think, is trying to assure or reach three audiences, the people of israel, wherefore uncommitted to israel's security, absolutely committed. the palestinians, we want a palestinian state, a two-state solution. and others in the region, friend and foe alike, that the united states is in the region to stay, and we're not pulling out any time soon. >> john king, the one thing we didn't hear about today was settlements. why is that, and is that going to be discussed over the next couple of days? >> reporter: well, it will be discussed in the morning. you can be certain, piers, when president obama goes to see the palestinian leader mahmoud abbas in ramallah, his top complaint is going to be, i'm not coming back to the bargaining table until israel stops building settlements in the west bank. and i'm interested in senator mitchell's views on this. i was in two israeli settlements. there is construction on both of those settlements right now. not major expansions but new subdivisions.