Sunday shows preview: GOP pushes tax plan as Senate kicks off markup

Trump administration officials and Republican lawmakers are set to hit the Sunday show circuit this week to tout the GOP plan for tax reform as Congress attempts to send a bill to President Trump’s desk before leaving Washington for the year.

Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin is slated to appear on CBS’s “Face the Nation” and CNN’s “State of the Union” as he outlines the Trump administration’s principles for tax reform, while White House legislative affairs director Marc Short is set to appear on NBC’s “Meet the Press.”

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Rep. Kevin Brady (R-Texas), the chairman of the tax-writing House Ways and Means Committee, is also slated to appear on “Fox News Sunday.” Brady introduced the House version of the long-awaited tax reform bill in early November, titled the “Tax Cuts and Jobs Act.”

Those pushing the tax effort are speaking ahead of the Senate Finance Committee marking up its tax proposal on Monday. The measure, unveiled Thursday, lowers the top individual and corporate tax rates and keeps some of the tax breaks that are eliminated in the House GOP tax bill.

Sen. Pat Toomey (R-Penn.), who sits on Senate Banking and Finance committees, will appear on “Meet the Press” while Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.), who also sits on the Senate Finance Committee, will appear on “Face the Nation.” Senate Minority Whip Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) will appear on CNN.

Mnuchin has previously stated that there’s “no artificial deadline” for the Republican-held House and Senate to send a bill to the White House. Last month, Mnuchin told Fox News that it would be “extraordinary” if tax reform was passed before Congress leaves for the year.

“It took Ronald Reagan over two years on a bipartisan basis to get tax reform done,” Mnuchin said. “If we get it done this year, it will be extraordinary.” 

“Our objective is to get it on the president’s desk by December to get him to sign it this year,” he added, before saying that there’s “no artificial deadline.”

Ohio Gov. John Kasich, a moderate Republican and frequent Trump critic, will also appear on ABC and CNN. Kasich will likely address the scandal surrounding GOP Senate candidate Roy Moore, as well as the decision by some Republicans to support Moore and cast doubt on the allegations.

Kasich tweeted Friday that he has “long opposed” Moore even before a bombshell Washington Post report revealing allegations that Moore initiated sexual contact with a 14-year-old girl in 1979 while serving as an assistant district attorney at the age of 32. Moore has denied the allegations.

Here’s the full Sunday show list:

ABC’s “This Week” — DNC Chairman Tom Perez, Gov. John Kasich (R-Ohio).

NBC’s “Meet the Press” — Marc Short, White House legislative affairs director, Sens. Pat Toomey (R-Penn.) and Amy Klobuchar (D-Mont.)

CBS’ “Face the Nation” — Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin, Sens. Tim Scott (R-S.C.) and Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.)

CNN’s “State of the Union” — Mnuchin, Kasich, Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.)

“Fox News Sunday” — Rep. Kevin Brady (R-Texas), Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.)