Sunday shows preview: Trump, court tariff battle escalates; Senate GOP up next on ‘big, beautiful’ bill

The Trump administration has ramped up its standoff with the courts over tariffs in recent days, with top advisors condemning two rulings that attempted to block tariffs from proceeding as planned.

On Thursday, an appeals court temporarily paused an order that would have halted international tariffs. 

Despite the ruling in favor of the administration, deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller blasted the orders as “judicial tyranny” while White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt accused magistrates of “inserting themselves” into the presidential decision-making process. 

In recent months, Supreme Court justices have spoken out in defense of judges across the nation, urging them to stand tall in the midst of attacks. 

However, Trump’s officials have maintained that tariffs and other measures are permitted by federal law in the wake of legal battles and schisms. 

National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett has blamed “activist judges” for blocks to Trump’s trade policy and will likely expand on his criticism of the judiciary during a Sunday appearance on ABC’s “This Week.”

As verbal tensions flare, the president has pushed ahead with expansions, including a decision to double the price of steel imports, as revealed in a Friday announcement. 

“We’re going to bring it from 25 to 50 percent on steel into the United States of America, which will even further secure the steel industry in the United States,” Trump said during remarks at a steel factory in Pittsburgh, lauding the U.S. Steel partnership with Nippon Steel.

The move will increase factory opportunities in Pennsylvania but hurt foreign car manufacturers that have projected billions in losses due to duties. Rep. Dave McCormick (R-Pa.) will likely address how the U.S. partnership with Nippon will affect his constituents and the nation’s auto industry more broadly during his appearance on “Fox News Sunday.”

Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick will join him on the show and may address forthcoming taxes on imported items and sector-specific policies.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent is likely to hit on the status of trade talks with China, Japan and other global partners on CBS’s “Face the Nation.”

As Cabinet members lay the foundation for “America First” foreign policy, Republicans in Congress are shaping their own hierarchy at home. 

GOP senators are tasked with advancing the House-passed spending bill that would effectively strike millions from Medicaid, increase the federal debt and extend Trump’s 2017 tax cuts. 

Democrats have taken stark issues with the legislation, as have Republican fiscal hawks who’ve claimed the bill is a “debt bomb ticking.”

House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) said he doesn’t expect “too many surprises” from the Senate on the GOP budget bill as Sens. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) and Ron Johnson (R-Wisc.) have voiced concerns with the “big, beautiful” text.

Paul is set to appear on CBS’s “Face the Nation” and Johnson will be interviewed on Fox News’s “Sunday Morning Futures.”

“I have nothing but support for what President Trump is trying to do, and I love the way he’s acting boldly and swiftly, decisively, to fix the enormous messes left by the Biden administration,” Sen. Johnson said. “We have to reduce the deficit, and so we need to focus on spending, spending, spending.”

The House Speaker has urged senators not to mess with the “delicate equilibrium” he established for the bill in the lower chamber, and will likely echo those defenses during a Sunday appearance on NBC’s “Meet the Press.”

Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) will likely rail against the spending package with full force during their Sunday comments on CNN’s “State of the Union.”

These topics and more will be addressed on this week’s Sunday shows. 

Please see the full list of appearances below:

NewsNation’s “The Hill Sunday:” Sen. Roger Marshall (R-Kan.); Rep. Haley Stevens (D-Mich.) and Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears (R-Va.)

ABC’s “This Week:” National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett; World Food Program Executive Director Cindy McCain

CNN’s “State of the Union:” Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.); Reps. Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.); Debbie Dingell (D-Mich.); Office of Management and Budget Director Russell Vought

CBS’ “Face the Nation:” Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent; Martin Makary, commissioner of the Federal Drug Administration; Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.); Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-Ill.); Michael Roth, president of Wesleyan University

NBC’s “Meet the Press:” House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.); Sen. Raphael Warnock (D-Ga.)

Fox News’ “Fox News Sunday:” Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick; Sen. Dave McCormick (R-Pa.); Rep. Jake Auchincloss, D-Mass.

Fox News’ “Sunday Morning Futures:” Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem; Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wisc.) Rep. Ronny Jackson (R-Texas), Brad Gerstner, Altimeter Capital Founder, Chairman And CEO

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