Sunday shows: Oil and elections

Sunday’s talk shows will be all about elections and oil, with a little bit of foreign policy to round things off.

All five Sunday shows feature candidates for office or politicians closely involved with the Gulf Coast oil spill — or both.

{mosads}On NBC’s “Meet the Press,” Senior White House Adviser David Axelrod will defend the White House’s handling of the nearly two-month-long oil spill, just days before President Barack Obama’s fourth visit to the devastated coast — and his first meeting with top BP officials.

Axelrod is also expected to predict what the results of Tuesday’s primaries mean for the midterms, and weigh in on new sanctions against Iran. On the roundtable, California GOP Senate candidate Carly Fiorina and Rep. Debbie Wasserman-Schultz (D-Fla.) will debate politics and the strong showing of women candidates in Tuesday’s primaries.

On ABC’s “This Week,” House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) and House Republican Leader John Boehner (R-Ohio) talk about the oil industry — and Congress’ reaction to the spill. While both parties have decried the spill and called for accountability, their response has differed when it comes to specific policy proposals; so far, Republicans have not supported Democratic proposals to retroactively raise or eliminate the $10 million cap on how much BP should pay for costs other than the clean-up, such as the spill’s impact on the environment and the economy. Also, Microsoft founder Bill Gates will describe his vision for a clean energy future — and government’s role in making it happen.

CBS’ “Face the Nation” has a trio of Gulf Coast governors — Florida’s Charlie Crist, Mississippi’s Haley Barbour and Alabama’s Bob Riley — to talk about the spill and its impact.

Riley is also set to appear on CNN’s “State of the Union.” Also on the show, House Republican Conference Chairman Mike Pence (Ind.) and House Majority Whip James Clyburn (S.C.) will expound on last Tuesday’s primaries.

Finally, “Fox News Sunday” also has Fiorina talking about her bid to unseat incumbent Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.), while Susan Rice, the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, explains why the administration thinks the latest sanctions on Iran can curb its nuclear ambitions.