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May 9: 7 Best Moments From Sunday Talk

Eric Holder links the Taliban to the Times Square bombing, Jon Meacham defends Newsweek’s politics, and Chris Dodd slams the Wall Street “casino.” That and more in our Sunday roundup.

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Eric Holder: Pakistani Taliban “Intimately Involved” With Times Square Terror Plot

Attorney General Eric Holder made a big splash on the Sunday talk-show circuit, shedding some alarming new light on last Saturday’s attempted Times Square bombing. On Meet the Press, he said that the Pakistani Taliban was “intimately involved” with the plot: "We've now developed evidence that shows the Pakistani Taliban was behind the attack. We know that they helped facilitate it. We know that they probably helped finance it.”

Is Newsweek in Trouble Because It’s Too Liberal?

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Newsweek editor Jon Meacham went on Reliable Sources to talk about the future of the magazine. Howie Kurtz asked if perhaps its liberal slant and plethora of Obama covers limited Newsweek’s appeal in the marketplace. “No advertiser, to my knowledge, ever pitched up and said, you know, I’m not gonna advertise because you put the first African-American president in history on the cover,” Meacham replied.

Chris Dodd Slams Wall Street “Casino Environment”

Appearing on Face the Nation, Senate Banking Committee Chairman Chris Dodd chided Wall St. for the “casino environment” that caused Thursday’s tumultuous stock market that saw the Dow drop nearly 1000 points. The lightning-fast trading tends to ignore long-term, positive growth in favor of gut reactions to the day’s events, Dodd said. "It does not reflect what's going on in the real economy."

Should Miranda Rights Be Modified?

On ABC’s This Week, Attorney General Holder made what is sure to be a divisive proposal: modifying the Miranda rights to deal with "threats that we now face” from terrorists and the like.

Richard Shelby: Regulators “Were Asleep” During Oil Spill

Sen. Richard Shelby (R-AL) told CNN’s Candy Crowley that regulators “certainly were asleep” during the BP oil spill. But who, exactly, are the regulators? “You all are in charge of the regulators, aren’t you?” Crowley asked. “Where was the U.S. Senate, where was the House of Representatives, why didn’t they see this coming?” Shelby did not have a particularly good answer.

Joe Lieberman: “System Failed” in Preventing Attempted Times Square Bombing

On Fox News Sunday, Sen. Joe Lieberman stressed that it was luck, and not preparedness, that kept the attempted Times Square bombing from being deadly and landing suspect Faisal Shahzad in police custody. "We were lucky. We did not prevent the attempted attack," he said. "So I'd say in terms of prevention, the system failed."

Can a Bad Economy Trigger Racial Tension?

Chris Matthews kicked off a fascinating discussion, pegged to the Arizona immigration law and the debate over Faisal Shahzad’s citizenship, on how the “great American melting pot” works—or doesn’t. Atlanta Journal-Constitution columnist Cynthia Tucker said that the strained economy is leading to strained race relations: “I’ve always thought that this great melting pot… works as long as the economy good.”

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