“Meet the Press” on The Daily Caller

Republican presidential hopeful Rick Santorum said he would use air strikes against Iran unless the country dismantled its nuclear program or allowed inspectors to verify that the work isn’t aimed at making a weapon. (more)

When NBC “Meet the Press” host David Gregory asked former House Speaker Newt Gingrich whether he infused racism into a recent speech by referring to President Barack Obama as “the most successful food stamp president in American history,” Gregory raised a line of attack that had only previously been used by MSNBC and other left-leaning outlets, much to the chagrin of many conservative critics. (more)

Is the White House playing favorites again with media outlets? (more)

Reporting from Washington — House Speaker John A. Boehner said Sunday that he believed President Obama was a U.S. citizen and a Christian, but that it was not up to him to convince people who were skeptical of the president’s birthplace and religion. (more)

On Ronald Reagan’s 100th birthday, the media are taking some time away from the play-by-play coverage of the protests in Egypt to reflect on a president revered by many conservatives. (more)

It was with great fanfare and a measure of controversy that ABC News named Christiane Amanpour to anchor its Sunday morning show “This Week” after George Stephanopoulos moved on to host “Good Morning America.” (more)

1.) Joe Biden doesn’t know how to feel about Wikileaks, chooses to feel everything — As the human face of the Obama Administration–we will never forget his honesty during the great swine flue crisis of 2010–Vice Pres. Joe Biden can be expected to accidentally tell something resembling the truth whenever he appears alone in public. Occasionally, Biden feels torn apart by his dual roles as National Billy the Largemouth Bass (singing “Don’t Worry, Be Happy”) and his desire to be treated like a grownup human being. Wikileaks has only exacerbated his angst. Last Thursday, Biden told Andrea Mitchell on the air that “leaked cables created no substantive damage — only embarrassment,” and “nothing that I’m aware of that goes to the essence of the relationship that would allow another nation to say: ‘They lied to me, we don’t trust them, they really are not dealing fairly with us.’” A day later, Biden taped an interview with David Gregory for Meet the Press in which he told the MSNBC host, “[Assange] has made it more difficult for us to conduct our business with our allies and our friends,” and “In my meetings — you know I meet with most of these world leaders — there is a desire to meet with me alone, rather than have staff in the room: It makes things more cumbersome — so it has done damage.” Can you now show us on the doll where Hillary Clinton touched you, Joe? You are not going to get in trouble! (more)

As Howard Kurtz recently reported in the Daily Beast, the packaging of Luke Russert, son of the late journalist and legend Tim Russert, has begun. NBC hired Luke after his father’s death in 2008, and because of all the goodwill towards Russert pere, Luke, despite a clunky TV presence and no political knowledge, has just acquired job security for life. MSNBC, where young Russert works, is hiding him from the media until he gets his training wheels off. (more)

The Senate Republican leadership telegraphed on the Sunday- morning talk shows that a compromise to extend unemployment compensation and the George W. Bush-era tax cuts is in the offing. (more)

Sarah Palin was not only playing the role of proud grizzly mama last night when she sat on the front row cheering on daughter Bristol Palin in the finale of ‘Dancing With The Stars’ — she was also playing casting director, lobbying the show’s producers to consider signing up her Tea Party pal Christine O’Donnell for next season. (more)

WASHINGTON — The head of the agency responsible for airport security, facing protests from travelers and pressure from the White House, appeared to give ground Sunday on his position that there would be no change in policies regarding invasive passenger screening procedures. (more)

New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie irked NBC’s David Gregory — and probably won over more conservatives weary of the media in the process — by suggesting on “Meet the Press” that the host was acting as an advocate for Democrats in the way he spoke about taxes. (more)

Mississippi Republican Governor Haley Barbour on Sunday was quick to predict a Republican takeover in House after Tuesday’s election, but hesitated to say the same for the Senate. Barbour appeared on NBC’s “Meet the Press” alongside Democratic National Committee Chairman Tim Kaine, who said he believed Democrats would continue to control both chambers of Congress after the election. (more)

Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Steele on Sunday predicted a huge win for the GOP in the upcoming midterm elections, stuck up for Delaware U.S. candidate Christine O’Donnell, and questioned the Democrats’ attack line that outside money may be playing a role this election cycle. (more)

“Meet the Press” host David Gregory accused the White House of playing on voter fear with its attacks about “foreign money” to groups like the Chamber of Commerce being a “threat to the economy” when the administration has not produced “any proof of foreign funds in the ads.” (more)

Colorado Republican U.S. Senate candidate Ken Buck looked surprised and uncomfortable when asked Sunday whether homosexuality is a choice or not. But nonetheless, he said he thought it was. (more)

Alexi Giannoulias, the Illinois Democrat running for President Obama’s old Senate seat, said Sunday that he wants to “reform” the president’s health care overhaul, and that the $814 billion stimulus was imperfect but that it prevented Americans from standing in soup lines. (more)

Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) on Sunday called President Barack Obama “tone deaf” to the voices of the American people, slamming the president for putting forth the “most liberal agenda of modern times.” (more)

Key players in the U.S. strategy for the war in Afghanistan took to the airwaves over the weekend to discuss the future of U.S. withdrawal. For some, that includes political negotiations with the Taliban. (more)

One of the leaders of the Tea Party movement warned Sunday that Republicans could face as big of an electoral backlash as Democrats if they don’t “get some courage.” (more)