It isn't the student paper's official endorsement, but the Pitt News' Nick Stamatakis throws his money down on Bill Peduto for the May primary.

While it's hard for students to differentiate between two good-on-paper candidates, he writes, his own distinctions are clear:

"One is a man with proven capabilities of initiating community-transforming projects and reforming government: a man who has big goals and the ability to accomplish them.

The other is a guy whose name is Jack Wagner."

Zing! Worth a read.

Bom dia Early Returners. If you're wondering why we've featured a Brazilian breakfast and are speaking Portuguese, keep reading.

1. Harrisburg reporter Karen Langley reports from our Sao Paulo bureau, where Gov. Tom Corbett and a delegate of Pennsylania officials are on a trade mission. (That's Sao Paulo, Brazil, in case there's a town some corner of Pennsylvania that's appropriated the name.) I seriously hope they're in a deal to import some of that sun to Pittsbugh.

2. Sen. Pat Toomey is reaching across state lines to work with Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia to craft an accord that would expand background check proviisions to include online gun sales and gun shows, reports the Associated Press. It's not clear the law would have much effect in Pennsylvania, where background checks are already required for all handgun sales. They're not required for private long gun sales, however.

3. More depressing news out of Washington from Tracie Mauriello from Sunday's paper. A provision of the Affordable Care Act that everyone actually agreed on -- a program to fund care for those with pre-existing conditions -- has been vastly underfunded. This is what we call a *head desk* moment, federal government.

4. A good read from Paula Ward on the impact a U.S. Supreme Court decision will have on this state's juvenile lifers. Pennsylvania leads the nation in the number of people serving life sentences for crimes they committed before they're 18th birthday. 

5. Very sad news from across the pond: former prime minister Margaret Thatcher has died. 

US Sen. Pat Toomey -- a fiscal conservative and Tea Party favorite -- is named in two national stories today as a GOP target for crossover on major cultural/constitutional issues.

Poltico reports West Virginia's Joe Manchin is quietly sharing proposals for universal background checks on gun purchases with his Pa counterpart. Manchin (who shot a rifle in a campaign ad) and Toomey ("My idea of gun control is a steady aim") are both heavy NRA supporters but so is Bob Casey: Casey changed course on gun law after the December massacre of 20 elementary school children in Newtown, Conn.

Casey, a moderate Democrat, this week also changed course on gay marriage. The WashPost Fix blog today lists six GOP senators who might also come out in favor, rating Toomey the fifth most likely (after Lisa Murkowski, Susan Collins, Richard Burr and Kelly Ayotte). Writes Sean Sullivan:

5) Sen. Pat Toomey (R-Pa.): Toomey wasn't in the Senate for the DADT vote, but he expressed support for repeal as senator-elect. Like many of the names on this list, he comes from a state carried twice by Obama. "Senator Toomey believes that the tradition of marriage is sacred and is best defined as between a man and a woman. He does realize that there are many Americans who feel strongly about this issue and support marriage for same-sex couples. The input of Pennsylvanians is therefore valued when Congress reviews legislation addressing same-sex marriage," said a Toomey spokesperson.

So what do Pennsylvanians say? A Public Policy Polling survey last month found 47% of state voters oppose legalization of same-sex marriage to 45% in favor -- a jump of 14 points in favor of legalization from a survey 18 months earlier.

In January a Quinnipiac poll found 95% of the state's voters approved of gun-buyer background checks, which may be one of the reasons Michael Bloomberg's Mayors Against Illegal Guns is targeting Toomey and other Pa legislators with ads in the state.

The Teamsters Joint Council 40 announced Friday that the group was endorsing Jack Wagner in the race for the Democratic nomination for mayor of Pittsburgh.

The decision to back the former auditor general reflects the twisting course of the mayoral primary. The labor group had originally decided to support city Controller Michael Lamb in the race, but Mr. Lamb, despite also having the endorsement of the Allegheny County Democratic Committee, dropped from the race last week.

Joe Molinaro, president of the Teamsters group said the decision to switch to Mr. Wagner had been unanimous among the officials of the various local unions.  Mr. Molinaro said that the Joint Council 40 represented approximately 25,000 workers in the region.  He estimated that between 5,000 and 6,000 of their members lived in the city. Mr. Wagner and city Councilman Bill Peduto have dominated the competition for labor support among the four-person Democratic field.  Earlier Mr. Wagner had been endorsed by several city workers' unions and by a group of building trades locals.