Kimmel and Colbert unite against Trump
Jimmy Kimmel and Stephen Colbert featured each other on their respective late-night shows in a show of solidarity against President Donald Trump.
Stephen Colbert is infiltrating his soon-to-be network over a scathing interview with Democrat and Trump critic James Talarico.
The comedian criticized CBS, but CBS’ lawyers informed “The Late Show” that a Feb. 16 interview with the Texas congressman, who is also running for U.S. Senate against fellow U.S. Rep. Jasmine Crockett, could not be aired “under uncertain conditions.”
“Then we were told in no uncertain terms that not only would we not have him on the show, we couldn’t even mention not having him on the show,” added the defiant host, who plans to leave the network at the same time as “The Late Show” ends in May. “And my network obviously doesn’t want me to talk about this, so let’s talk about this.”
USA TODAY has reached out to CBS and the White House for comment.
The interview, which is available on YouTube but does not fall under FCC rules, was not aired on Monday’s broadcast. “If people are watching this now, it’s because they found us online,” Colbert told lawmakers about Talarico’s situation. Colbert then noted in a headline that the FCC had previously indicated it would launch an investigation into Talarico’s recent interview on “The View.”
“I think Donald Trump is worried that he’s trying to turn Texas upside down,” Talarico responded, to applause. “This is a party that has opposed cancel culture. And this is the most dangerous kind of cancel culture, the kind that comes from the top.”
The late-night host suggested in his broadcast segment that the reason the interview was scheduled was because of the FCC’s “equal time” rule, which requires broadcast networks and radio stations to give all candidates equal time in an election. “This is the FCC’s most time-honored rule after ‘No Nipples at the Super Bowl,'” Colbert quipped.
He added that talk shows have typically been given exceptions, but FCC Chairman Brendan Carr, appointed by President Trump, issued new guidance in January that eliminated the blanket exception, saying some were “motivated by purely partisan political objectives.”
“Well, you’re the FCC chairman, so do the FCC,” Colbert jeered. “Because I think you yourself are motivated by partisan objectives. Sir, you smelled that because you handled it.”
Adding, “Call it what you will. Donald Trump’s administration wants to silence people who say bad things about Trump on TV. Because all Trump does is watch TV, right? He’s like a toddler who gets too much screen time. He gets cranky and ends up dropping the load in his diaper.”
The comedian has had no problem criticizing CBS over its efforts to “submit” to the Trump administration. The end of “The Late Show” itself was motivated by CBS parent Paramount Global’s efforts to finalize its $8.4 billion merger with Skydance Media, which required federal regulatory approval, Colbert alleges.
The merger was approved two months after “The Late Show” was canceled.
Contributor: Brian Alexander, USA TODAY
