Trump is working on freedom of speech and the firing of Jimmy Kimmel
President Donald Trump was asked about freedom of speech and the firing of Jimmy Kimmel at a press conference in the UK
- Some conservatives have begun to raise concerns about the Trump administration’s efforts to silence critics of late activist Charlie Kirk.
- FCC Chair Brendan Kerr threatened his actions against the ABC due to comments by host Jimmy Kimmel, leading to the suspension of the show and accusations of government enforcement.
- While some quickly pointed out differences with Kimmel, others, such as Sen. Ted Cruz of R-Texas, are concerned about the FCC’s power to punish speeches.
WASHINGTON – Conservative podcaster Tucker Carlson has warned the Trump administration that it is stepping into the right to free as he tried to silence critics of activist Charlie Kirk after the assassination in Utah.
“We hope that a year from now, the confusion we saw in the aftermath of his murder will not be utilized to bring hate speech laws to the country,” the former Fox News TV host said in a special edition of his podcast on September 17th.
Carlson’s remarks reflected concerns raised by other conservatives about efforts to close and retaliate against those who laughed at Kirk’s death or those who were openly critical of his hard-pressed political views.
Radio host Ryan Gorman in Tampa, Florida, said Federal Communications Commission Chairman Brendan Kerr went too far when he threatened retaliatory actions against the ABC if he didn’t punish late-night host Jimmy Kimmel for his comments about Republican reaction to Kirk’s death. ABC responded by pulling Kimmel’s show into the air indefinitely.
“We’re looking at a million ways that this could get worse in the future,” Gorman said. “This isn’t a good step here. The FCC chairman is too far away from the way he is trying to control things and bend the will of the Trump administration to different businesses. You don’t want the government to have that kind of power.”
Even the Wall Street Journal’s conservative editorial board denounced Carr’s threat to ABC over Kimmel’s comments. The paper criticized Kimmel for his comments on Kirk and anti-Trump views, but the editor on September 18th said “the government should not push anyone away from the car.”
“The Disney squeeze looks like a case of cancellation culture on the right,” the editor said.
For many free speech guardians, the campaign to shame and silence Kirk’s critics is not only a dangerous threat to the First Amendment, but it is part of a “cancellation culture” that has long denigrated Democrats and others to the political left.
“It’s the same cancel culture that we’ve come from the left before, and it’s now being directed at a different target,” said Bob Corn Leber, the lead lawyer for the Foundation for the Individual Rights and Expression, a nonprofit that protects freedom of speech.
George Floyd, Charlie Kirk, “Cancel Culture”
One was a black man who died in a face down on Minneapolis Street after a grocery store clerk accused him of handing over a bill of counterfeit $20. The other was a white conservative activist who was shot down by an assassin on a university campus in Utah.
The death of George Floyd on May 25, 2020 and the Kirk on September 10, 2025, occurred five summers and 1,200 miles away. But both touched on a movement that further prejudices a country already deeply divided by political ideology, and punishes those who were not punished by views that were already in line with the general sentiment of the moment.
Protesters flooded the city to demand racial equality and police brutality in the aftermath of Floyd’s death as the political left demanded that the nation stand up against a racially complicated history. A statue of a Confederate general fell, and people were publicly shamed on Twitter and fired by their employers for comments deemed racially insensitive. The Chick of the country pop music group Dixie dropped “Dixie” from its name. Conservatives and others were furious about the dangerous “cancellation culture” aimed at rewriting history and silencing people with dissent.
But a week and a half after Kirk’s assassination, it is the conservatives who have called for retaliation against those who have made comments on social media critical of Kirk and those who are deemed to be celebrating his death.
More than 100 people have faced the impact on Kirk’s comments about Kirk’s murder, according to an analysis by USA Today. High school teachers and university professors were fired or disciplinary after posting anti-ironic comments on social media. Doctors, lawyers and first responders were fired, suspended, accused or investigated. There are also journalists, government workers and private companies employees.
Kirk’s quest for retaliation against critics once again raised questions about the restrictions on freedom of speech, raising alarms for the role of the Trump administration.
Vice President JD Vance called out those who celebrated Kirk’s death and urged Americans to call their employers. Attorney General Pam Bondy proposed that the Justice Department investigate people engaged in “hate speech,” but she later retreated, saying the agency would only target those who incite violence.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the State Department has refused visas to foreigners who celebrated Kirk’s assassination. Defense Secretary Pete Hegses said military personnel and Pentagon employees could be punished for praise for Kirk’s murder.
In his first speech in January, President Donald Trump, who vowed to end government censorship and regain free speech, praised ABC’s Kimmel suspension, saying other broadcasters criticising him as potentially losing his license.
Lee Roland, executive director of the National Union of Censorship, said the administration’s pressure campaign against the ABC is far beyond the cancel culture. To make matters worse, she said, as the FCC controls broadcast licenses that network affiliates need to broadcast.
“This is a rather intense situation of private-sector government enforcement that challenges and seeks to punish people with dissatisfaction with the federal government,” Roland said. “This is a much darker story than the ubiquitous cancellation culture we think is happening right now.”
Cancellation culture is fascinating for all political persuasion people, Roland said.
“People hate cancelling cultures, when they’re targeting people who have the views they support,” she said. “And people tend to cancel cultures and get involved in them, and then call it something else and try to find moral highlands.
The cancellation culture didn’t start with Floyd’s death, but gained momentum after being killed when a white police officer placed his knee on his neck for more than nine minutes while arresting him outside a convenience store. Officers were later convicted of killing Floyd.
Since then, celebrities such as author J.K. Rowling, comedian David Chapelle and then NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick have been targeted for views on transgender issues and racial equality. Companies like Target and Bud Light are facing boycotts about their support for LGBTQ+ rights.
Boycotts and campaigns have often been driven by social media. On social media, large numbers of people can easily share collective anger and publicly shame their nemesis for unpopular political positions and perceived misconduct.
“It’s much easier to do this kind of cancellation culture than back then when you had to get up on Twitter mobs and grab a torch or pitchfork and go to town squares,” Cornlaver said.
“Abuse of corruption in power”
Kirk’s death turned the script over. Republicans who once complained about cancelling cultures are embracing efforts to shut down those celebrating his death and questioning his legacy.
House Democrat leaders have denounced Trump and the GOP of Censorship and the Navigation War in the First Amendment. They denounced Carr’s threat to the ABC as “abuse of corruption in power” and called on him to resign as FCC chairman.
Although Republicans have not done it before, some of them suggest that the administration has left overboard as they attempted to shut up Kirk’s critics.
Rep. Brett Guthrie, a Kentucky Republican who chairs the House Committee overseeing the FCC, did not mention Carr by name. However, he said at an event in Washington on September 18 that businesses will act to reflect what consumers want, but the government should be careful about what it does.
“We need to be very careful just because someone doesn’t agree with what they say,” Guthrie said. “We have to be very careful not to try and use government to influence what people say.”
Sen. Ted Cruz of R-Texas in a podcast on September 19th warned that conservatives will lose once the government begins to decide what people can say.
Cruz said he was excited that Kimmel was gone, claiming that the comedian’s brain “melted” when Trump returned to presidency, “it became bitter and troublesome, and lied about Charlie Kirk.”
“If we go down this path, there’s a time when Democrats win again and win the White House,” he said. “They will silence us and use this power and use it mercilessly,” he said, “and it’s dangerous.”
Michael Collins writes about the intersection of politics and culture. The veteran reporter covered the White House and Congress. Follow him on X @mcollinsNews.
