TPMDC Sunday Roundup

Steele: Reid Should Resign As Leader Over Obama Comments
Appearing on Fox News Sunday, RNC chairman Michael Steele said that Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (R-NV) should have to resign as leader because of his private comments about Barack Obama and race during the 2008 presidential race. "There is this standard where Democrats feel that they can say these things and they can apologize when it comes from the mouths of their own. But if it comes from anyone else, it is racism," said Steele, also adding: "If (Senate Minority Leader) Mitch McConnell had said those very words that this chairman and this president would be calling for his head, and they would be labeling every Republican in the country as a racist for saying exactly what this chairman has just said."

Kaine: 'No Comparison' Between Reid And Trent Lott
Appearing on Meet The Press, DNC chairman Time Kaine rejected any comparison between the Reid controversy and Trent Lott's fall from the Republican leadership in 2002: "But I will say, anybody looking at Trent Lott's statements praising somebody who had been a pro-segregation candidate for president will see that there is no comparison between those comments and those of Senator Reid's. Now, the senator did make comments that were wrong and insensitive, and he's apologized. But he made them in the context of promoting the candidacy, the historic candidacy of Senator Obama."

Steele: 'The Book Was Written In 2008,' Updated During 2009
Also during his Fox News Sunday appearance, RNC chairman Michael Steele continued to insist that his new book was written before he became chairman (despite the fact that the book is based around events in 2009), saying he'd updated the book throughout 2009. Steele said that the book "was written in 2008," and explained: "The book was updated because of the delay. It was supposed to come out in early 2008, you know, March or April of 2008. It was delayed. And as it was delayed, I updated the book because of relevant things that were going on. Sarah Palin 's book hit. It was pushed back further."

Lieberman: 'I Don't Agree' With McCain's Radio Ad Attacking Obama
Appearing on State of the Union, Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-CT) disagreed with the new radio ad from Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) -- who Lieberman supported for president in 2008 -- accusing President Obama of "leading an extreme, left-wing crusade to bankrupt America." "I don't agree with that," said Lieberman. "I think that the president understands the importance of bringing our government back into balance. Look, he came in at a most difficult economic time, inheriting a national debt that had doubled in the preceding eight years."

Feinstein: Gitmo Leads to Recidivism, Al Qaida Recruitment
Appearing on Face The Nation, Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) discussed the recidivism rate from Guantanamo. "They come out of Gitmo and they are heroes in this world. This world is the only world that's going to really be accepting of them. Therefore, the tendency is to go back. And I think the Gitmo experience is not one that leads itself to rehabilitation, candidly," said Feinstein, also adding: "Well, I agree with those that have said that Guantanamo has really been a recruiting tool for Al Qaida, that it has not been helpful to us."

Romer: Big Bonus Season 'Offends The American People. It Offends Me'
Appearing on State of the Union, White House Council of Economic Advisers Chair Christina Romer expressed outrage at the expected large bank bonuses. "It does seem really ridiculous. We have had to take extraordinary actions to rescue the financial system. We always did it because that's what had to be done for the American people. No one wanted to bail out the banks just for the banks' sake. It's because we know that credit is the lifeblood of a modern economy," said Romer, also adding: "This big bonus season - of course it offends the American people. It offends me."

Romer: Obama Convinced That Cadillac Tax Is Important, Can Work On 'Design Issues'
Appearing on This Week, White House Council of Economic Advisers Chair Christina Romer stood by the proposed excise tax on high-end health plans. "All right, so the -- the important thing the president has said that he thinks that this excise tax on Cadillac plans is important. He's been convinced by experts across the ideological spectrum that say this is one of those things that genuinely slows the growth rate of costs, and anybody that's worried about the budget deficit knows that we've got to -- to do that," said Romer. "You know, what the president has said is, you know, he's always open to -- you know, there are design issues here. He's going to be continuing to -- to work with the Congress to say, are there ways to -- to make it work better? But we want to maintain that -- that crucial focus on cost containment."

Schwarzenegger: Democrats 'Get The Rap' On National Security, Obama Doing All He Can
Appearing on Meet The Press, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger (R-CA) defended President Obama on national security: "I think that he's doing everything that he can. I think that, you know, Democrats a lot of times get the rap, you know, they're not strong on security and all of those kinds of things. I think that he has talked about the issues, I think that he's been fighting for the issues."