Plouffe: Jobs Act Will Come to Vote

Will the American Jobs Act finally come up for a vote? White House senior adviser David Plouffe told Christiane Amanpour that a vote is, in fact, expected sooner than later. On This Week, the former presidential-campaign strategist said that he expects to see a vote in October, but it can’t come soon enough: “Everybody understands the urgency of the economic situation. And so our focus is on, what Congress ought to do is act in a little more panicked fashion—because people need action right now on the economy.”

Netanyahu: Let’s Start the Peace Talks!

In the wake of Palestine’s bid for recognition by the United Nations, Benjamin Netanyahu said on Meet the Press that he’d be willing to start peace talks if Mahmoud Abbas would agree to sit down with him. The Israeli prime minister added that if Palestinians want a state, they “have to give peace in return,” adding that any leader in the White House is a friend to Israel. “Every one of the U.S. presidents represents and acts on the tremendous innate friendship of the American people to Israel,” he said.

Graham Gets Tough on Pakistan

Here’s how to draw a line in the sand. On Fox News Sunday South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham came down hard on Pakistan for providing “aid and comfort” to terrorists. The Armed Services Committee member told host Chris Wallace that, in addition to reconfiguring assistance to the country, the U.S. should be prepared to use force: “If they continue to embrace terrorism as part of their national strategy, we’re going to have to put all options on the table, including defending our troops.”

Schultz and Priebus Spar Over Economy

The gloves are off. On Face the Nation, host Bob Schieffer played mediator to Debbie Wasserman Schultz and Reince Priebus. When the Democratic chairwoman and Republican chairman bickered over the president’s economic record, Schultz was prompted to give a laundry list of the economic obstacles left by the previous administration. Priebus shot back with: “It sounds like the [Democrats’] new slogan is no longer hope and change, it’s ‘Hey, it could have been worse.’ Great bumper sticker, Debbie.”

Cameron: I Support Palestinian Statehood

Count David Cameron in. The British prime minister told host Christiane Amanpour on This Week that he supports Palestinian statehood and entry into the United Nations: “Our view is very simple … We want to see that on the ground and not just in U.N. resolutions, so our approach here at the U.N. will be to use the leverage that we have to try and maximize the chances of talks getting going again, leading to the creation of that state.” The prime minister also addressed another story that dominated headlines this year: the ‘NotW’ scandal, calling the relationship between politicians and certain news outlets “too cozy.”

Daniels: Obama in "Desperate Political Shape"

Are Republican candidates getting complacent because the president is desperate? On State of the Union, Mitch Daniels said he’s concerned that could be the case. The Indiana governor—who was nearly a 2012 contender himself—said that it would be a “huge missed opportunity” for the candidates to play it safe and rely on the president’s political turmoil as a vehicle to success: “I worry a little bit, ironically, that the Republican field or our nominee might look at that and say, ‘I’ll just play it safe. I’ll get elected as the default option.”

Panic Over "Piñata" Perry

Has the pummeling of Rick Perry sent conservative pundits reeling? Maybe a little. On Reliable Sources, Jennifer Rubin, a writer for The Washington Post blog Right Turn, said Perry’s less-than-stellar debate performance is a definite concern. “There is also a realization … that he has lacked real substance in this contest, that he repeats the same platitudes of what he’s done in Texas and kind of gestures to Texas, but hasn’t really set forth any specifics,” Rubin said. A question looms: is the panic over Perry’s performance justified?