Leading Democrats are cracking down on President Donald Trump’s administration for targeting media companies in the wake of late-night host Jimmy Kimmel’s suspension.
ABC announced Wednesday it would suspend Kimmel from his late-night show indefinitely after comments the host made about Charlie Kirk’s death prompted some ABC-affiliated stations to say they would not air the show. U.S. Rep. Robert Garcia (D-Calif.), ranking member of the House Oversight Committee, announced an investigation into the Trump administration, ABC and Sinclair Broadcasting over Kimmel’s suspension.
“Every American has a duty to stand up for our First Amendment values. We will not be silent as our freedoms are threatened by corrupt schemes and threats. Anyone who is complicit will need to answer to us,” Garcia said in a statement.
Separately, U.S. Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.) moved to subpoena Federal Communications Commission Chair Brendan Carr in connection with Kimmel’s suspension.
“This administration has initiated the largest assault on the First Amendment and free speech in modern history. They’re making comedy illegal,” Khanna said during a House hearing. “Brendan Carr pressured ABC to cancel Jimmy Kimmel and Disney cancels Jimmy Kimmel.”
“This canceling from an administration that lectured us about cancel culture. That’s why today I’m introducing a motion to subpoena Brendan Carr, to bring him in front of this committee to stop the intimidation of private businesses and to stand up for the First Amendment,” he added.
Carr said that Kimmel appeared to intentionally mislead the public by suggesting that the man accused in the fatal shooting of Kirk could be a right-wing Trump supporter. Carr told conservative podcast host Benny Johnson earlier Wednesday that there was a “strong case” for legal action over Kimmel’s comments.
“This is a very, very serious issue right now for Disney. We can do this the easy way or the hard way,” Carr said on Johnson’s show. “These companies can find ways to take action on Kimmel, or there is going to be additional work for the FCC ahead.”
ABC’s decision to suspend Kimmel’s show came after Nexstar Communications Group said it would indefinitely preempt the show on its ABC-affiliated stations, starting Wednesday. Andrew Alford, president of Nexstar’s broadcasting division, called Kimmel’s comments “offensive and insensitive” in a statement.
Later that day, Sinclair Broadcast Group called on Kimmel to apologize to Kirk’s family and to make a donation to Turning Point USA—the conservative youth organization founded by Kirk.
A number of critics, including many Democratic lawmakers, have denounced the decision to pull Kimmel off the air, arguing that Carr’s threats to ABC earlier that day infringed on Kimmel’s freedom of speech.
At the center of the controversy are Kimmel’s comments from Monday’s show, in which he suggested that the alleged killer of Kirk, 22-year-old Tyler Robinson, could have been a MAGA Republican.
“The MAGA Gang (is) desperately trying to characterize this kid who murdered Charlie Kirk as anything other than one of them and doing everything they can to score political points from it,” Kimmel said. “In between the finger-pointing, there was grieving.”
Now, questions are swirling over whether pressure from the FCC led to Kimmel’s suspension.
Both Disney and Nexstar have FCC business ahead of them. Disney is seeking regulatory approval for ESPN’s acquisition of the NFL Network, and Nexstar needs the Trump administration’s blessing to complete its $6.2 billion purchase of broadcast rival Tegna.
For both companies, reinstating Kimmel after a suspension would risk the ire of Trump, who has already inaccurately claimed that the show has been canceled.
Disney arguably started a cascade of media companies choosing not to fight when threatened by the president. The company agreed in December to pay $15 million toward Trump’s presidential library to settle his lawsuit against ABC News. Then CBS News parent Paramount paid $16 million to make Trump’s lawsuit against “60 Minutes” go away.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.