Sunday, May 22, 2011

TODAY ON THE SUNDAY TALK SHOWS
NBC - Ryan: Gingrich 'deeply inaccurate' on Medicare plan
CBS - Gingrich used 'unfortunate language' to describe Ryan plan
CNN - Armey: Tea party 'disappointed' about Daniels
FOX - Cain: GOP in a corner on debt limit
ABC - Mitchell: Obama's Israel speech not radical
CSPAN - Medicare chief: Don't cut, make care better

NBC: MEET THE PRESS

Ryan: Gingrich 'deeply inaccurate' on Medicare plan
House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) said emphatically that he will not run for president in 2012, but said he would not get into "hypotheticals" when asked if he would accept the vice presidential nomination. He called GOP presidential candidate Newt Gingrich's assessment of his Medicare plan "deeply inaccurate" and a "gross mischaracterization." Ryan said his Medicare plan is "sensible and as gradual as it gets." He blasted Senate Democrats for not passing a budget in "753 days." On the debt-limit debate, he said "nobody wants default to happen, but at the same time we don’t want to rubber stamp a debt-limit increase that shows we’re not getting our situation under control."

CBS: FACE THE NATION

Gingrich used 'unfortunate language' to describe Ryan plan
Republican presidential candidate Newt Gingrich did his best to explain week-old comments that appeared to be critical of House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan’s (R-Wis.) proposal to reform Medicare. “I probably used unfortunate language...but my point was really a larger one: that neither party could impose on the American people something that they are deeply opposed to,” Gingrich said. The former House speaker stressed that he has spoken to Ryan about the plan and that he thinks it is a starting point. “He and I are on the same side in that conversation,” Gingrich said. “Obama’s on the opposite side of that conversation.”

CNN: STATE OF THE UNION

Armey: Tea party 'disappointed' about Daniels
Sen. Richard Durbin (D-Ill.) said his former 'Gang of Six' colleague, Sen. Tom Coburn (R-Okla.), is unlikely to return to the group attempting to negotiate a deal on deficit reduction. He called on his fellow senators not to abandon negotiations. Durbin said Senate Budget Committee Chairman Kent Conrad (D-N.D.) has the support of the panel's Democratic members "in principle," but they will need "some Republican buy-in" to pass a budget. He blasted "totally irresponsible" members of Congress who entertain the idea that the U.S. may default on its debt when the government reaches the debt ceiling.

The intelligence panel's ranking member, Rep. C.A. "Dutch" Ruppersberger (D-Md.) said it is "time to reset" the U.S.'s relationship with Pakistan. He also called for further investigation into how much Pakistani intelligence services knew about Osama bin Laden's presence in their country. Rogers said the United States should not pull the plug on aid to Pakistan, but could hold back some aid to improve its negotiating position.

Former House majority leader Dick Armey said members of the tea party are "disappointed" by Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels's decision not to seek the GOP presidential nomination in 2012. He suggested the tea party may "start looking at drafting" House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan (R-Wis.).

FOX NEWS SUNDAY

Cain: GOP in a corner on debt limit
Newly announced presidential candidate Herman Cain said Republican leaders have painted themselves into a corner on the debt limit. “They should have seen this coming -- which they did -- but they didn’t move fast enough,” he said. House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) is pushing for trillions of dollars in cuts before Republicans will sign off on a debt limit increase, but not raising the debt limit risks serious economic problems, problems Republicans have acknowledged.
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said President Obama’s proposal to solve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict comes at the wrong time, given the turmoil in the Middle East. “This is the very worst time to be pushing Israel into making a deal,” McConnell said.

ABC: THIS WEEK

Mitchell: Obama's Israel speech not radical
Former senator George Mitchell, who resigned Friday as Obama’s top envoy to the Middle East, said Obama’s proposals on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict are significant shifts, but that they aren’t as radical as some have contended. “I don’t believe it is threatening Israel,” Mitchell said.

Jordan’s King Abdullah II traced the uprisings in the Middle East to the economic hardship of young people. “It was economic frustration and desires that led, I think, to a political awakening; they want to be able to chart their own destiny,” he said. He also said that, if nothing is accomplished on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, he expects some sort of armed conflict.

CSPAN: NEWSMAKERS

Medicare chief: Don't cut, make care better
Donald Berwick, head of the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services, said the House GOP Medicare plan makes budget cuts "very efficiently" but said he thinks it will lead to Medicare "benificiaries who won't be able to afford insurance." He said the alternative to cutting is to "make care better," which he said President Obama's health-care law will do. He said he is "100 percent confident" in the success of the new law.

By Matt DeLong and Aaron Blake