Sunday Talk Shows

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CBS Face the Nation
Our focus on Sunday will partially be on these debates. Debates have become such a part of the American political process that people tend to forget these debates haven't been around that long. The first debate was actually in 1960, just 52 years ago when Jack Kennedy and Richard Nixon squared off. And there weren't many after that because Lyndon Johnson wouldn't debate, and Nixon had been burned once with that first debate so he wouldn't do it again. Gerald Ford decided the best chance he had to be elected in his own right was to debate, so he debated Jimmy Carter. And now here we are today and they're as big a deal - or as potentially as big a deal - as the conventions.

I'll get into Wednesday's debate and what to watch for with our panels, but it's safe to bet they'll also come up when I talk to two of the Republican party's strongest voices, Gov. Chris Christie and former House Speaker Newt Gingrich. Gingrich went head-to-head with Romney in what felt like countless debates during the primaries, and I think he'll have some advice for the candidate on what to do in Denver. I'm also looking forward to asking both of them what Romney needs to do in general going forward to win this thing. They're both two guests who have this really unique habit of actually answering my questions, so that's an added bonus.

Then I'll turn my focus to zero in on battleground politics with Rep. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., University of Virginia's Larry Sabato and Democratic strategist Robert Shrum. Shrum wrote a neat piece this week with going through the history and trend that challengers tend to "win" the first debate against an incumbent president, but cautioned that with Romney "spontaneity invites calamity," and debates invite spontaneity.

Finally I'll turn to another panel to look at some of these big ticket items. In fact, we'll kind of be looking at the big ticket items Lehrer is focusing on Wednesday. Gingrich comes back to the table to offer his ideas on governance in the country today. The Washington Post's legendary Bob Woodward will share his insight into politics and government in general. Moody Analytics' Mark Zandi joins to share the state of the economy and where it could be heading, former DC Chancellor of Schools Michelle Rhee offers her take on the state of education and Hedrick Smith, author of Who Stole the American Dream will help sort it all out.

CBS 60 Minutes
The Longest War - Eleven years after 9/11, Lara Logan talks to the top U.S. commander in Afghanistan, Gen. John Allen and to Hamid Karzai, the country's president, in frank interviews about what is, and what is not, working in the war. Max McClellan is the producer. Watch a preview

Arnold - In his first interview since revelations about an out-of-wedlock child he fathered with his housekeeper, former California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger discusses his infidelities and reflects on the life he has written about in his upcoming autobiography, "Total Recall: My Unbelievably True Life."

ABC This Week
Days before the critical first presidential debate next week, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie and White House senior adviser David Plouffe join George Stephanopoulos to discuss the latest in the 2012 presidential contest, Sunday on "This Week."

President Barack Obama and Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney will stand on the same stage for the first time next Wednesday in Denver, as they face off in the first presidential debate of the general election. Is the debate showdown make-or-break for Romney, as he looks to turn around his campaign just weeks before Election Day? With the debate's focus on domestic policy, can President Obama defend his first-term record on the economy? And as Obama gains ground in the latest battleground state polls, can Romney do anything to close the gap in the vital swing states that will decide the election?

Plus, the powerhouse roundtable debates all the week's politics, with former Mississippi governor and RNC chair Haley Barbour; former Vermont governor and DNC chair Howard Dean, founder of Democracy for America; Democratic strategist and ABC News contributor Donna Brazile; political strategist and ABC News political analyst Matthew Dowd; and POLITICO senior political reporter Maggie Haberman

While the campaigns play the expectations game, what does each candidate need to do to appeal to voters in the key first debate next week? As the candidates duel on the campaign trail, can Romney re-shape the electoral map with less than 40 days until Election Day? How will Rep. Todd Akin's decision to stay in the Missouri Senate race impact the battle for control of the Senate? And as more details emerge on the attack on the U.S. consulate in Benghazi, will President Obama be put on the defensive on terrorism and foreign policy?

Meet the Press
President Obama hunkers down this weekend ahead of Wednesday’s first debate. What is the president’s plan of attack for round one with Romney? We’ll ask his senior adviser and architect of his 2008 campaign, David Plouffe

New Jersey’s outspoken Republican Governor Chris Christie, a key supporter of Mitt Romney, joins us just three days before the all-important first presidential debate. What does Romney need to accomplish in his first bout with President Obama? Does the campaign need to reset after tough polling numbers in key swing states? We’ll ask Chris Christie this Sunday on Meet the Press.

With the first debate scheduled for Wednesday, the race enters its final phase. What do the candidates need to do in the homestretch and during the debates to sway voters still sizing up their choices? And how much can the race change between now November 6th? Our roundtable weighs in: Conservative activist and founder of the Faith and Freedom Coalition, Ralph Reed; Fmr. Gov. Ed Rendell (D-PA); the BBC’s Katty Kay; and NBC News Political Director Chuck Todd

Fox News Sunday
Presidential campaign; polls; debates: Rep. Paul Ryan (R-Wisc.). Author Robert Caro ("The Passage of Power&quot .

CNN State of The Union
Exclusive: Senator John McCain He debated both Mitt Romney and Barack Obama, and gives us a unique perspective as Camp Romney tries to manage expectations. We’ll also ask him about the Obama campaign contemplating a play for his home state of Arizona, and we’ll get his take on the investigation into the Libya attack and Syria’s Chemical Weapons.

Exclusive: Obama Campaign Senior Adviser David Axelrod drops in to answer questions about debate preparations, swing state strategy, and Obama’s promises

Exclusive: Governor Martin O’Malley & Senator Roy Blunt on what voters want to hear from the candidates during the home stretch. We also expect to talk about the looming fiscal cliff, what Senator Blunt is doing to avoid it, and how it will affect jobs and the economic recovery.

And we’ll round it out with Republican Consultant Alex Castellanos, Pollster and Democratic Strategist Celinda Lake, and CNN Senior Congressional Correspondent Dana Bash. We’ll talk about Campaign Ad strategy and how it’s changed in the face of so much early voting. And Dana will give us a preview of her forthcoming documentary on Paul Ryan.

Fareed Zakaria GPS
On GPS this week: Fareed speaks with Mahmoud Ahmadinejad who has been in New York this week on his final visit to the United Nations as Iran’s president, about the crisis in Syria, relations with Israel, and his country’s nuclear ambitions.

“I have always maintained that the Zionist regime has no historical root in the region…why would I say that the Jews have no historical root?” Ahmadinejad says. “They were also in Iran, a great many of them. So that means that Iran belongs to the Jews? Iran belongs to Iranians, whether they’re Jews, whether they’re Muslims or Christians. Please pay close attention here, sir. The borderline is quite thin. Zionism is a doctrine, is a school of thought, is an aggressive school of thought, has nothing to do with the Jewish people.”

Also, Fareed sits down with a Bain Capital Managing Director Steve Pagliuca, who explains what his company does, and talks about the Mitt Romney he knows.

Melissa Harris Perry Show
Weekends, 10am-12pm ET

Up w/Chris Hayes
On tomorrow's Up w/ Chris Hayes, we'll be discussing the Supreme Court's return to Washington -- and its absence from the presidential campaign. We'll look ahead to some of the landmark cases on the docket in the next term, gleaning clues to possible outcomes from the justices' past decisions. We'll also examine President Obama's speech to the United Nations General Assembly this week, where he offered a vigorous defense of free speech in the same city where "anti-jihad" ads have been making news.
Joining Chris tomorrow at 8 AM ET on MSNBC will be:

Mona Eltahawy (@monaeltahawy), activist and award-winning columnisr. Eltahawy was arrested on Tuesday night after spray-painting over one of the controversial "anti-jihad" ads appearing in New York City subway stations.

Jeffrey Toobin (@JeffreyToobin), author of "The Oath: The Obama White House and the Supreme Court," senior legal analyst at CNN and staff writer at "The New Yorker."

Nan Aron, president of Alliance for Justice, which she founded in 1979.

Barbara Arnwine, President and executive director of the Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, member of the National Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty and Equal Justice Works.

Akhil Amar, Sterling Professor of law and political science at Yale University where he teaches constitutional law at both Yale College and Yale Law School, author of "America's Unwritten Constitution: the Precedents and Principles We Live By."

Elise Boddie, director of litigation for the NAACP Legal Defense Fund.

The Chris Matthews Show
Presidential debate; polls: John Heilemann, New York Magazine; Howard Fineman, Huffington Post; Kelly O'Donnell, NBC; Trish Regan, Bloomberg.

Univision's Al Punto
Otto Pérez Molina, the president of Guatemala, and Juan Manuel Santos, the president of Colombia
Romney campaign surrogate Adolfo Franco
Obama campaign surrogate Freddy Balsera

C-SPAN's "Newsmakers,"
Shaun Donovan

Bloomberg's Political Capital
Senator Richard G. Lugar of Indiana, the ranking Republican on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee

TV One’s “Washington Watch”
Former Sec. of State Colin Powell

C-Span's Washington Journal
7:00am -Phones

7:45am -Dr. Jill Stein, Green Party Presidential Candidate

Topic: Guest will discuss her candidacy for President on the Green Party ticket, issues that she cares about, the Green party platform, and challenges of third parties breaking through the current two-party system.

8:30 am-Virgil Goode, Constitution Party Presidential Candidate and Former U.S. Representative, Virginia 1997-2009

Topic: Former Congressman Virgil Goode on April 21st won the nomination for the Constitution Party on the first ballot. Winning 203 of 403 possible votes, the former Virginia Representative won on the first ballot with 50.37%. Two less votes would’ve required a second ballot.

9:15 am-Donald Green, Author, “Third-Party Matters”

Topic: From the antislavery Liberty Party in 1841 to Ross Perot’s Reform party in the early 90s, guest will discuss the evolution and impact role of third parties in the United States.

Reliable Sources
Presidential campaign; conservatives' reactions to polls; entertainment TV: Ana Marie Cox, GQ; Ramesh Ponnuru, the National Review; Chrystia Freeland, Reuters. Political impersonations: Darrell Hammond. NFL labor dispute: Gregg Doyel,

Sunday Breakfast Menu
(snip)
David Plouffe, a White House adviser, will also appear on ABC and NBC, discussing Wednesday’s debate in Denver and Mr. Obama’s recent gains in polls in key battleground states.
http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/09/29/sunday-breakfast-menu-sept-30/

[PearliePoo2]

1. Thank you!

Nice to see what's coming up.

[hrmjustin]

2. Great post my friend.

I think obama has won every sunday show since his convention.

[femmocrat]

3. Hooray, "60 Minutes" is back (new season, finally)!

Thanks for the the good news. Bad news, Lara Logan is doing the interview. sigh.....

Ugh, Christie is all over the place like fly shit.

[russspeakeasy]

4. You're the best. Thanks..

[winstars]

5. Thanks! Oh God, look at the panel on FTN, particularly gruesome!!! and, a good day for John McCain!

I guess Bob will have all Democrats on the next show right before the NEXT debate since he has all Republicans on this week!!! WTF...

More Newt... Thanks for nothing MSM

And where is my friend Bay Buchanan this lovely Sunday? Has she finally been committed or...