Rep. Anthony Weiner (D-N.Y.) released a statement Tuesday backtracking from a quote in Politico that fellow Rep. Alan Grayson (D-Fla.) is “one fry short of a Happy Meal.—

Weiner made the comment after an audio recording was posted on YouTube of Grayson calling a former Enron Corp. lobbyist and current aide to Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke a “K Street whore.—

“Alan Grayson is a friend and an extraordinary Member of Congress,— Weiner said in a statement. “No obviously playful comment from me should distract from the important role Rep. Grayson has played in focusing on the true and tragic costs of our broken health care system. He is a leader and a patriot.—

Grayson has recently become one of the Democrats’ most controversial Members. In September, he delivered a firey floor speech in which he charged that the Republican Party’s plan for health care was “don’t get sick,— and if you get sick to “die quickly.— He later used the remark to raise thousands for his re-election campaign.