The Beatles - Here Comes The Sun

As some of you may remember, I have spent the last two weeks with my sister awaiting the birth of her second child. I'm happy to report that on Tuesday, we welcomed her son into the family, the first boy in his generation (the rest of us all have girls, as my brother was the lone boy of our generation, surrounded by sisters and girl cousins). Sadly, he was born with a serious but correctable heart defect that necessitates surgeries to fix. He's had one already and will have the other next week, so I ask you to send good thoughts his way. He's proven to us time and time again through a rough pregnancy and birth that he's a fighter, so I've no doubt he'll come through this strong and ultimately healthy. Here comes our sun indeed.

On the Sunday show front, I'm afraid we're still in our long, cold, lonely winter. On This Week, Christiane Amanpour is going to focus on our relationship with the Muslim world by speaking to both Afghan President Hamid Karzai and Cordoba House Executive Director Daisy Khan, wife of Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf. Whereas over on Meet the Press, David Gregory appears to want to focus on Republican interests, with Mitch McConnell and Dick Armey as his guests. And Fox News only want to focus on reminding their viewers how bad Democrats are by spending the hour with disgraced Illinois governor Rod Blagojevich. Sigh.

ABC's "This Week" - Afghan President Hamid Karzai; Daisy Khan, executive director, American Society for Muslim Advancement; Rabbi Joy Levitt, executive director, Jewish Community Center in Manhattan.

CBS' "Face the Nation" - Gen. Ray Odierno, U.S. commander in Iraq; Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C.; author Greg Mortenson.

NBC's "Meet the Press" - Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky.; former House Majority Leader Dick Armey, R-Texas; Gov. Jennifer Granholm, D-Mich.; New York Republican gubernatorial candidate Rick Lazio.

NBC's "The Chris Matthews Show" - Panel: Gloria Borger, Dan Rather, John Heileman, Michele Norris. Topics: 50 Years Since the Historic Kennedy-Nixon Campaign: Parallels for Obama. Will The GOP Yield To Its Right Wing As It Did In The Goldwater Year? Meter Questions: Will Tea Partiers Have A Veto Over the 2012 GOP Nominee? YES: 6 NO: 6;
Will Democrats In Congress Maintain Support for Afghanistan War? YES: 10 No: 2.

CNN's "State of the Union" - Odierno; former U.S. Ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad; retired Adm. William Fallon; retired Gen. Richard Myers; Howard Dean, former national Democratic Party chairman.

CNN's "Fareed Zakaria GPS" - The catastrophe in Pakistan is staggering. 4 million homeless and countless dead. One fifth of the nation is under water. And it's likely to get worse. Imran Kahn, the cricket legend and now one of Pakistan's most prominent politicians, tells Fareed just how awful the devastation is and just how poor the Pakistani government's response has been.

Then, just what is Germany's secret sauce? How is it managing to thrive when so many nations are languishing?

"Fox News Sunday" - Former Gov. Rod Blagojevich, D-Ill.

So what's catching your eye this morning?

Phil Collins - I Don't Care Anymore

I've been hanging out with my 3 year-old niece this week, awaiting the birth of her new baby brother or sister. While the little one remains stubbornly coy about meeting his or her family, I've had the chance to observe my niece and her friends on various playdates and it occurred to me that the Beltway Bubble is a lot like dealing with a toddler: they crave structure and consistency, yet think they are the center of the universe. They are afraid of change, strangers and threats to the power structure as they understand it, although paradoxically they tend to be enthralled with whomever is louder than they are. When anything happens that they feel jeopardizes their protected little world, they melt down. They act out. And they generally make life miserable for all the adults just trying to get things done.

So all this sturm und drang about the "professional left" and the dismissal of attempts at real change is all about the Beltway status quo doing their best toddler-esque meltdown in the face of the unfamiliar. It's also why it's just the same people week after week on these Sunday shows. New voices, different points of view are threatening.

And frankly, I tend to want to say to these Beltway types the same thing I do with my niece: I know this isn't the way you're used to things, but I don't care any more. Don't get me wrong, I say it lovingly and acknowledge her discomfort. But I know what's best and I'm not about to alter that to make comfortable someone who shouldn't be in charge in the first place. Yes, I'm different than my sister in my approach to parenting, but once she got past the initial shock of a different way, my niece has responded positively to this new environment. And so it is the way with the Beltway denizens. We just need an adult in charge who is comfortable enough to assert him/herself and weather the inevitable tantrums. Both the child and the country would be better for it.

ABC's "This Week" - Sen. Bob Corker, R-Tenn.; former Gov. Jon Corzine, D-N.J.; Laura D'Andrea Tyson, member of the President's Economic Recovery Advisory Board; Martin Regalia, chief economist at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.

CBS' "Face the Nation" - Democratic National Committee Chairman Tim Kaine; Gov. Ed Rendell, D-Pa.; Ed Gillespie, former Republican Party chairman.

NBC's "Meet the Press" - Gen. David Petraeus, top U.S. and NATO commander in Afghanistan.

NBC's "The Chris Matthews Show" - Panel: Howard Fineman, Norah O'Donnell, Kelly O'Donnell, John Heilemann. Topics: Will Barack Obama's Luck in His Weak GOP Opposition Hold for 2012? What Investigations Would Top the GOP's List if it Won Control of the House This Fall?

CNN's "State of the Union" - Reps. Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., Chris Van Hollen, D-Md., Peter King, R-N.Y., and Jerrold Nadler, D-N.Y.

CNN's "Fareed Zakaria GPS" - So just how troubled IS the U.S. economy? And what can fix it? Fareed asks Jeffrey Sachs, the man the NY Times has called "the most important Economist in the World". And Sachs has answers. Then, it's been a scorcher of a summer in the U.S., one-third of Pakistan is under water, fires burn across Russia and Europe is flooding. What is going on? A panel of climate experts, including Jeffrey Sachs, who is also the director of the Earth Institute at Columbia University, discuss whether global warming is upon us and what we should -- or shouldn't -- do about it.

"Fox News Sunday" - Sens. John Cornyn, R-Texas, and Jack Reed, D-R.I.; Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moody's Analytics.

So what's catching your eye this morning?

If You Were Gay from Avenue Q

Being a San Franciscan, there's been a palpable edginess in the air over Prop 8 over the last year or so. It's very odd to me to look at some of my gay friends--a couple who have been together for longer than my husband and me--and try to understand how anyone could believe their relationship is somehow less worthy than mine for legal and societal recognition. But when Judge Walker announced his ruling, it's almost as if a collective weight had been lifted. The fight isn't over, but at least on that day, as I made my way through my daily routine, I saw recognition in the eyes and smiles on the faces of people, who understood that things had changed. That it was no longer a radical and deviant attitude to believe that every couple deserves the recognition of making their bond a legal one. I think that regressives will fight tooth and nail against this, but in my mind, the genie is out of the bottle and it's simply a matter of time before we collectively wonder why it was such a struggle in the first place.

The Prop 8 decision is certainly going to be a topic of discussion on Fox News Sunday with lead attorney Ted Olson, and on Face the Nation with Tony Perkins (like how they stack that deck?) and on The Chris Matthews Show. But we're also going talk the Middle East on This Week, the BP oil spill on Face the Nation and the economy on Fareed Zakaria GPS.

ABC's "This Week" - Gen. Ray Odierno, commander of U.S. forces in Iraq; Gen. Peter Chiarelli, vice chief of staff of the Army.

CBS' "Face the Nation" - Retired Coast Guard Adm. Thad Allen, the government's point man on the Gulf oil spill; Tony Perkins, president of the Family Research Council.

NBC's "Meet the Press" - White House energy adviser Carol Browner; House Minority Leader John Boehner, R-Ohio; Harold Ford Jr., Democratic Leadership Council chairman; Rep. Mike Pence, R-Ind.

NBC's "The Chris Matthews Show" - Panel: Howard Fineman, Erin Burnett, Kelly O'Donnell, John Heilemann. Topics: Will Dems Have Votes To Kill Tax Cuts? Will GOP Run Against Gay Marriage? Will Hillary Clinton Bump Joe Biden From The 2012 Obama Ticket? Will Democrats In Congress Maintain Support for Afghanistan War? YES: 10, NO: 2. Is President Obama More In Danger of Looking Incompetent Than Like A Big Spender? YES: 9 No: 3

CNN's "State of the Union" - Allen; Govs. Jennifer Granholm, D-Mich., and Bob McDonnell, R-Va.

CNN's "Fareed Zakaria GPS" - What is Fareed's Take on the controversy over the proposed cultural center near Ground Zero? He wonders if we have forgotten about the founding principle of freedom of religion in America. Then, it's on to the economy. How can the administration kick-start the economy? Who better to ask than two former U.S. Treasury Secretaries who just happen to also be former titans of industry. Fareed sits down exclusively with Robert Rubin and Paul O'Neill. Rubin, of course, worked in the Clinton administration and ran Goldman Sachs before that. O'Neill was George W. Bush's man at Treasury and ran Alcoa and the RAND corporation in his earlier career.

"Fox News Sunday" - Theodore Olson, attorney in lawsuit challenging California's gay marriage ban; Gov. Mitch Daniels, R-Ind.

So what's catching your eye this morning?

Sisters Are Doing It For Themselves - Eurythmics featuring Aretha Franklin

I woke up this morning to the sweet, sweet sounds of a shattered glass ceiling. This Week is now being hosted by a woman, Christiane Amanpour. With no disrespect intended to interim host Jake Tapper (who did a fairly decent job, certainly better and more consistently than Stephanopoulos), I am thrilled to get a new voice and new point of view to the Sunday shows. Both as a female and as a person who has lived in other countries, I'm hoping that Amanpour will bring something different to the American macho exceptionalism that spews forth mindlessly on these shows. And who better to inaugurate Amanpour's first show than that other glass ceiling breaker, Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi? Of course, on the other end of the spectrum, we have Sarah Palin on yet another "exclusive" interview with Fox News Sunday. Elsewhere on the dial, Ayn Rand's boy toy Alan Greenspan will be on Meet the Press and would-be Fourteenth Amendment Warrior Lindsey Graham is on State of the Union and Tweety's trying to figure out if tying the Republicans to the Tea Party is a good electoral strategy. Like I said, we could sure use a fresh perspective on Sundays.

ABC's "This Week" - House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif.; Defense Secretary Robert Gates.

CBS' "Face the Nation" - Sen. Jon Kyl, R-Ariz.; Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff; Richard Haass, president of the Council on Foreign Relations; Thomas Saenz, president of the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund.

NBC's "Meet the Press" - Mullen; former Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan; Gov. Ed Rendell, D-Pa.; New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg.

NBC's "The Chris Matthews Show" - Panel: Kimberly Dozier, Dan Rather, Rick Stengel and Helene Cooper. Topics: The War in Afghanistan: How Long Will the President's Popular Support Last? Can Democrats Limit the Damage By Tying Republicans to the Tea Party?

CNN's "State of the Union" - Sens. Carl Levin, D-Mich., and Lindsey Graham, R-S.C.

CNN's "Fareed Zakaria GPS" - On Sunday, Fareed has an exclusive interview with Senator John Kerry -- the Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee -- to talk about the Wikileaks and, more broadly, the war in Afghanistan; about Iran and whether we should be engaging that nation; and about U.S. politics. Then Pakistan's Ambassador to the U.S. responds directly to the accusations in the war logs that his intelligence service has been colluding with the Taliban.

"Fox News Sunday" - Former Gov. Sarah Palin, R-Alaska; Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky; House Minority Leader John Boehner, R-Ohio.

So what's catching your eye this morning?

'
The Gregory Brothers--Smoking Lettuce

Welcome to another game of "You Just Don't Get It": Sunday Morning Edition. Once again the Villagers have decided that they will approach the issues of the day without context, without background and without respect for their viewers. Which is why we'll have Tim Geithner on both This Week and Meet the Press, defending the economy, dismissing why we need Elizabeth Warren on heading the new consumer agency. But will anyone mention that Geithner's sticky little fingers were all over the financial meltdown in the first place? And Newt Gingrich will be on Fox News Sunday wailing and gnashing about the Obama administration, without ever 'fessing up to the fact that it was his party's leadership and policies that put us barrelling down the wrong track. And don't even get me started on the discussion of civil rights and racial politics that Bob Schieffer is presumably leading on Face the Nation. I'll lay even money that at some point during the hour he'll ask the panel if it's possible for blacks to be racist. Like I said, they just don't get it.

ABC's "This Week" - Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie.

CBS' "Face the Nation" - Abigail Thernstrom, vice chair of the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights; Michael Eric Dyson, sociology professor at Georgetown University; Cornel West, a professor of African-American studies and religion at Princeton University.

NBC's "Meet the Press" - Geithner.

NBC's "The Chris Matthews Show" - Panel: Amy Walter, Howard Fineman, John Heilemann, Cynthia Tucker. Topics: Will African Americans Stick With Obama This Year? Will This Year's Elections Be an Historic Wave Year, and Is it Better for Obama to Lose Control of Congress?

CNN's "State of the Union" - Berkeley Law School Dean Christopher Edley; author John McWhorter; Mort Zuckerman, publisher of the New York Daily News; former CIA director Michael Hayden.

CNN's "Fareed Zakaria GPS" - Is the United States making any real progress in Afghanistan? What about Pakistan? Find out what the Obama administration's man in the region has to say about the matter. Watch Fareed's exclusive interview with U.S. Special Representative Richard Holbrooke.

"Fox News Sunday" - Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, R-Ga; Howard Dean, former national Democratic Party chairman; the Rev. Jesse Jackson.

So, what's catching your eye this morning?

Co-author Neil Howe discussing his book, The Fourth Turning in 1997

You know the phrase, "everything old is new again"? Well, after you read The Fourth Turning, you'll realize how true that is. It's impossible to concisely breakdown this mapping of generations, eras, and dynamics, but it makes for fascinating reading. And it's hard to argue with what they've written either. They predicted (in the early 90s, mind you) a major catastrophic event that would occur near the turn of the century and result in 20 years of upheaval and unrest. And folks, it's quite clear we're in that monstrously difficult time of the Fourth Turning. What the future outcome will be depends on how much effort we put into turning it towards positive, progressive change.

As far as our immediate future, it looks like the Villagers are still playing the same games. Why else would you invite NAACP's Ben Jealous and a tea party organizer on Face the Nation? Steny Hoyer and Mitch McConnell on State of the Union? Or David Vitter on Fox News Sunday? And don't get me started on Chris Matthews topic of whether Sarah Palin is strong 2012 candidate. Argh. In one of his last stints as anchor, Jake Tapper has VP Joe Biden on for the full hour.

ABC's "This Week" - Vice President Joe Biden.

CBS' "Face the Nation" - Gov. Bill Richardson, D-N.M.; former Rep. J.D. Hayworth, R-Ariz.; Benjamin Jealous, president of the NAACP; David Webb, a tea party organizer.

NBC's "Meet the Press" - Sens. John Cornyn, R-Texas, and Robert Menendez, D-N.J; Reps. Pete Sessions, R-Texas, and Chris Van Hollen, D-Md.

NBC's "The Chris Matthews Show" - Panel: Joe Klein, Katty Kay, Trish Regan and Clarence Page. Topics: Is the Frozen Recovery Setting Up a GOP Tidal Wave In November? Why Sarah Palin Looks Like a Strong 2012 Candidate

CNN's "State of the Union" - Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky.; House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, D-Md.; New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu.

CNN's "Fareezd Zakaria GPS" - It may be the most dangerous place on Earth. And now it's exporting it's terror. Al Shabab - a Somali affiliate of al Qaeda - has claimed responsibility for the bombing of World Cup viewers in Uganda. What kind of evil can we expect from this failed state next? And what can the U.S. do to stop it?

"Fox News Sunday" - Reps. James Clyburn, D-S.C., and Mike Pence, R-Ind.; Sen. David Vitter, R-La.

So, what's catching your eye this morning?

Who knew Fox News Sunday mashes up so well with Monty Python? (via yours truly) It's always a trip to see what Jon Kyl gets away with on Fox News Sunday. That said, I'm looking forward even more to seeing what everyone else will NOT get away with on Meet The Press, given that Rachel Maddow is on the panel this morning:

The Chris Matthews Show: Panel with Joe Klein, Time magazine; Trish Regan, CNBC; Katty Kay, BBC; Clarence Page, Chicago Tribune.

Meet the Press: White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs. Panel: David Brooks, New York Times; former Rep. Harold Ford Jr. (D-Tenn.); Ed Gillespie; Rachel Maddow.

ABC's This Week: White House advisor David Axelrod; Rep. Arizona immigration law: Brian Bilbray (R-Ca.); Rep. Luis Gutierrez (D-Ill.). Panel: Ron Brownstein; Ruth Marcus; the Washington Post; Reihan Salam, National Review; George Will.

Fox News Sunday With Chris Wallace: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Senator Jon Kyl (R-Ariz.); David Axelrod, White House Senior Adviser.

What's catching your eyes and ears this morning?

Sigh. ABC's This Week can't quit you or the word "exclusive," John McCain. And the dulcet wingnut tones of DeMint/Lieberman on Fox News Sunday will make yer Sabbath hangover feel like a Swedish massage by comparison.

NBC is celebrating Independence from Great Britain Day this year by broadcasting tennis from Great Britain. At least they have an actual "exclusive" on it.

ABC's "This Week" - EXCLUSIVE Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz.

CBS' "Face the Nation" - Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C.

NBC's "Meet the Press" and "The Chris Matthews Show" - Pre-empted by coverage of Wimbledon tennis.

CNN's "State of the Union" - Said Tayeb Jawad, Afghanistan's ambassador to the United States; Reps. John Boccieri, D-Ohio, Duncan Hunter, R-Calif., and Mike Coffman, R-Colo.

"Fox News Sunday" - Sens. Joe Lieberman, I-Conn., and Jim DeMint, R-S.C.; Kenneth Feinberg, administrator of fund set up to compensate Gulf oil spill victims.

What catches your eyes and ears this morning?

DOWNLOADS: (501)

PLAYS: (519)

Embed

[H/t Heather]

This week we note the passing of Edith Shain, the woman made famous for being kissed in a Life photo of V-J Day celebrations; San Francisco real-estate magnate Walter H. Shorenstein; federal appeals court Judge Gerald W. Heaney, who played a historic role in desegregating schools in the Midwest; Pete Quaife, bass player for The Kinks; and in Afghanistan, the deaths of 17 soldiers: SPC Joseph Johnson, 24, of Flint, Mich.; PFC Gunnar Hotchkin, 31, of Naperville, Ill.; SPC Nathan W. Cox, 27, Fremont, Calif.; PFC Benjamin Park, 25, Fairfax Station, VA; SSG James G. Hunter, 25, South Amherst, Ohio; SPC Scott A. Andrews, 21, of Fall River, Mass.; LCpl Timothy G. Serwiniowski, 21, North Tonawanda, N.Y.; SPC Joseph P. Dohrenwend, 20, Milford, Ohio; 1SG Eddie Turner, 41, Fort Belvoir, Va.; PFC David P. Miller, 19, Wilton, N,Y.; SPC Andrew R. Looney, 22m Owasso, OK; Cpl Claudio Patino IV, 22, Yorba Linda, Calif.; Cpl. Kevin A. Cueto, 23, San Jose, Calif.; Cpl. Joshua R. Dumaw, 23, Spokane Valley, Wash.; PFC Anthony T. Justesen, 22, Wilsonville, Ore.; PFC Russell E. Madden, 29, Dayton, Ky.; and 1SG Robert N. Barton, 35, Roxie, Miss.

(from the 2008 Colbert Green Screen Challenge)

If I could remove one word from the lexicons of the Sunday Morning News Shows and other corporate media outlets, it would be "EXCLUSIVE!" There is nothing exclusive about having John McCain on your show for the upteenth time, David Gregory. And if you're trying to convince me that it's some sort of "catch" to get him on any specific Sunday, pull my other finger. I mean, leg.

"Face the Nation” Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-VT), Chairman of the Judiciary Committee; Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-AL), Ranking Republican on the Judiciary Committee; Sen. Carl Levin (D-Mich.), Chairman of the Armed Services Committee; Jan Crawford, CBS News Chief Legal Correspondent; David Martin, CBS News National Security Correspondent

“Meet the Press” Exclusive! Senator! John! McCain!
Also Rep. Barbara Lee (D-CA) of the House Foreign Affairs Committee; Sebastian Junger, author of "WAR"; Army combat veteran Wes Moore; Tom Ricks, Contributing Editor of Foreign Policy magazine and author;
NBC Military Analyst Gen. Barry McCaffrey (Ret.), Former Commander-in-Chief of U.S. Southern Command.

“Fox News Sunday” Sens. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif. and Lindsey Graham, R-S.C.; Mike Huckabee;

“ABC's This Week” Jake Tapper has an Exclusive Interview! with CIA Director! Leon! Panetta! The Panel will be: George Will, David Sanger, Robin Wright, Rajiv Chandrasekaran.

”The Chris Matthews Show” with Panelists Dan Rather, Gloria Borger, Katty Kay, and John Harris: Questions: Does General Petraeus Now Own the Afghanistan War? Sarah Palin's Year As Private Citizen: How's that Working Out For Her?

As a former constituent of Senator Sessions, my money's on him to bring the crazy this morning. What's catching your eye on the airwaves this am?