Problem: Senators Stress Need for Deficit Talks to Yield Agreement

WASHINGTON -- The Democratic chairman of the Senate Budget Committee says if members of a Senate deficit group fail to come to grips soon with the deficit problem, "we won't be relevant to this discussion."

But North Dakota's Kent Conrad declined in an appearance on NBC's "Meet the Press" to say specifically where the so-called "Gang of Six" Democrats and Republicans stand in discussions on various debt-reduction strategies.

Appearing on the same show Sunday, Oklahoma Republican Sen. Tom Coburn said, "The country can't afford for us not to have an agreement."

Neither Conrad nor Coburn would get into specifics about the group's discussions. Coburn did repeat his general opposition to tax increases. Conrad said he believes the American people would support tax reform as one way toward deficit reduction.

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Summary: The Democratic chairman of the Senate Budget Committee says if members of a Senate deficit group fail to come to grips soon with the deficit problem, we won't be relevant to this discussion.


Problem: #BringBackNashville gains momentum, watch Lennon and Maisy perform

Before you go, we thought you'd like these...

After news broke on May 12 that ABC was canceling "Nashville" after four seasons, Nashies are banding together to bring back the hit country music drama. Let's face it -- we're not sure we can even go on without the sweet songs from Rayna, Deacon, Maddie and Daphne, Will, Scarlett and Gunnar.

Some of the show's major players from Sam Palladio (Gunnar) to Clare Bowen (Scarlett) to Chris Carmack (Will) have joined the growing number of people who've taken to Twitter to use the hashtag #BringBackNashville as an online petition. Hopefully their impassioned pleas along with that of fans will convince studio execs to bring back the show.

Until then, enjoy a 360 performance of Lennon and Maisy Stella singing a song from the show's catalogue, "I Have a Life That's Good." The performance is 360 degrees, which means all you have to do is click on the video and drag your mouse around to see the entire cast of "Nashville at the performance.

What do you think of 360? Tell us your thoughts in the comment section below!

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Summary: Missing Nashville as much as we are? Watch a video of Maddie and Daphne singing one of the hit songs from the show.


Problem: Lincoln Chafee raises Stakes in defense of Trump's latest target: Secretariat

On Friday night, Donald Trump added a new name to his litany of campaign-trail villains, which includes China, Mexico and the Obama administration.

Related: Here's why Donald Trump won't win the Republican presidential nomination

At a huge rally in Alabama, the Republican frontrunner went after the legendary racehorse Secretariat, saying the 1973 Triple Crown winner “wasn’t one of the best”.

On Saturday one of Trump’s Democratic rivals for the White House, the former Rhode Island governor Lincoln Chafee, fired back.

In a statement to the Guardian, Chafee said: “This statement is another splash of nonsense that comes out of Trump’s mouth. Every true horseman recognizes Secretariat as one of the best racehorses ever.”

Secretariat’s record-breaking performance at the 1973 Belmont Stakes is considered one of the greatest feats by man or beast in US sports.

Chafee is perhaps the most knowledgeable presidential candidate from either party on the subject of horse racing. He spent seven years as a farrier on harness tracks across the country.

Chafee did say he could see one area of the great racehorse’s record in which his Republican rival might have had a point.

He added: “The only thing Trump could be referencing here is Secretariat’s record as a sire, where he didn’t leave a great legacy.”

Trump referenced that record in his remark about Secretariat, which came shortly after he said “like they used to say, Secretariat doesn’t produce slow horses”. Trump was touting his family’s intelligence – his uncle was a professor at MIT, and the billionaire “believes in the gene thing”.

Chafee’s statement was his most direct attack on Trump yet. However, it is unclear whether it will produce any political benefit. In a five-strong Democratic field led by former secretary of state Hillary Clinton and the surging Vermont senator Bernie Sanders, Chafee is polling at 0%.

That lack of support was recently parodied by the late-night talkshow host Conan O’Brien.

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Summary: Democratic candidate, a former farrier, calls rival’s comment ‘another splash of nonsense’ after Republican frontrunner derides horse’s performance


Problem: Report: Michelle Williams and Jason Segel dating for months

Jason Segel makes plenty of people laugh, but the actor has reportedly been putting a smile on the famous face of Michelle Williams for a while now.

"The Muppets" star and the three-time Oscar nominee allegedly have been dating for months.

"I've never seen her happier," a source told People. The couple are to said to have been introduced by Williams' longtime pal and "Dawson's Creek" costar Busy Philipps.

A first image of the twosome strolling the streets of New York hand-in-hand surfaced this week.

"They're much more serious than everybody thinks ... they're really happy," another source told Us Weekly.

Segel, who will be seen in Judd Apatow's upcoming "This Is 40," has never really enjoyed such a high-profile romance. Williams had a daughter, Matilda, with Heath Ledger, who died in 2008.

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Photos: Jason Segel and Michelle Williams. Credits: Larry Busacca / Getty Images, left; Everett Kennedy Brown / EPA, right.

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Summary:
Is Michelle Williams dating Jason Segel? Odd couple alert: Reports say Oscar nominee Michelle Williams has been dating funnyman Jason Segel for months now, and the pair are said to be deliriously happy.