capitol Hill Police officers as he traveled to two town halls on Tuesday.

The sometime raucous events in Lebanon and Lewisburg, which Specter called "civil," were largely full of constituents expressing their anger over the health care plan working its way through Congress.

The Democrat earlier this year switched parties and could face a tough re-election fight next year.

After his town hall event at the campus of Bucknell University in Lewisburg, Specter defended his decision to have Congress' special police force travel with him back home.

"I would say, that given the temper of the times, the fact that in some areas there have been fights breaking out and people hospitalized - and one member's statue was hanged in effigy - [safety] is a big challenge," said Specter.

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McCain joked he has chosen Wilford Brimley to be his VP.

DAYTON, Ohio (CNN) - John McCain appears to be comfortable with the selection of his running mate, whoever that person may be.

Upon arriving in Dayton, Ohio, Thursday evening, the presumptive Republican presidential candidate was asked on the airport tarmac who he has selected for the No. 2 job.

“Wilford Brimley,” McCain deadpanned.

McCain has been very coy in responding to reporters’ questions about his vice presidential selection process, most recently remaining quiet when asked, or simply raising his thumbs in the air. The candidate’s offbeat joke about Brimley, the 73-year-old actor known for his roles in Cocoon, Our House, and diabetic health commercials, likely reflects the state of ease he is currently experiencing as the months-long search for a running mate is over.

That is, if he was joking.