Congressional Conservatives Tip Scales to the Right on the Sunday Shows

The parade of politicians on the Sunday morning talk shows veers to the right, not the left. Conservative members of the current Congress have appeared more often on the network talk shows than their liberal counterparts. Senators and representatives from the conservative end of the ideological spectrum have made 57 percent of the appearances, compared with 42 percent for liberals, according to data collected by American University.

This slightly lopsided distribution is primarily the result of three Republican senators’ frequent visits to the network shows: John McCain (R-AZ), Lindsey Graham (R-SC) and Mitch McConnell (R-KY). Because of the Republican Party’s control of the House during the past three years, its leaders and committee chairmen are presented with more opportunities to discuss the latest political news.