GOP Rep. Jim Jordan of Ohio called into CNBC Wednesday, where he was asked about President D onald Trump's ongoing attacks on free speech—specifically his Tuesday night Truth Social rant threatening late-night host Jimmy Kimmel and ABC.
Kimmel’s show returned Tuesday night after being suspended under pressure from the Trump administration for jokes they did not like.
Host Andrew Sorkin read Jordan an excerpt from Trump’s rant, asking Jordan whether or not he believes that it’s coercion: “I think we’re going to test ABC out on this. Let’s see how we do. Last time I went after them, they gave me $16 Million Dollars. This one sounds even more lucrative.”
Jordan then responded, “Well, I mean, I don't think you can say this is the pressure from the government because ABC put him back on.”
“But that does sound like pressure from the government,” Sorkin pointed out. “It may not be successful pressure, but it's pressure from the government.”
“Yes, I guess you could say it may be some,” Trump’s attack dog conceded.
Sorkin then asked about GOP Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas, who criticized Federal Communications Commission Chair Brendan Carr for pressuring ABC to suspend Kimmel’s show.
“Fair enough,” Jordan said before deflecting with vague platitudes about his support for the First Amendment.
Trump’s weaponization of the government against dissenting voices is not just indefensible, but it’s a direct attack on the First Amendment—and even his closest allies are struggling to spin this authoritarianism.
