Rick Santorum may protect Mitt Romney's flank should Ron Paul try to mess with the Republican platform in August. From the NYT:

Mr. Santorum, the former Pennsylvania senator, had sharp differences with Mitt Romney when both were seeking the presidential nomination, but since bowing out of the race, Mr. Santorum has thrown his support behind the presumptive nominee and has papered over their differences.

The same cannot be said of Mr. Paul, the Texas libertarian who is still technically a candidate and who will be bringing  more than 200 delegates to Tampa. Mr. Santorum, appearing on the ABC News program “This Week,” suggested that fireworks with the Paul group were a distinct possibility.

Asked about his own interest in influencing the Republican platform, Mr. Santorum said, “I like the platform that we have right now.”

He then added: “I’m concerned that Ron Paul and some of his supporters out there are looking for a platform fight. And I want to make sure that we have strong, principled conservatives there who stood with me in our primary fight to go there and counterbalance the effect of the Paul folks.

UPDATE: Santorum has not spoken to Romney since their meeting on Mount Washington May 4. From Robert Costa at the National Review:

Santorum has spoken with Romney once since the primary ended, in a face-to-face meeting in western Pennsylvania, but the pair does not keep in touch via phone or e-mail. “I haven’t heard anything from him personally since our meeting, but our staffs talk,” he says. “He knows that we can be helpful if he needs us.” The former senator also does not expect to be on the ticket. He hasn’t been asked to submit any personal information for a potential veep vetting. “That’s Governor Romney’s decision,” he says. “I’m not going to weigh in on that.”

Good morning.

The state House may move on Majority Leader Mike Turzai's liquor privatization bill in the next couple days, while Democrats (with ties to unions fighting against it) are warning residents of rural counties would lose service under the proposal (as they have in Washington state).

State budget deliberations are kicking into gear, and so is the Jerry Sandusky trial.

The Supreme Court is set to decide on Obama's health care reform package soon. Obama is campaigning in Philadelphia tomorrow, and Mitt Romney may also be in the state this week.

UPDATE: A Romney bus tour will come through the state Saturday, but we don't know where as yet. From the campaign:

Boston, MA – Mitt Romney will meet with America's families and business owners in small towns in six states as part of his "Every Town Counts" five-day bus tour. The "Every Town Counts" bus tour will begin in New Hampshire on June 15 and will continue on to small towns in Pennsylvania, Ohio, Wisconsin, Iowa, and Michigan.

"For three and a half years, President Obama has paid little attention to the everyday concerns of the American people," Mitt Romney said. "President Obama has offered no hope for the future, and he has left American families to bear the burden of his failed policies. Too many American families have experienced a lost job, faced foreclosure, or been forced to spend their kids' college savings just to make ends meet. These are not statistics – these are our fellow Americans. In America's small towns, you don't find despair -- you find boundless optimism. We know we can make America better, and that is why I am running for president."

Believe In America: Every Town Counts Bus Tour Outline

· Friday, June 15 – New Hampshire

· Saturday, June 16 – Pennsylvania

· Sunday, June 17 – Ohio

· Monday, June 18 – Wisconsin and Iowa

· Tuesday, June 19 – Michigan

A state panel has given final approval to a new set of legislative boundaries that, among other changes, would shift two Allegheny County seats eastward.

Both seats were proposed to be moved in the preliminary plan approved in April, though the final map redraws the district currently represented by Democratic Sen. Jim Ferlo of Highland Park to now include much of the Republican-heavy North Hills.

Democrats protested that change and others in the Republican-drawn map, arguing that the updates mean that former GOP Sen. Jane Orie's district is being moved in name only.

"At the end of the day all we're doing is substituting the number" of the district being moved with that of Mr. Ferlo's district, said Senate Minority Leader Jay Costa, D-Forest Hills. "We have plan that's going to perpetuate Republican dominance in the state Legislature."

Those new maps are the state Legislative Reapportionment Commission's second attempt to craft new districts to reflect population changes in the 2010 census.

The boundaries approved last fall were rejected in January by the state Supreme Court, which said the plan divided too many localities in its attempt to create districts of equal population. The new maps likely will face judicial review again before taking effect.

The revisions will not affect the fall general election, which will take place under the current legislative boundaries.

The plan passed the five-member commission this afternoon -- after a 50-minute delay during which panel members conferred one-on-one -- on a vote of 4-1, with Mr. Costa as the sole negative vote. He offered an alternative plan that was defeated.

It continues previous efforts to relocate the South Hills seat previously held by now-Allegheny County controller Chelsa Wagner to Allentown. Four other House seats also will be shifted to other parts of the state, which Republican leaders attributed to changes in population.

"We take into account what have been the population shifts within the state of Pennsylvania such that there is fair representation for each and every area," said House Majority Leader Mike Turzai, R-Bradford Woods.

The map-makers also tweaked their preliminary plan so that several candidates who reside outside of the districts that they are seeking could continue to serve if they are elected in November.

Those candidates include D. Raja, the Mt. Lebanon businessman who bested state Rep. Mark Mustio of Moon and Bethel Park activist Sue Means in the primary, and the Democratic candidate in the 37th District race, Greg Parks of Pleasant Hills.

In what continues to feel like the sequel to the movie Groundhog Day, there's a meeting at 2 p.m. in Harrisburg to approve new legislative district maps.

The preliminary version of those maps -- which were quickly drawn after the ones crafted last fall were tossed by the courts -- would still move an Allegheny County House seat to the Lehigh Valley.

But two other Pittsburgh-area seats that had been proposed to be merge would remain separate, and the seat of former Republican Sen. Jane Orie would be sent to Monroe County instead of Democratic Sen. Jim Brewster's.

But that draft plan was approved in April, prior to the primary, and at least three current candidates do not reside in the districts for which they are running.

Those candidates include D. Raja, the Mt. Lebanon businessman who bested state Rep. Mark Mustio of Moon and Bethel Park activist Sue Means in the primary.

We'll post copies of the final maps as soon as they are available electronically.

UPDATE: Senate maps here, and description of municipal breakdowns here.

House maps here and breakdowns here.