Political activists, capital watchdogs and Republican state lawmakers took aim this week at the level of spending in the budget compromise.

Gov. Ed Rendell's response?

He compared one to serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer. Or maybe he meant Hannibal "the cannibal" Lecter from "The Silence of the Lambs." No one's sure.

He called a conservative think tank a bunch of "imbeciles."

And he called an area legislator "certifiable."

All in one week.

Even for a politician known for his — oh, how shall we put this? — "colorful" language, that's a pretty impressive feat.

So what's up?

Says spokesman Chuck Ardo: "This is a governor who has always expressed himself bluntly. I can tell you that, despite the colorful language, he had no intention of being malicious."

Rendell's first target was former Lancaster resident Eric Epstein, who is coordinator of the grassroots group Rock the Capitol.

Epstein's mistake was cracking wise in The Philadelphia Inquirer about the governor, saying Rendell "believes he has a mandate to pillage, but he won 61 percent of the vote against an empty suit last year and he didn't have a clear agenda until June 30."

A furious Rendell called a reporter at the paper and spewed the following: "Eric Epstein is about as mentally stable as that guy who ate all those people."

Epstein says he isn't sure to whom the governor compared him.

"Hopefully it's Hannibal. Some people think it's Idi Amin" — the late diabolical Ugandan president — "or Jeffrey Dahmer," he laughed.

"I've been asked if I deserve an apology. My answer is no. I wasn't the guy who went into a cave and held 24,000 families hostage," said Epstein, referring to the government shutdown that resulted in the furloughs of more than 23,500 "non-critical" state workers.

"I'm hoping we can get past the name-calling and behave like adults. Apparently the governor is experiencing an emotional meltdown," he continued. "A lot of us have interesting thoughts. That doesn't mean we're obligated to share them with the public. What's amazing about this is that he went out of his way to call a reporter to offer his psychiatric evaluation."

More Rendell fury followed the next day.

The Commonwealth Foundation and some Republican lawmakers — including Sen. Mike Folmer, who represents part of Lancaster County — claimed the budget jacks up spending by at least 4.5 percent and as much as 5.3 percent.

Legislative leaders have said the $27.2 billion budget deal reached Monday after a 10-day impasse boosts spending by only 3.3 percent.

Rendell, in an interview with The Patriot-News on Wednesday, addressed the Commonwealth folks first: "What these imbeciles don't understand is that most cost drivers in a budget, you don't control."

The New Era contacted the group's policy director, Nate Benefield, this morning and asked if he'd seen Rendell's remarks in the newspaper.

"Well, no, I'm too much of an imbecile to read," he said. "I guess it's better to be called stupid than to be called crazy. I think we got the better end of that deal."

Should the governor apologize?

"I don't care if he apologizes. I like it because we're going to use that quote in our fundraising letter," Benefield said.

Folmer, who represents the 48th Senate district, which includes part of northwest Lancaster County, drew the governor's ire by suggesting the state's spending growth could reach 6 percent by the time lawmakers are finished drafting it.

"He's certifiable," Rendell told the Harrisburg paper, adding that the 6 percent estimate is "just not rational."

Folmer chuckled when told about the governor's remarks today.

"I've been called worse. Ask my wife," he said.

He went on to chide Rendell.

"There's a huge myth out there that because he's governor he should always get his way. He forgets the system of government we have," Folmer said.

"He's not king. He's not a dictator. He's not commissar. He's a governor in a representative republic form of government," he said.

Folmer said he and his constituents are simply sick and tired of seeing the state spend more and more money every year.

"If that makes me certifiable," he said, "then I guess I'm nuts."

Rendell has a knack for getting himself in trouble. Senior citizens were angry at remarks he made to the New Era's editorial board in October. The governor said some have "gray lives" and find joy in gambling.

He's also been caught muttering an obscenity on a live cable sports-talk show. And yet he's been like Teflon throughout his political career.

Will he apologize for his latest remarks?

"No," says Rendell spokesman Ardo. "He did not intend to offend anybody. He was responding passionately to a series of questions, and he is well known both in Harrisburg throughout the commonwealth and throughout the country for speaking his mind."

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