Sunday Talk Shows

Sunday shows – Voting rights, infrastructure in the spotlight

Voting rights and infrastructure dominated the Sunday morning political shows, with multiple guests weighing in on both topics. 

Republican lawmakers criticized a sweeping, Democratic-backed election reform bill while Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) said he and President Biden are focused on working families in negotiations for a massive infrastructure package.

Read The Hill’s complete coverage below.

Graham calls voting rights bill ‘biggest power grab’ in history
By CAROLINE VAKIL
 
Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) said on Sunday that a sweeping, Democratic-backed election reform bill was “the biggest power grab in the history of the country.”

“In my view, SR-1 is the biggest power grab in the history of the country. It mandates ballot harvesting, no voter ID. It does away with the states being able to redistrict when you have population shifts. It’s just a bad idea, and it’s a problem that most Republicans are not going to sign – they’re trying to fix a problem most Republicans have a different view of,” Graham said on “Fox News Sunday.”

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Manchin compromise proposal a ‘federal takeover of the election system,’ GOP senator says
By JOSEPH CHOI
 
Sen. Rob Portman (R-Ohio) on Sunday called Sen. Joe Manchin’s (D-W.Va.) voting reform compromise proposal a “federal takeover of the election system.”
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Sanders: Biden and I are ‘taking a look at reality for working families’ for infrastructure plan
By JOSEPH CHOI 
 
Appearing on CNN’s “State of the Union,” Senate Budget Committee Chairman Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) said he believed lawmakers are becoming “bogged down in numbers” and said it is more important for them to look at the “needs of the American people, what’s going on right now.”
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Graham: Biden has chance with infrastructure to show what kind of presidency he wants
By CAROLINE VAKIL
 
“I would just say to President Biden, you’ve got a party that’s divided. You’ve got a Republican Party that’s willing to meet you in the middle for a trillion dollars of infrastructure that could fundamentally change the way America does business in roads, ports, and bridges and accelerate electrical vehicles. You’ve got to decide what kind of president you are and what kind of presidency you want,” Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) said.
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Fiona Hill: Summit with Biden was ‘a very important’ symbolic win for Putin
By JOSEPH CHOI
 
“Well, in terms of the symbolism of having a sit-down with the American president, absolutely, that is a very important win for Putin,” former National Security Council official Fiona Hill said. “It’s not a win if nothing happens out of it.” 
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Christie: ‘No damage was done’ from Biden’s overseas trip
By CAROLINE VAKIL
 
Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie (R) said on Sunday that “not much was accomplished but no damage was done” during President Biden’s meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
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Schiff calls Iranian presidential election ‘predetermined’
By CAROLINE VAKIL
 
“The outcome was predetermined, but what struck me was the fact that this was I think the lowest turnout in an Iranian presidential election, perhaps in history,” Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) said on CBS’s ‘“Face the Nation.” “Iranians voted with their feet by not showing up at the polls. And millions who did show up at the polls cast white ballots – that is they didn’t check off a candidate for president.”
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Still a ‘fair distance to travel’ in key issues in Iran nuclear deal, Sullivan says
By ARIS FOLLEY 
 
National security adviser Jake Sullivan said on Sunday there remains a “fair distance to travel” when it comes to efforts to renegotiate a nuclear agreement with Iran, but added the Biden administration plans to keep its “eye on the ball” following the recent presidential election in the Middle East nation.
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Sullivan: US will not be issuing ‘threats or ultimatums’ to China in COVID-19 origin investigation
By JOSEPH CHOI
 
“We are not at this point going to issue threats or ultimatums. What we’re going to do is continue to rally support in the international community. And if it turns out that China refuses to live up to its international obligations, we will have to consider our responses at that point,” national security adviser Jake Sullivan said.
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