Trump Urges FCC Chairman Carr to Violate 60 Minutes' First Amendment Rights

WASHINGTON — On Sunday, President Donald Trump called on FCC Chairman Brendan Carr to strip CBS of its broadcast license. Trump issued this order following a 60 Minutes interview with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and a second segment on the fate of Greenland, an autonomous Danish territory Trump wants to seize for the United States.

According to the president, Carr “will impose the maximum fines and punishment” for segments that presented more than one side of prominent news stories. Although the FCC does have the authority to issue and deny broadcast licenses, it generally abstains — on First Amendment grounds — from doing so based on the editorial decisions of broadcast outlets.

In March, Free Press called on the FCC to once again dismiss a pro-Trump group’s complaint that accuses local broadcaster WCBS-TV of “news distortion” in airing a 60 Minutes interview with then-Vice President Kamala Harris. Free Press disputed the merits of the complaint and explained how the agency’s decision to set aside its dismissal and reconsider it falls within FCC Chairman Carr’s broader portfolio of anti-First Amendment actions.

Free Press Co-CEO Jessica J. González said:

“Trump is weaponizing the FCC to attack First Amendment freedoms and threaten free speech. Unfortunately, FCC Chairman Carr has been all too happy to comply and has repeatedly abused his licensing authority to punish any broadcaster that critically covers this president and his political agenda. 

“We’re now waiting for the other shoe to drop — for Carr to once again twist himself into a legal pretzel to appease his boss and launch yet another blatantly unconstitutional attack on free speech.

“The irony in all of this is that 60 Minutes’ supposed crime, in the eyes of Trump, is committing an act of journalism. I encourage anyone who watches Sunday’s Zelenskyy interview to see how it meets any of the FCC’s criteria for license denial. It doesn’t. I strongly urge the FCC chairman to stop embarrassing himself, to reject the president’s call to violate his oath of office and the Constitution, and to stand against government censorship. I doubt Carr will.”