Since Federal Communications Commission Chairman Brendan Carr did not make the decision to suspend late-night host Jimmy Kimmel, there was no government infringement upon Kimmel’s right to express himself freely, Daily Signal President Robert Bluey told ABC’s “This Week.”
“I think we need to take a step back, hopefully, and judge that Brendan Carr was asked his opinion on a podcast. He gave his opinion. He did not institute any sort of regulatory action against ABC. It was Nexstar and Sinclair that decided to preempt the show, which is what prompted ABC to do this,” Bluey said.
Kimmel sparked outrage among conservatives for making false claims last Monday night about Charlie Kirk‘s assassin, claiming that Republicans were 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.”
On Wednesday, Nexstar suspending the late-night program from their stations. Sinclair followed suit soon after. According to Deadline, Disney, which owns ABC, decided to “indefinitely suspend” Kimmel’s program after the host indicated he had no intention of apologizing and planned to double down on his criticism of MAGA Republicans.
The decision immediately ignited outrage among the Left, who accused the Trump administration of infringing on Kimmel’s rights, prompting many to boycott Disney and cancel their “Disney Plus” subscriptions.
“I do have sympathy for those who have concerns about free speech,” Bluey shared, pointing out how The Daily Signal had been targeted by the Biden administration
“I came to Washington, D.C., and my first job was to defend reporters who were facing free speech challenges,” Bluey said.
“And we ourselves have suffered under the Biden administration when the Biden White House revoked the credentials of the Daily Signal and 440 other reporters two years ago in 2023. I know what it’s like to be on the receiving end.”
Under former President Joe Biden, the White House had created a new rule in May 2023, which revoked press credentials from 442 reporters, giving the president the authority to remove whomever he deemed did not act professionally.
The Daily Signal’s Fred Lucas was among those affected. The new rule established that all new press credential requests must be made through Congress or the Supreme Court.
“Within the past three months, the number of hard pass holders dropped from 1417 to 975, with those approved reflecting a mix of renewals and new applications,” Politico reported at the time.
The panel also discussed President Donald Trump’s remarks about Attorney General Pam Bondi on Truth Social, where he stated, “JUSTICE MUST BE SERVED, NOW!!!” Trump referred to former FBI Director James Comey, New York Attorney General Letitia James, and Sen. Adam Schiff, D-Calif.
Bluey explained that it’s the president’s authority to look for the best person who is going “to move swiftly and get things done,” and that Trump is obviously frustrated that “things are not moving swiftly enough.”
“He wants these investigations to come to a conclusion. The president said, If they’re guilty, let’s make sure that we pursue that. If they’re not guilty, that’s fine too.”
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