Fox News Sunday in the News

Fight over Obama's school talk teaches sorry lesson
USA Today - September 8

Former House speaker Newt Gingrich and Sen. Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn., told Fox News Sunday the speech was a fine idea. "If I were a teacher, I'd take advantage of it," Alexander, a former education secretary, said.

Obama's school speech released; A transcript shows the president will exhort students to work hard. Some critics said he would push 'socialism.'
Los Angeles Times - September 8

Other Republicans have taken a calmer approach from the start. Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich of Georgia defended the idea of the speech, telling Fox News Sunday: "It is good to have the president of the United States saying to young people across America stay in school and do your homework. It's good for America."

Secretary Endorses Obama's Talk For Students
The New York Times - September 7

Newt Gingrich, the former House speaker, said on ''Fox News Sunday,'' ''It is good to have the president of the United States say to young people across America, 'Stay in school, study and do your homework.' ''

And Senator Lamar Alexander, Republican of Tennessee, said on the same show, ''Of course the president of the United States should be able to address students.''

''If I were a teacher,'' Mr. Alexander added, ''I'd take advantage of it.''

White House Official Resigns After Flood of G.O.P. Criticism
The New York Times - September 7

Howard Dean, the former chairman of the Democratic National Committee, defended Mr. Jones on Sunday, saying he was being penalized for not realizing what the petition he signed in 2004 was.

''This guy's a Yale-educated lawyer,'' Mr. Dean said on ''Fox News Sunday.'' ''He's a best-selling author about his specialty. I think he was brought down, and I think it's too bad. Washington's a tough place that way, and I think it's a loss for the country.''

Obama Readies Reform Specifics; In Health-Care Address, President Is Expected to Take Firmer Positions
The Washington Post - September 7

Sen. Lamar Alexander (Tenn.), the third-ranking Republican in the Senate, suggested that Obama use Wednesday's address to scale back his ambitions.

"I think he should say, 'My fellow Americans, let's start over and let's focus on cost -- cost to you when you buy your health insurance, cost to the American people for their government, and let's do it step by step,' " Alexander said on "Fox News Sunday." "Let's don't try to change the whole system at once."

Obama-speech furor called 'silly'; Schools talk backlash prompts backpedaling
The Washington Times - September 7

"If I were a teacher, I'd take advantage of it, and I'd put up Lincoln and Eisenhower and Reagan and teach about the presidency, and then I'd put up the head of North Korea and say, 'In that country, you go to jail if you criticize the president. In our country, you have a constitutional right to do it,' " Mr. Alexander said on "Fox News Sunday."

Nevertheless, Mr. Alexander said some of the concern was understandable "because, you know, people say, 'Oh, here's another Washington takeover.' "

Administration looks past Jones controversy ; Job czar's resignation caps series of missteps
The Washington Times - September 7

On Sunday, former Democratic National Committee Chairman Howard Dean called the Jones resignation "a loss for the country," adding that he didn't think Mr. Jones agreed with the petition he signed.

"All of us campaigning for office have had people throw clipboards in front of our face and ask us to sign. And he learned the hard way you ought not to do that. But I don't think he really thinks the government had anything to do with causing 9/11," he told "Fox News Sunday."

Obama aide quits, slams critics; Van Jones, citing a 'smear campaign' from the right, concedes he's become a distraction for the administration.
Los Angeles Times - September 7

Conservatives such as Beck and some lawmakers have pointed to the proliferation of White House czars as a point of concern.

"We have about two dozen so-called czars -- the pay czar, the car czar, all these czars in the White House," Sen. Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.) said on "Fox News Sunday."

"And that really is an affront to the Constitution, because the Constitution was set up to say that the president is the executive, but the people who manage the government -- the secretaries, the Cabinet members, of which I was one -- have to be approved by the Congress and have to report to the Congress."