WASHINGTON - A broad-daylight encounter between astounded Washington residents and a friendly extraterrestrial turned from an occassion of joyful amazement to one of speechless embarassment when Senator Edward "Ted" Kennedy (D-Mass) began lewdly groping the diminutive creature before the horrified eyes of stunned onlookers.  As Kennedy was led away from the scene, the mortified alien scampered back into his spacecraft and was gone.

   "It was inexcusable," lamented Dr. Heinrich Hoffengeimer, head of the National Space Foundation.  "The most significant event in human history, reduced to the level of sexual harassment."

    The morning, which had begun uneventfully for Capitol Hill employees, quickly turned into a scene straight out of "The Day The Earth Stood Still," when a silvery disc-shaped object descended from the sky and landed on the Capitol lawn.

   "It was incredible," gushed congressional page Jean March, 29, who was on lunch at the time and witnessed the landing.  "A huge crowd was gathering.  As we watched, a door opened and this cute little alien came out.  He was smiling, and his arms were outstretched."

    A moment later the scene of intergalactic harmony turned ugly.  Senator Kennedy's limousine, which happened to be passing by, abruptly screeched to a halt.  According to witnesses, Kennedy lurched from the vehicle, made a beeline for the alien and began crudely massaging the creature's buttocks.

   "We were all in shock," said March.

    An aid intervened and began grappling with Kennedy.  In the scuffle, the senator's sweaty, beefy hands lost their grip on the alien's smooth, gray-green skin, and the terrified creature scampered back to the spacecraft.  As Kennedy was led back to the limo, the ship quickly levitated and vanished.

    Kennedy's office declined comment.