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House Republicans on September 18, 2025 blocked a Democrat motion to subpoena Federal Communications Commission Chairman Brendan Carr after the suspension of Jimmy Kimmel’s show sparked a firestorm. The move came as Democrats tried to wield subpoena power against Carr for comments that many conservatives say were aimed at defending broadcast integrity.
Carr had publicly warned that licensed broadcasters could face consequences if networks allowed what he called repeated, demonstrable distortions, and ABC pulled Jimmy Kimmel Live! from the air amid the controversy. That sequence of events — Carr’s warning followed by ABC’s decision and Sinclair’s decision to preempt the program on its stations — is precisely why Republicans argued the chairman should explain his actions to Congress rather than be pilloried for doing his job.
Democrats raced to paint Carr as a censor-in-chief and demanded his resignation, but the committee vote to strike down Rep. Ro Khanna’s subpoena motion fell 24-21 largely along party lines. Conservatives rightly saw that as a necessary check on a partisan attempt to weaponize Congress against an independent regulator who was addressing what he perceived as media malfeasance.
Make no mistake: the left’s reflexive cry of “censorship” whenever a conservative official calls out elite media is predictable and politically convenient. The angry letters and calls for Carr’s ouster from Democrats were as performative as they were one-sided, while even some Republicans warned against setting dangerous precedents — a debate that should be had openly, not turned into a partisan witch hunt.
Those who defend free speech should not confuse defending a marketplace of ideas with letting national networks operate with impunity while pushing narratives that mislead the public. If local broadcasters and the FCC believe there are standards being violated, Republicans were right to insist on sober oversight rather than handing Democrats another tool to harass officials for doing their duty.
The real story here is who gets to set the rules for America’s airwaves: powerful coastal elites and their entertainment allies, or the American people through accountable institutions. House Republicans blocking the subpoena was a stand for common-sense governance and against the left’s effort to turn oversight into a political cudgel.
Conservatives should celebrate principled resistance to frivolous subpoenas while still demanding transparency and fairness from the FCC and broadcasters alike. We want rigorous enforcement of standards, not lawfare, and we will keep fighting to protect speech, local control, and the public interest from partisan grandstanding.
