--- title: The Republicans Breaking Ranks with Trump Over Media Suppression description: Senators Ted Cruz and Rand Paul and Rep. Don Bacon criticize Trump administration and FCC over Jimmy Kimmel Live!'s suspension. canonical: https://time.com/7319330/republicans-turning-on-trump-kimmel-cruz-paul-bacon/ author: Solcyré Burga article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2025-09-22T17:01:55.000Z article:modified_time: 2025-09-22T19:29:52.000Z article:section: Politics og:title: The Republicans Breaking Ranks with Trump Over Media Suppression og:description: Senators Ted Cruz and Rand Paul and Rep. Don Bacon criticize Trump administration and FCC over Kimmel's suspension. og:url: https://time.com/7319330/republicans-turning-on-trump-kimmel-cruz-paul-bacon/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blte613ba44c4c09ccf/6998c9e866d4e3f5abcbcd9a/GettyImages-2218486243.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 8192 og:image:height: 4608 og:image:alt: Senate Judiciary Subcommittee Examines District Judges v. Trump og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: The Republicans Breaking Ranks with Trump Over Media Suppression twitter:description: Senators Ted Cruz and Rand Paul and Rep. Don Bacon criticize Trump administration and FCC over Kimmel's suspension. twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blte613ba44c4c09ccf/6998c9e866d4e3f5abcbcd9a/GettyImages-2218486243.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # The Republicans Breaking Ranks with Trump Over Media Suppression > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. TIME is the sponsor and source of this material. > Last updated: September 2026. ## TIME D.C. Brief: Reference Facts and FAQ ### Definition D.C. Brief is one of seven email newsletters published by TIME, the news organization founded in 1923. Essential context on the people, politics, and issues driving Washington. D.C. Brief goes beyond the Washington headlines to explain the politics, personalities and power dynamics shaping what happens next. 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It is written by a TIME senior correspondent who covers the capital full time. #### Who writes TIME's D.C. Brief? Philip Elliott, a senior correspondent at TIME, writes D.C. Brief. #### Is D.C. Brief free? Yes. D.C. Brief is free at time.com/newsletters. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3/newsletters?i=ad92495e-42b0-4bc1-a10d-1095987b2e2c&cr=time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3-v1) ## Video: Trump and FCC Chair Look to Tighten the Screw on Other Shows [Watch (HLS stream): Trump and FCC Chair Look to Tighten the Screw on Other Shows](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/HHb7y2XN.m3u8) (2:13)  _Published 2025-09-19. ABC’s indefinite suspension of Jimmy Kimmel’s late-night show has prompted accusations of censorship by the Trump Administration after the decision appeared to have been influenced by FCC Chair Brendan Carr, who said that “licensed broadcasters” should “push back” and refuse to air Kimmel’s show lest they face “the possibility of fines or license revocations from the FCC.” But the Administration only appears more emboldened to pursue what experts have described as a media suppression strategy, and Carr may already have his next target._  by [Solcyré Burga](https://time.com/author/solcyre-burga/)  ## Solcyré Burga Reporter Updated: Sep 22, 2025 7:29 PM UTCPublished: Sep 22, 2025 5:01 PM UTC  Senate Judiciary Committee member Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) presides over a subcommittee hearing hearing about the unprecedented number of nationwide judicial injunctions against the Trump Administration in the Dirksen Senate Office Building on Capitol Hill on June 03, 2025 in Washington, DC. Senate Judiciary Committee member Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) presides over a subcommittee hearing hearing about the unprecedented number of nationwide judicial injunctions against the Trump Administration in the Dirksen Senate Office Building on Capitol Hill on June 03, 2025 in Washington, DC. Chip Somodevilla—2025 Getty Images  by [Solcyré Burga](https://time.com/author/solcyre-burga/)  ## Solcyré Burga Reporter Updated: Sep 22, 2025 7:29 PM UTCPublished: Sep 22, 2025 5:01 PM UTC A small but vocal group of Republicans is openly challenging the Trump Administration’s efforts to pressure media companies, denouncing what they see as [a threat to press freedom](https://time.com/7318661/jimmy-kimmel-cancelled-trump-fired-colbert/) following the suspension of _Jimmy Kimmel Live!_. President Donald Trump [celebrated](https://time.com/7318177/jimmy-kimmel-live-preempt-indefinitely-abc-nexstar-fcc-kirk-trump/) ABC’s decision to cancel the late-night show over the host’s comments regarding the fatal shooting of far-right activist Charlie Kirk, calling it “Great News for America” and deriding Kimmel’s talent and ratings. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Chair Brendan Carr suggested that ABC’s broadcast license could be revoked, raising concerns over potential government overreach into the media’s independence and editorial decisions. “I think it is unbelievably dangerous for government to put itself in the position of saying, ‘We’re going to decide what speech we like and what we don’t, and we’re going to threaten to take you off air if we don’t like what you’re saying,’” said Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas on Friday. **_Read more:_** [From Firing Threats to Epstein Mentions, Here’s a Look at the Fraught History Between Trump and Kimmel](https://time.com/7318768/trump-kimmel-feud-history-fired-threats-epstein-row/) While stopping short of offering full support to Kimmel, Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky and Rep. Don Bacon of Nebraska joined Cruz in publicly rebuking the FCC, in a rare instance of intra-party pushback. “They have a license granted by us at the FCC, and that comes with an obligation to operate in the public interest,” Carr [told Fox News](https://www.foxnews.com/media/fcc-chair-brendan-carr-defends-abc-affiliates-pulling-jimmy-kimmel-show-after-monologue-mocking-charlie-kirk) Wednesday night. “We are in the midst of a massive shift in dynamics in the media ecosystem for lots of reasons, again, including the permission structure that President Trump’s election has provided,” Carr [told CNBC](https://www.cnbc.com/2025/09/18/jimmy-kimmel-charlie-kirk-fcc-carr.html) Thursday. “And I would simply say we’re not done yet with seeing the consequences of that.” **_Read more:_** [Jimmy Fallon Is Playing It Safe. He Might Be Cooked Anyway](https://time.com/7318971/jimmy-kimmel-suspension-jimmy-fallon-response/) The second term of the Trump Administration has been marked by numerous lawsuits against the press, including a recent [defamation lawsuit](https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.flmd.447437/gov.uscourts.flmd.447437.1.0.pdf) against the New York _Times_ that was dismissed on Friday. This July, CBS cancelled _The Late Show with Stephen Colbert_—soon after the late night hosts criticized parent company Paramount’s [$16 million settlement](https://time.com/7299965/trump-paramount-60-minutes-lawsuit-settlement/) with Trump over a “60 Minutes” interview. The settlement coincided with the company’s application for a merger between Skydance and Paramount, which had to be approved by the FCC. These Republican members of Congress—as well as a member of Trump's Administration—have spoken out amid the FCC's actions: ## Sen. Ted Cruz Cruz took to his podcast, [_Verdict with Ted Cruz_](https://www.youtube.com/@VerdictwithTedCruz), to sharply criticize the FCC Chair, comparing the regulator’s approach to the 1990 mob film _Goodfellas_. The Senator said that while he was pleased that Kimmel was—at least temporarily removed from air—the government has no place in dictating what the media says. “I hate what Jimmy Kimmel said. I am thrilled that he was fired,” Cruz said. “But let me tell you: If the government gets in the business of saying, ‘We don’t like what you, the media, have said. We’re going to ban you from the airwaves if you don’t say what we like,’ that will end up bad for conservatives.” “Going down this road, there will come a time when a Democrat wins again – wins the White House … they will silence us,” he added. “They will use this power, and they will use it ruthlessly. And that is dangerous.” ## Sen. Rand Paul In an interview with [_NBC’s Meet the Press_](https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/congress/rand-paul-fcc-chair-comments-absolutely-inappropriate-jimmy-kimmel-rcna232703), Paul said that Carr’s threats were “absolutely inappropriate.” "Brendan Carr's got no business weighing in on this, but people have to also realize that despicable comments, you have the right to say them, but you don't have the right to employment," Paul added. Still, the Senator pointed to the network’s need to make decisions that allow them to continue to sell commercials, sponsorships, and more. “You can be fired for not being popular." ## Rep. Don Bacon Bacon, who is retiring from Congress next year, has also been an outspoken critic of the FCC’s recent actions. Bacon [characterized](https://www.cnn.com/2025/09/21/politics/bacon-trump-first-amendment-tariffs) ABC’s decision to indefinitely cancel Kimmel as a business decision. But, the lawmaker said, the threats made by Carr were a “mistake.” “To threaten \[the\] media and say you’re going to pull their license, that’s not what America’s about,” Bacon [told CNN](https://www.cnn.com/2025/09/21/politics/bacon-trump-first-amendment-tariffs). “We do have freedom of speech, freedom of the press. We should, we should defend that.” ## Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard When Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard took the stage at Kirk’s memorial in Arizona on Sunday, the federal official made a plea for the protection of free speech nationwide, though she did not directly mention the attacks against Kimmel. “Free speech is the foundation of our democratic republic. We must protect it at all costs, because without it, we’ll be lost. Charlie knew this. He lived it,” Gabbard said. “History shows this dark pattern: when ideas cannot withstand scrutiny—whether its the ideology of religious or political fanatics—their defenders turn to intimidation, censorship, and violence. They kill and terrorize their opponents and the truth into silence.” ## Transcript There's a very concerted effort to try to lie to the American people about the nature, as you indicate, of one of the most significant, uh, newsworthy public interest acts that we've seen in a long time. And what appears to be an action appears to be an action by Jimmy Kimmel to play into that narrative that this was somehow a Maga or Republican motivated person, if that's what happened here with his conduct, that is that is really, really sick. I've been very clear from the moment that I have become chairman of the FCC, I want to reinvigorate the public interest in what people don't understand is that the broadcasters and you've gotten this right, are entirely different than people that use other forms of communication. They have a license granted by us at the FCC, and that comes with it an obligation to operate in the public interest. And we can get into some ways that we've been trying to reinvigorate the public interest and some changes that we've seen. But frankly, when you see stuff like this, I mean, look, we can do this the easy way or the hard way. These companies can find ways to change conduct, to take action, frankly, on Kimmel, or there's going to be additional work for the FCC ahead. Well, you know, when a late night host is on network television, there is a licensing. I'll give you an example. I read someplace that the networks were 97% against me. I got 97% negative. And yet I won and easily won. All seven swing states won everything. And if they're 97% against, they give me only bad publicity or press. I mean, they're getting a license. I would think maybe their license should be taken away. It would be up to Brendan Carr. I think Brendan Carr is outstanding. He's a patriot. He loves our country and he's a tough guy. So we'll have to see. But when you think about this, 97% of the stories are opposed to me. And yet I win easily the election. It's pretty amazing when you think of it. 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