Sunday shows preview: Biden administration grapples with border surge; US mourns Atlanta shooting victims

This week’s Sunday shows are expected to be dominated by talk of the surge of migrants at the U.S.-Mexico border and the killings at Atlanta-area spas that resulted in eight deaths.

The Biden administration is facing close scrutiny as it continues to grapple with a surge of migrants at the southern border.

Over 14,000 unaccompanied minors are currently in federal custody, an administration official told The Hill on Thursday, including 9,5000 child migrants in the care of Health and Human Services, and about 4,500 in the care of Customs and Border Protection (CBP).

Republicans are blaming the surge on President Biden’s shift from the hard-lined immigration approach of former President Trump.

Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas will be traveling to El Paso,Texas on Friday with a bipartisan group of senators to view CBP operations and a briefing on how unaccompanied minors are being processed, transferred and sheltered.

DHS said in a statement that Mayorkas’s visit will be closed to press due to “privacy and COVID-19 precautions,” fueling criticism that the Biden administration hasn’t been transparent about conditions at the border.

Mayorkas is scheduled to appear on ABC’s “This Week,” NBC’s “Meet the Press,” CNN’s “State of the Union,” and “Fox News Sunday.”

Meanwhile, the United States is grappling with the killings at three Atlanta-area spas last week that resulted in eight deaths, including six Asian-American women. Authorities on Thursday released the names of the victims who were killed at Young’s, including Delaina Ashley Yaun, Paul Andre Michels, Xiaojie Yan and Daoyou Feng.

The suspect, Robert Aaron Long, is facing four counts of murder and one count of aggravated assault for the attacks at Young’s Asian Massage in Cherokee County. Authorities said that Long claimed to have shot up the spa to get rid of “temptations” for his sexual addiction, though they are investigating if race also played a role.

Sen. Raphael Warnock (D-Ga.), who will appear on “Meet the Press,” said during an interview on Sirius XM’s “The Joe Madison Show” that Long was a “sick and misguided individual,” and that it was more important to highlight the victims’s stories.

The killings drew spotlight to a broader trend of anti-Asian violence, which has been on the rise during the coronavirus pandemic

Biden and Vice President Harris visited Asian-American leaders in Georgia on Friday in wake of the attacks. Biden called on American to unite against hate and racism.

Rep. Judy Chu (D-Calif.), who will appear on ABC’s “This Week,” blamed the rise of anti-Asian hate on Trump’s rhetoric around the coronavirus pandemic.

“President Trump clearly stoked the flames of xenophobia against [Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders] with his rhetoric,” Chu said in a press conference on Wednesday.

Below is the full list of guests scheduled to appear on this week’s Sunday talk shows:

ABC’s “This Week” — Mayorkas; Gov. Doug Ducey (R-Ariz.); Rep. Michael McCaul (R-Texas); and Chu (D-Calif.)

NBC’s “Meet the Press” — Mayorkas; Warnock; and Sen. Roy Blunt (R-Mo.)

CBS’ “Face the Nation” — Sens. Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.) and Rob Portman (R-Ohio); Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti (D); Moncef Slaoui, who led the the U.S. vaccine development effort under Trump

CNN’s “State of the Union” — Mayorkas; Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.); Reps. Young Kim (R-Calif.) and Michelle Steel (R-Calif.); Gov. Asa Hutchinson (R-Ark.)

“Fox News Sunday” — Mayorkas; Sen. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.)

Fox News Channel’s “Sunday Morning Futures” — Sen. Ron Johnson (R-WI); Stephen Miller, former White House senior adviser; Ric Grenell, former acting director of national intelligence; and Rep. Jeff Van Drew (R-N.J.)