War drums are beating again on the Sunday shows as Russia’s assault on Ukraine takes top billing. The star guest is Ukraine’s foreign minister, Dmytro Kuleba, who’ll join “Meet the Press” to plead with Americans to give his country the weapons it needs to repel the coming Russian onslaught in the Donbas. Kuleba will also describe the war crimes being uncovered in northern Ukrainian towns like Bucha and Borodyanka and estimate how much worse he suspects the situation is in besieged southern cities like Mariupol. Spoiler: A lot.
National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan is also booked this morning to discuss how the White House plans to help Ukraine in phase two of the war. He’ll chat with “Meet the Press” and “Face the Nation” about the chances of a total Ukrainian victory in the east, what sort of weapons that would require, and how Putin is apt to react to prospects of defeat. Another guest of note is European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, who met with Zelensky in Kiev on Friday to show European solidarity with Ukraine. She saw Russian atrocities firsthand while there:
It was important to start my visit in Bucha.
Because in Bucha our humanity was shattered.
My message to Ukrainian people:
Those responsible for the atrocities will be brought to justice.
Your fight is our fight.
I’m in Kyiv today to tell you that Europe is on your side. pic.twitter.com/oVEUOPDuD6
— Ursula von der Leyen (@vonderleyen) April 8, 2022
Von der Leyen will tell “State of the Union” about EU efforts to gather evidence of Russian war crimes in Ukraine and what she thinks the chances are of Ukraine joining the EU near-term.
Finally, former Treasury Secretary Lawrence Summers will follow Sullivan and Kuleba on “Meet the Press” to offer his forecast on inflation. Summers was famously prescient last year in predicting that prices would rise and that, contra the White House, the increase might not be so “transitory.” Lately he’s been worried about stagflation and has called on the Fed to raise interest rates — quickly. His current forecast is grim:
.@LHSummers: "The combination of overheating, followed by policy delay followed by supply shocks means I think it’s a very difficult set of challenges, and recession in the next couple of years is clearly more likely than not" https://t.co/fHwQhQenoa
— Catherine Rampell (@crampell) April 8, 2022
Gulp. The full line-up is at the AP.
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