Sunday shows preview: Brittney Griner back on U.S. soil after nearly 10 months; Jan. 6 committee considering criminal referrals

WNBA star Brittney Griner will be the talk of the town on this week’s Sunday shows circuit following her return to the U.S. after being imprisoned for 10 months in Russia.

A host of national security experts, including White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby and former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, will appear on shows to discuss the prisoner swap that saw Griner’s return in exchange for Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout.

The Biden administration announced its successful deal with Russia on Thursday, which freed Bout from his 25-year sentence for conspiring to murder Americans in exchange for Griner’s release from a nine year sentence for carrying illegal cannabis oil.

Kirby will appear on ABC’s “This Week” and will be joined by Pompeo on “Fox News Sunday.

Special presidential envoy for hostage affairs Roger Carstens will join CNN’s “State of the Union” to discuss the details of the exchange, which he oversaw in the United Arab Emirates.

Both countries brought their prisoners to the Middle Eastern country for the switch and Carstens accompanied Griner back to Texas for medical care and counseling at a San Antonio military facility.

Meanwhile, the White House warned on Friday that Russia’s relationship with Iran has become closer, something national security experts may also address.

Kirby shared that the two countries are “considering the establishment of a joint production line for lethal drones in Russia,” raising concerns in the U.S.

Fiona Hill, a former Russia adviser to ex-President Trump, will talk Moscow on CBS’s “Face the Nation” while former Director of National Intelligence John Ratcliff appears on Fox News’s “Sunday Morning Futures.”

On the home front, the House select committee investigating the Jan. 6, 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol announced this week that it plans to release a final report, including a list of criminal referrals, on Dec. 21.

Rep. Adam Kinzinger (Ill.), one of two Republicans on the Jan. 6 committee, will discuss the announcement on “This Week,” as members continue to debate who they will refer to the Department of Justice to potentially launch investigations or file charges.

Reports published Friday indicate that the committee is considering criminal referrals for Trump, former White House chief of staff Mark Meadows, attorney John Eastman, former DOJ official Jeffrey Clark and former Trump attorney Rudy Giuliani for their connections to the insurrection.

Kinzinger’s colleague Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) will join “Face the Nation” to review the Jan. 6 committee’s recent work and future plans.

Shows will likely ask guests about Sen. Kyrsten Sinema’s (Ariz.) switch from the Democratic party to an independent political affiliation this week.

Fellow independent Sen. Bernie Sanders (Vt.) will join CNN’s “State of the Union” and may weigh in on Sinema’s choice. Their Republican colleague Sen. Marsha Blackburn (Tenn.) may also address the change on Fox News’s “Sunday Morning Futures.”

ABC’s “This Week” — Kirby; Kinzinger; NASA Johnson Space Center Director Vanessa Wyche

NBC’s “Meet the Press” — Sen. Jon Tester (D-Mont.); Former U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York Preet Bharara

CBS’s “Face the Nation” — CEO of JPMorgan Chase & Co. Jamie Dimon; Schiff; Hill; Former Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency Director Chris Krebs

CNN’s “State of the Union” — Sanders; Carstens

“Fox News Sunday” — Kirby; Pompeo

Fox News’s Sunday Morning Futures — Ratcliff; Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.); Former Gov. Rick Perry (R-Texas); Blackburn; Retired Gen. Jack Keane