in particular i don't form the americans about the latest progress in the region did george mitchell manage to achieve anything during his trip. unfortunately we still don't know anything about the results of mitchell's last trip but we hope that our american colleagues will brief us in greater detail on the trip and its outcome. at the company mr sultan of that my last question to you is anything going to change in the middle east in russia's view. good out and i just i'm going to bust a move as the saying goes hope dies last we should have an objective view of the situation we shouldn't fall into despair but we shouldn't be too optimistic the most important thing is to take a scrutinizing look at the problems encountered by the peace process and work together to put including the parties concerned i.e. israel and the tips towards the solution of these problems with an aim of achieving our common goal which is i repeat a comprehensive palestinian israeli settlement with the latest. sign of thank you very much for your insight you. wealthy british. markets. can. find out what's reall

george mitchell, our united states envoy, goes back to the middle east i think next week. what might another round of shuttle diplomacy accomplish? it seems like we've had shuttle diplomacy forever. >> george mitchell and i worked together on the northern ireland peace agreement. >> larry: i know. >> one of the things you learn in this business is that you can have failure after failure and hit obstacle after obstacle but you just got to keep going because in the end it can be done. and you know in the end with northern ireland, it was done. but it was tough every inch of the way, and we were constantly hitting snags and difficulties. but if it's important enough, and this is important enough, then we're just going to keep going. >> larry: you talked about the cardinal importance of the state building exercise of the palestinian authority. how is that exercise going? what would constitute what you would call real change? >> the real change is in the palestinian authority providing security of a high quality. in other words, if you go back a few years, there were often mili

you said george mitchell is going over there. >> we are having and will be having meetings on both sides here prior to george's travel. >> on both sides? >> yeah. >> say it again. >> again, we are -- we expect to have, you know, discussions with senior representatives on both sides. we are still working to set those up. >> could be in washington? >> it could be in washington, or it could be both, you know, in washington and in the region. >> is it your understanding that the overwhelming majority of mr. netanyahu's cabinet will opposed to the deal? >> that's a better question for the israeli government. >> but -- >> i can't. we understand the political challenge that the prime minister has faced and is facing. we'll leave it to the israelis. >> i guess my question is it your feeling with the current composition of the cabinet -- >> if we thought it was imsurmountable, we wouldn't be doing what we are doing. >> i have a question about viktor bout. he would be lured to the united states to testify before the helsinki commission. did the thai discussion say anything about viktor bout? >> le

president obass will be on his way to cairo as will george mitchell. there's a follow-on committee meeting won the arab league, i believe, tomorrow. we'll be looking for the arab league to continue to support this effort. senator mitchell, the peace effort. senator mitchell, before he returns to the united states will also make stops in brussels and paris late they are week. >> when you say -- what specifically would you like to see out of the arab league meeting? >> well, the support that -- statements of support that have come through previous meetings, we think, have been very valuable. they embody the support that we've tried to build and i think successfully have built within the region, so we're looking for a continuation of that support, encourage optometrist continue through this process and there'll be follow-on meetings next week at the working level, george mitchell's deputy david haile will have -- i think he had a follow-on meeting today, there'll be follow-on meetings next week at the working level on the substance inside the process. >> b

george mitchell will be following up. i will be very judicious and what i say. the secretary offered her thoughts on what needs to be done, now. we will fall with george mitchell next week. >> do you have anything to say on the case of the palestinian activist? he has been imprisoned by the israelis. >> i will take the question and see what we know about that. >> >> former president carter expressed concern about his treatment. he is a non-violent movement leader. there has been concern that the israelis put him in jail. >> it seems as if what the secretary is trying to do is to full -- is two-fold. the plan to do this indirectly? can you say that yes you are going to do this indirectly? >> suddenly, it seems as if she is more explicitly addressing the palestinians. >> again, as we have said, it is up to both sides to make the difficult decisions to reach an agreement. we are prepared to do everything we can to support them. as we go forward, if there is an impasse, the united states will be prepared to offer proposals to overcome those obstacles. it is ultimate

. >> it now an unofficial dialogue which is being conducted by george mitchell. >> because there is no direct kpun cases. >> i think this is a-- i think for both the palestinians and the israel this is a tragic situation. >> lots of people now talk about this big idea including the prime minister who has done a remarkable job in terms of developing institutions and israelies will acknowledge that and have loosened some of their check points and things like that. >> that's right. >> is that, and he said this to me sunday at a thing i did with him and the former foreign minister, you know, that he expected to be on track to create some kind of palestinian statehood. >> by the end of next year. >> by the end of next year, that's right. >> that is his view. >> exactly. now what do you think of that idea that the palestinians will continue to do the thing they are trying to do from the ground up, proving, you know that they can accept responsibility, whatever they need, how would they define it, not me. and that they can go to the world opinion and to the united nations and say -- >> well t

>> and on his second day in office, president obama appointed a special envoy to the region, george mitchell. >> he, in effect, had no strategy. it was an effort to repair american credibility with one audience, the arabs and the muslims, but it seemed to pay very little attention to the political realities in israel. >> talks between the israelis and the palestinians had stalled for two years, and to move them along, president obama insisted that israel stop building jewish settlements where the palestinians planned to build their state. >> he wants to see a stop to settlements, not some settlements, not outposts, not natural growth exceptions. >> israeli prime minister benjamin netanyahu eventually agreed to a ten-month freeze on new construction, and at the end of august, the white house announced the resumption of long stalled face-to-face negotiations between the israelis and the palestinians. >> this moment of opportunity may not soon come again. they cannot afford to let it slip away. >> but it did. at the end of september, the settlement freeze ended, and the u.s. could not persuade

envoy abroad, that is, senator george mitchell. he is doing a wonderful job. i also want to thank you about [unintelligible] host: before you go, why george mitchell? caller: he is actually doing an extremely tough task at hand, dealing with the issues of the u.s. envoy. i believe he will get some results in the end. host: are you watching us, or listening in to us in rio? caller: online. host: you do so -- how do you do so? is it off the internet, or we also have applications for the iphone and things like that. caller: i am listening through c-span.org. host: thanks for the plug. you can also listen to our video library as well. virginia, democrats line, sandra. caller: i am going to plug two men, both of them my senators from virginia. first, mark warner who is working with bob corker, a republican from tennessee, and the two are working to get legislation through. that is what we need, people putting their minds together and coming up with they way to get things done. and the other one i admire is the other senator, jim webb, who is a man who has served in

we always begin that negotiation -- i can remember very well with senator george mitchell when he was majority leader and we did the very complicated clean air act reauthorization in 1990. and he would begin every authorization by reminding people that nothing is agreed upon until everything is agreed upon. we negotiate that way here all the time. so if all of a sudden nothing is agreed upon and that is the twhai this treaty was negotiated -- if nothing is agreed upon until everything is agreed upon, when you take one piece out of there and change it unilaterally, nothing is agreed upon. and at that point, you reopen all of the other issues which are some of them contentious, which were dirvetion which meme may have a different view on and which will certainly affect our relationship at this point in time. if this weren't if this were so -- were so substantive that i didn't think we were buying a pick in a peke, then i would say okay, we have to do this. but on security people, our national defense community, our intense community, there isn't anybody who works on this day to day, our

i want to welcome george mitchell, please give him a one-third of the supreme court here. justice ginsberg is hiding out. is here. [applause] one of my favorites, justice ginsburg, is hiding out here in the front. it's hard to see. together, elena kagan is in the house. [applause] i want to also acknowledge somebody who i rely on day in, day out, who is not only a great vice president, but is also -- one of my dearest friends; joe biden is in the house. [applause] and to all the members of the administration, and members of congress, and all the state and local leaders who are with us today, welcome. i want to thank joshua redman for gracing us with his talent and helping us with the music. [applause] and finally, i want to thank the rabbis and lay leaders who have traveled from all over the country to be here. yes, you can give yourselves a round of applause. [applause] now, tonight, we gather to celebrate a story as simple as it is timeless. it's a story of ancient israel, suffering under the yoke of empire, where jews were forbidden to practice their religion openly, an

so former senator george mitchell is in the region all the time, goes back and forth. secretary clinton has had i don't know how many meetings trying to figure out how to make this work. she said she just spent seven hours with prime minister netanyahu in new york, having spent seven hours with prime minister netanyahu i know how hard that is. [laughter] >> he is not alone. i think on the contrary. i think he is a great deal of support in israel and in the united states. but i think that the way it is set up, or at least it was when we were in office, dennis ross was the negotiator. i would go in and meet at a variety of times commented president clinton would get engaged at various phases where we thought that we could move the process of further. and so that is the way i foresee this going on, which is that president obama has set the course, has made very clear what he wants, a two-state solution, security for israel, and that it negotiators are trying to move some of the underbrush and try to sort out and put ideas on the table, and that this is a priority for the

he met with george mitchell and our middle east team for about three hours. he will have a meeting with secretary clinton tomorrow morning. additionally, the secretary spoke with president abbas twice yesterday to work through issues in anticipation of the meeting tomorrow morning. surely, the secretary will meet with the nigerian foreign minister and it will discuss regional issues, particularly the everytion in could jabba coast, including the election and the progress of the u.s.- nigeria binational relationship. we command good look jonathan for convening the summit. -- goodluck jonathan for in meeting the summit. -- convening the summit. day to he meeting to day t review the situation. they talked about a range of regional issues, including the situation in the western balkans in kosovo and ongoing efforts in which albania has been a very constructive player in working for european integration. albania itself has elections coming up in may of next year. the secretary welcomed perspective on that. albania has a special forces -- special forces troops depl

as the debate on the treaty wrapped up in this room, senate majority leader at the time george mitchell commended president bush for his role in negotiating the agreement. he read a letter from acting secretary of state laurence eagleburger which encouraged ratification. this expression of bipartisanship at that time was made remarkable by the fact that the senators assembled would soon return home to campaign in the 1992 election. that election was one month away, and democrats and republicans came together and supported ratification. madam president, we all remember the contentious nature of that election just like the period we're living through now. even within that environment, both parties came together to do the right thing for national security. we have to do this again. it's critically important that this treaty be ratified. and with that, i would yield the floor. a senator: madam president? the presiding officer: the senator from oregon. mr. merkley: madam president, it's my privilege to rise today to join with my colleagues from new hampshire and pennsylvania and colorado in

and i want to start by recognizing my special envoy for middle east peace, george mitchell, who is here. please give him a round of applause. and all the other outstanding members of the diplomatic corps who are here. one third of the supreme court is here. one of my favorites, justice ginsburg, is hiding out here in the front. she really is here. its hard to see. justice breyer is here. and -- wheres justice breyer? there he is -- right here. and our newest addition and former colleague of mine when we were teaching together, elena kagan is in the house. i want to also acknowledge somebody who i rely on day in, day out, who is not only a great vice president, but is also -- one of my dearest friends; joe biden is in the house. and to all the members of the administration, and members of congress, and all the state and local leaders who are with us today, welcome. i want to thank joshua redman for gracing us with his talent and helping us with the music. and finally, i want to thank the rabbis and lay leaders who have traveled from all over the country to be here. yes, you can give your

so, former senator george mitchell is in the region all of the time, goes back and forth. has had, i do not know how many meetings, trying to figure out how to make this work. she says she just spent seven hours with prime minister benjamin netanyahu in new york. having done that myself, i know how hard that is. he is not alone. i think on the contrary. i think that he has a great deal of support in israel and in the united states. i think that the way it is set up, at least it was when we were in office, was that dennis ross was a negotiator, i would go in and meet at a variety of times, and then president clinton would get in gauged at various phases where we thought we could move the process -- get engage, at various phases where we thought we could move the process forward. that is what i think is going on, which as president obama has said the course, made clear what he wants in a two-state solution, security for israel, and that the negotiators are trying to move some of the underbrush, and try to sort out and put ideas on the table, and that this is a priority for t

i voted with george mitchell on a matter relating to iners -- miners and that was a big mistake.oll call sheets with every senator's name and how they voted. he took the roll call sheet, had it framed, had minding circled in red and literally -- literally, had it screwed to the ornate door frame in his office then as the chairman of the appropriations committee. so every single senator coming to see him would walk out, and that i had, they'd see biden circled in red and know darn well better not vote against robert c. byrd ever. you think i am joking. i not joking. then i got in his good graces. i tried to run for president and said i don't want any senators running for president. i said, why, mr. leader? he said, because you never come back to vote when i need you. so i made a promise that no matter where i was, if he called me and said he needed my vote, i'd drop whatever i was doing and i'd come. and i kept the commitment -- the only one, i might add. that got me back into his good graces again. the points is that this is a man that knew exactly what he was doing. after i was

george's county. raymond brown was shot and killed in 2006 in mitchell bill during a contest the man was convicted in october and faces up to 155 years in prison. stay tuned tonight at 5:00 for results from the court room. >>> mopurners are paying their respects for a fashion designer from mcclain was found dead in a new york city hotel. her ex-boyfriend was charged with murder from strangulation. >> when we continue, a special guest crashes this sat at oprah australian adventure. next, caught on camera, plus, >> this is just uncalled for in the >> nfl> calls are mounting for an nfl assistant coach resignation after some on sports the my conduct. later, it could be your best friend and a blizzard for it will introduce you to the snow back. all that plus adam caskey will talk about our next task force noted >>> we are continuing to monitor the brutal blast of winter weather making its way across the country a foot of snow has blanketed the midwest and that massive system is moving east. we have more on the real danger that the storm is posing to people. >> it is typically a sign that winter has arrive

mitchell: and stormed american shores in 1964. >> this is them coming off the plane. >> harry benson accompanied them-- john, paul, george and ringodocument that first american tour. he would spend the next ten years capturing intimate pictures of them. among the most iconic, a pillow fight in a paris hotel. >> it was taken the night they were told we are number one in america. >> mitchell: lennon kicked it off by whacking his song-writing partner paul mccartney. >> john lennon said "we are going to look childish." paul is having a drink, and john comes up behind him and bangs him in the back with a pillow. >> mitchell: the pictures catch the closeness and the competition between lennon and mccartney. >> john and i, you have to say it was very special. i mean it really was too kids coming together who loved music, and who knew what they wanted to do, but didn't know how to do it. >> mitchell: the competition lead to the bitter breakup of the beatles in 1970, but years later, mccartney remembered the closeness. >> we kind of taught each other. and we, you know, we learned at the same time. so we climbed the same ladder. we did have