Summary
This blog is closing now but you can continue to follow live coverage of US news and the fallout over the suspension of Jimmy Kimmel on our new liveblog here.
Here’s a summary of the main news today, thanks for reading.
Jimmy Kimmel Live! will be suspended “indefinitely” after the late-night host’s comments about the killing of Charlie Kirk, ABC has announced. The network, which Disney owns, announced on Wednesday night that it would remove Kimmel’s show from its schedule for the foreseeable future.
Politicians, media figures and free speech organisations expressed anger and alarm at the suspension of Kimmel’s late night show, warning that critics of Donald Trump were being systematically silenced. California governor Gavin Newsom said the Republican party “does not believe in free speech. They are censoring you in real time.”
Donald Trump called the move “great news for America” and congratulated ABC for its “courage” in a social media post.
ABC’s decision to suspend Kimmel came just minutes after one of the biggest owners of TV stations in the US, Nexstar Media, said it “strongly object[ed]” to his comments and would preempt any episodes of Jimmy Kimmel Live! set to air on the stations it owns across the country “for the foreseeable future”. Sinclair Broadcast Group, which owns more ABC stations than any other TV conglomerate including Nexstar, announced it would run a tribute to Kirk during Kimmel’s timeslot on Friday.
Before ABC pulled Kimmel, the Federal Communications Commission chair, Brendan Carr, had urged local broadcasters to stop airing the show, saying they were “running the possibility of fines or licensed revocation from the FCC” during an appearance on the rightwing commentator Benny Johnson’s podcast. On Wednesday night Carr thanked Nexstar “for doing the right thing” in a statement on social media.
A number of figures in US comedy have reacted with shock to the decision to pull Jimmy Kimmel from the air. Comedian Mike Birbiglia wrote that he had long defended comedians with views he didn’t agree with, adding: “If you’re a comedian and you don’t call out the insanity of pulling Kimmel off the air – don’t bother spouting off about free speech anymore.” Comedian Michael Kosta, who occasionally hosts the Daily Show, wrote: “This is a serious moment in American history. TV networks MUST push back. This is complete BS.”
Jimmy Kimmel and Donald Trump have a history of feuding and trading barbs.
When Kimmel hosted the 2024 Academy Awards, Trump posted online “Has there EVER been a WORSE HOST than Jimmy Kimmel at The Oscars. His opening was that of a less than average person trying too hard to be something which he is not, and never can be.”
Kimmel read the missive out during the ceremony and responded by saying he was “surprised” Trump was still awake, asking, “Isn’t it past your jail time?” in reference to the numerous cases that were then making their way through the courts.
In 2017, during Trump’s first term, Kimmel emerged as an unlikely leader in the fight to save Obamacare. He dedicated a number of monologues on his programme to pushing back against efforts to to tear up the Affordable Care Act (ACA).
He revealed in a tearful speech that his son, Billy, had been born with a heart defect and nearly died. Kimmel said that thanks to the top-of-the-line healthcare, his surgery was successful.
More Democratic lawmakers have come out to criticise the suspension Jimmy Kimmel Live!
“This is censorship in action,” said Senator Ed Markey.
FCC chair threatens ABC and Disney over Kimmel’s comments. Hours later, he’s off air. It’s dangerous and unconstitutional. The message to every media company is clear: Adopt the MAGA line or the Federal Censorship Commission will come after you.”
Illinois Governor JB Pritzker and senator Brian Schatz of Hawaii also weighed in on X with similar comments. Pritzker called it “an attack on free speech,” while Schatz said, “his was the govt using regulatory leverage to crush speech.”
FCC Commissioner Anna Gomez, the FCC’s only Democratic member, said US free-speech laws should prevent the FCC from telling broadcasters what they can air.
“This administration is increasingly using the weight of government power to suppress lawful expression,” she told CNN.
Earlier she posted online saying “we must stand firm against every attempt to silence dissent”.
An inexcusable act of political violence by one disturbed individual must never be exploited as justification for broader censorship and control. This Administration is increasingly using the weight of government power to suppress lawful expression.”
What is Nexstar, the TV station operator that first pulled Jimmy Kimmel from air?
Nexstar Communications Group is one of the largest operators of TV stations in the US and, crucially, operates 23 ABC affiliates which air Jimmy Kimmel’s programme.
It said it was pulling his programme after Kimmel’s comments about Charlie Kirk’s death which it called “offensive and insensitive at a critical time in our national political discourse.”
Last month Nexstar announced a multi-billion dollar deal to buy smaller rival Tegna, creating a local-TV powerhouse that could compete better with Big Tech and national media for advertising dollars.
The deal was subject to regulatory approval and experts said it would likely prove to be a test case in the Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC) deregulatory approach under Trump appointed chair Brendan Carr.
US media reported that Nexstar and Tegna were betting on Donald Trump’s administration enforcing looser antitrust rules. In June the FCC said it was seeking to refresh a rule that caps station ownership at a combined reach of 39% of US households.
“The initiatives being pursued by the Trump administration offer local broadcasters the opportunity to expand reach, level the playing field, and compete more effectively with the Big Tech and legacy Big Media companies,” Nexstar CEO Perry Sook said last month.
Two of Hollywood’s biggest unions, the Writers Guild of America (WGA) and the Screen Actors Guild, have voiced their support for Jimmy Kimmel after his show was suspended by ABC.
“The right to speak our minds and to disagree with each other – to disturb, even – is at the very heart of what it means to be a free people. It is not to be denied. Not by violence, not by the abuse of governmental power, nor by acts of corporate cowardice,” WGA West wrote late on Wednesday.
As a Guild, we stand united in opposition to anyone who uses their power and influence to silence the voices of writers, or anyone who speaks in dissent. If free speech applied only to ideas we like, we needn’t have bothered to write it into the Constitution. What we have signed on to – painful as it may be at times – is the freeing agreement to disagree.”
“Shame on those in government who forget this founding truth.”
Meanwhile Sag-Aftra, which represents around 170,000 actors, journalists and many more professions across the media and entertainment industries, said it “condemns” Kimmel’s suspension.
“Democracy thrives when diverse points of view are expressed,” their statement read. “The decision to suspend airing Jimmy Kimmel Live! is the type of suppression and retaliation that endangers everyone’s freedoms. Sag-Aftra stands with all media artists and defends their right to express their diverse points of view, and everyone’s right to hear them.”
Free speech groups have reacted with alarm to the suspension of Jimmy Kimmel’s programme, with one calling it a “new McCarthyism.”
Truth Wins Out (TWO), an anti-extremism nonprofit said it was part of a “dangerous right‑wing ‘Cancel Crusade’ that has weaponized outrage to silence dissent and intimidate media outlets.”
If this dire situation continues, the only people left on the air will be Baghdad Bob and that anchorwoman in North Korea. This is a new McCarthyism that has expanded the boundaries of ‘woke’ to once unimaginable dimensions. It is chilling the free press and punishing truth‑tellers.”
The Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression has said that the ABC network “caved” to pressure from the US government.
The timing of ABC’s decision, on the heels of the FCC chairman’s pledge to the network to “do this the easy way or the hard way,” tells the whole story. Another media outlet withered under government pressure, ensuring that the administration will continue to extort and exact retribution on broadcasters and publishers who criticize it.”
In a statement, the advocacy group went on to say that the US “cannot be a country where late night talk show hosts serve at the pleasure of the president. But until institutions grow a backbone and learn to resist government pressure, that is the country we are.”
What did Jimmy Kimmel say about Charlie Kirk's shooting?
When announcing that it would pull Jimmy Kimmel’s programme, Nexstar Communications Group called comments the comedian had made about Charlie Kirk’s death “offensive and insensitive at a critical time in our national political discourse.”
Supporters of Donald Trump have praised the decision, with the White House deputy chief of staff calling it an example of “consequence culture.”
But what did Kimmel actually say that raised the ire of the president’s Maga movement?
During his Monday evening monologue, Kimmel suggested Kirk’s alleged killer, Tyler Robinson, might have been a pro-Trump Republican.
The MAGA Gang (is) 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 Tuesday he said “many in Maga-land are working very hard to capitalize on the murder of Charlie Kirk”.
The president and his henchmen are doing their best to fan the flames, so they can I guess attack people on the dangerous left.”
The Hollywood Reporter has said that Kimmel was preparing to address the backlash on Wednesday night’s show and show how his comments had been taken out of context. Their report says he was not intending on apologising for them.
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A number of figures in US comedy have reacted with shock to the decision to pull Jimmy Kimmel from the air.
Comedian Mike Birbiglia wrote that he had long defended comedians with views he didn’t agree with, adding: “If you’re a comedian and you don’t call out the insanity of pulling Kimmel off the air – don’t bother spouting off about free speech anymore.”
Comedian Michael Kosta, who occasionally hosts the Daily Show, wrote: “This is a serious moment in American history. TV networks MUST push back. This is complete BS.”
Comedian and actress Wanda Sykes said in an Instagram video that Trump “didn’t end the Ukraine War or solve Gaza within his first week, but he did end freedom of speech within his first year. Hey, for those of you who pray, now’s the time to do it. Love you, Jimmy.”
And sharing recent footage of Fox commentator Brian Kilmeade calling for mentally ill and homeless people to be killed, comedian Paul Scheer wrote: “So let me get this straight. Kimmel is off the air for his comments about the politicization of an assassination but this is totally fine.” Kilmeade later apologised for his “extremely callous” remarks.
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Senator Elizabeth Warren has joined a number of her Democratic colleagues in condemning the decisions to suspend Jimmy Kimmel’s programme, saying “giant media companies are enabling his authoritarianism.”
First Colbert, now Kimmel. Last-minute settlements, secret side deals, multi-billion dollar mergers pending Donald Trump’s approval. Trump silencing free speech stifles our democracy. It sure looks like giant media companies are enabling his authoritarianism.
The stunning decision on Wednesday to suspend one of the United States’ most popular and influential late-night shows has come as Donald Trump and his allies have threatened to crack down on criticism of Charlie Kirk, the rightwing activist killed last week.
Jimmy Kimmel’s show was taken off the air “indefinitely” after the host was criticised for comments about the motives behind the killing Kirk and the president’s reaction to the event.
The move was immediately welcomed by Trump, who hailed it as “Great News for America.”
The ratings challenged Jimmy Kimmel Show is CANCELLED. Congratulations to ABC for finally having the courage to do what had to be done.”
Sinclair Broadcast Group, which owns or operates dozens of local ABC stations across the US, has said it will replace Kimmel’s programme on Friday with a tribute to Charlie Kirk.
In a statement posted online, Sinclair praised the Federal Communications Commission chair, Brendan Carr, for threatening the licenses of stations that defended Kimmel’s right to free speech, and called the comic’s remarks “inappropriate and deeply insensitive”.
The company owns ABC affiliates in dozens of cities, including: Washington DC; St Louis, Missouri; Portland, Oregon; Seattle, Washington and Tulsa, Oklahoma.
It pledged to keep Kimmel’s show off its stations “until formal discussions are held with ABC regarding the network’s commitment to professionalism and accountability.”
Soon after the announcement from ABC affiliate group Nexstar that it would be taking Jimmy Kimmel’s programme off the air, FCC chair Brendan Carr thanked the organisation for “doing the right thing”.
Local broadcasters have an obligation to serve the public interest. While this may be an unprecedented decision, it is important for broadcasters to push back on Disney programming that they determine falls short of community values.”
I want to thank Nexstar for doing the right thing.
— Brendan Carr (@BrendanCarrFCC) September 17, 2025
Local broadcasters have an obligation to serve the public interest. While this may be an unprecedented decision, it is important for broadcasters to push back on Disney programming that they determine falls short of community… https://t.co/Px5boYbqNR
Earlier in the day Carr had urged local broadcasters to stop airing the show, saying they were “running the possibility of fines or licensed revocation from the FCC”.
More on Donald Trump’s announcement that he would designate Antifa a terrorist organisation.
It’s not clear what legal weight Trump’s proclamation has; Antifa is a loosely organised ideological movement without a clear leadership structure or hierarchy, according to experts.
The president and other senior officials have repeatedly blamed left-wing groups for creating an atmosphere of hostility towards conservatives before rightwing activist Charlie Kirk’s shooting last week. Critics say that Trump is using Kirk’s death as a pretext to crack down on political opponents.
A day after Utah prosecutors unveiled formal charges against the suspected shooter of Kirk, no evidence has emerged connecting 22-year-old Tyler Robinson with any outside group. Questions also remain about his precise motives.
Trump initially floated the idea of such a designation for Antifa in 2020 amid violent nationwide protests following the police killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis.
At the time, legal experts said such a step lacked a basis in law, would be hard to execute, and raised free-speech concerns, given that subscription to an ideology is not generally considered criminal.
Trump says he is designating antifa, which is not an organization, 'a major terrorist organization'
Writing on his social network well after 1am local time in England, Donald Trump promised to designate antifascist activists, who form discrete groups around the US to oppose right-wing extremists, “a terrorist organization”.
The false idea that Antifa is an organization which can be proscribed, let alone one that has been responsible for terrorism of any kind, is widely accepted on the far-right, despite a lack of evidence.
“I am pleased to inform our many U.S.A. Patriots that I am designating ANTIFA, A SICK, DANGEROUS, RADICAL LEFT DISASTER, AS A MAJOR TERRORIST ORGANIZATION,” Trump wrote, nevertheless. “I will also be strongly recommending that those funding ANTIFA be thoroughly investigated in accordance with the highest legal standards and practices.”
During Trump’s first term, in 2020, his White House posted and then deleted a compilation of viral video clips posted on social media by people who believed, wrongly, that the piles of bricks they came across on American streets had been planted there by antifascist activists to inspire violence at protests.
“Antifa and professional anarchists are invading our communities, staging bricks and weapons to instigate violence,” a caption for the video posted on the official White House Twitter feed claimed. “These are acts of domestic terror.”
That video, and the tweet promoting it, was deleted after journalists discovered that most of the clips included in the video posted online by the White House showed ordinary piles of bricks used in construction projects which were underway before the wave of protests began in response to the killing of George Floyd that year.
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Sinclair, owner of ABC affiliates, to broadcast tribute to Charlie Kirk in Jimmy Kimmel's time slot
Sinclair Broadcast Group, which owns or operates dozens of local ABC stations across the US, announced on Wednesday that it plans to fill Jimmy Kimmel’s time-slot on Friday with a tribute to Charlie Kirk, the right-wing activist and content creator whose assassination last week the comedian was pulled from the air for commenting on.
In a statement posted online, Sinclair praised the Federal Communications Commission chair, Brendan Carr, for threatening the licenses of stations that defended Kimmel’s right to free speech, and called the comic’s remarks “inappropriate and deeply insensitive”.
“Sinclair’s ABC stations will air a special in remembrance of Charlie Kirk this Friday, during the Jimmy Kimmel Live! timeslot. The special will also air across all Sinclair stations this weekend. In addition, Sinclair is offering the special to all ABC affiliates across the country,” the company said.
The company owns ABC affiliates in dozens of cities, including: Washington DC; St Louis, Missouri; Portland, Oregon; Seattle, Washington and Tulsa, Oklahoma.
It pledged to keep Kimmel’s show off its stations “until formal discussions are held with ABC regarding the network’s commitment to professionalism and accountability.”
Sinclair also called for Kimmel “to issue a direct apology to the Kirk family” and “to make a meaningful personal donation to the Kirk Family and Turning Point USA,” the far-right youth group Kirk founded.
During Donald Trump’s first term in office, Sinclair compelled news anchors on nearly 200 stations it owns, affiliated with ABC and other broadcasters, to read a prepared script in which they proclaimed:
“The sharing of biased and false news has become all too common on social media.”
“Some members of the media use their platforms to push their own personal bias.”
“This is extremely dangerous to our democracy.”
Democrats to introduce a No Political Enemies (Nope) act, to protect government critics
In the wake of Jimmy Kimmel’s sudden disappearance from the airwaves, Democrats in the House and Senate plan to introduce legislation “to protect individuals and organizations, including non-profits, faith groups, media outlets, and educational institutions, from politically motivated targeting and prosecution by the federal government”.
Senators Chris Murphy, Chuck Schumer, Chris Van Hollen and Tina Smith will be joined by representatives Jason Crow, Greg Casar and Chrissy Houlahan at a press conference on Thursday to discuss their proposed No Political Enemies (Nope) act.
According to the lawmakers, they will also talk about threats from Donald Trump, and his vice-president, JD Vance, his attorney general, Pam Bondi, and his deputy chief of staff, Stephen Miller, “to use the tragic shooting of Charlie Kirk as justification to weaponize the federal government to go after left-leaning individuals and organizations that don’t align with Trump’s political agenda”.
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More reactions to the “indefinite” suspension of Jimmy Kimmel Live! have continued to pour in on social media, with politicians from both sides of the aisle, celebrities and more weighing in.
Nancy Mace, a Republican South Carolina representative who is running to be governor of South Carolina, celebrated in an impassioned post on X, claiming “we’re on a truth streak. President Trump is always right, YOU’RE FIRED”, while Chuck Schumer, a Democratic New York senator, demanded “this must go to court.”
California’s governor, Gavin Newsom, took aim at the Republican party, calling the move “coordinated” and “dangerous."
“The @GOP does not believe in free speech. They are censoring you in real time,” he wrote on X.
Actor Ben Stiller simply wrote in a quote-tweet on X: “This isn’t right.”
ACLU accuses Trump administration of 'censoring Jimmy Kimmel'
In a statement on what it calls the “censoring” of Jimmy Kimmel, the American Civil Liberties Union noted that, as we reported, ABC and Nexstar, which owns local ABC affiliate stations, acted only after the Federal Communications Commission chairman, Brendan Carr, told a far-right podcaster that the FCC has the power to strip the broadcasting licenses of the affiliates.
Nexstar, the ACLU noted, “reportedly needs FCC approval to complete a $6.2 billion acquisition of the Tegna broadcasting company”.
Christopher Anders, director of the Democracy and Technology division of the ACLU, said:
Jimmy Kimmel is the latest target of the Trump administration’s unconstitutional plan to silence its critics and control what the American people watch and read. Cowering to threats, ABC and the biggest owner of its affiliate stations gave the Trump FCC chairman exactly what he wanted by suspending Kimmel indefinitely and dropping the show.
“This is beyond McCarthyism. Trump officials are repeatedly abusing their power to stop ideas they don’t like, deciding who can speak, write, and even joke. The Trump administration’s actions, paired with ABC’s capitulation, represent a grave threat to our first amendment freedoms.”
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FCC chair sends celebratory gif to reporter seeking comment on ABC pulling Jimmy Kimmel's show
This is where we are now.
Brendan Carr, the openly partisan chair of the Federal Communications Commission, responded to a request for comment from the CNN media analyst Brian Stelter on ABC taking Jimmy Kimmel off the air by sending a celebratory gif from the US version of The Office.
I asked FCC chair @BrendanCarrFCC if he had any new comment now that ABC has pulled Jimmy Kimmel's show, and he sent me this GIF pic.twitter.com/ljz60FzHN4
— Brian Stelter (@brianstelter) September 17, 2025
Trump celebrates demise of Kimmel's show in late-night post from UK
Donald Trump is still in England, where it is after 1am, but he is celebrating ABC’s decision to pull Jimmy Kimmel’s late-night show from airwaves as a personal triumph and calling for NBC to complete the purge of his enemies by firing Jimmy Fallon and Seth Myers next.
“Great News for America: The ratings challenged Jimmy Kimmel Show is CANCELLED,” Trump wrote on his social network, although the suspension of Kimmel’s show is not yet officially final.
“Congratulations to ABC for finally having the courage to do what had to be done. Kimmel has ZERO talent, and worse ratings than even Colbert, if that’s possible. That leaves Jimmy and Seth, two total losers, on Fake News NBC. Their ratings are also horrible. Do it NBC!!! President DJT,” the president of network programming the United States wrote.
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Reaction to ABC pulling Jimmy Kimmel’s show is filling Bluesky, one of the few social media platforms not owned by a rightwing billionaire
“Silly Jimmy Kimmel. He should have just called for all homeless people to be killed and he’d still have a job,” the broadcaster Mehdi Hasan observed, referring to the Fox host Brian Kilmeade suggesting during a broadcast last week that unhoused Americans could be killed via lethal injection.
“Chuck Schumer just told CNN, in the wake of Kimmel’s suspension, that ‘we are not that country’,” Bill Grueskin of Columbia Journalism School wrote. “Alas we are, now. Maybe not forever. But now.”
“ABC doesn’t want to be in the linear television business anymore because linear television is on its way out. Any pretext to dump salaries and wind down programming, they will take,” David Dayen, the editor of the American Prospect observed.
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Senator Chris Murphy calls silencing of Jimmy Kimmel another step in 'the systematic destruction of free speech in this country'
Senator Chris Murphy, a Connecticut Democrat, said in a video statement posted on social media that ABC’s decision to pull Jimmy Kimmel from the air over his mockery of the right’s response to the killing of Charlie Kirk is part of “the systematic destruction of free speech in this country”.
“It is Donald Trump using the power of the White House, in this case the power of his regulatory agencies, to try to shut down any speech that opposes him,” Murphy added. “Understand the gravity of this moment. This is a moment for the country to mobilize. This is a moment for all of us to be out in the streets protesting.”
It’s happening. The takedown of Jimmy Kimmel is likely the start of a campaign to use the murder of Charlie Kirk as a pretext to use the power of the White House to wipe out Trump’s critics and his political opponents.
— Chris Murphy 🟧 (@ChrisMurphyCT) September 18, 2025
But we aren’t powerless. We can mobilize and organize. Now. pic.twitter.com/OO4WyQjXPU
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FCC chair threatened Disney 'to take action on Kimmel' in interview with far-right podcaster
Hours before ABC decided to take Jimmy Kimmel off the air, the chairman of the Federal Communications Commission, Brendan Carr, had publicly threatened to take action against the broadcaster, and its local affiliate stations in an interview with the far-right podcaster Benny Johnson.
Amid a concerted effort from the pro-Trump right to police commentary on the murder of the conservative activist Charlie Kirk, Kimmel had come under pressure for saying, on Monday, “the Maga gang” was “trying to characterize this kid who killed Charlie Kirk as anything other than one of them and doing everything they can to score political points from it.”
Johnson, a former journalist who lost two jobs over plagiarism allegations before pivoting to become a far-right influencer, began his interview with the FCC chair on Wednesday by suggesting that Kimmel’s mockery of the rush to brand the person who shot Kirk a left-wing radical could somehow lead to “copycats” or “further radicalization”.
“When you look at the conduct that has taken place by Jimmy Kimmel, it appears to be some of the sickest conduct possible,” Carr responded.
“In some quarters, there’s a very concerted effort to try to lie to the American people,” Carr said, about the nature of Kirk’s assassination.
Carr then referred to Kimmel’s monologue as a “really, really sick” effort “to play into that narrative, that this was somehow a Maga or Republican-motivated person.”
Carr added that broadcasters licensed by the FCC have an obligation to act in the public interest. “Look, we can do this the easy way or the hard way,” Carr said. “These companies can find ways to change conduct, to take action on Kimmel or there is going to be additional work for the FCC ahead.”
“There are calls for Kimmel to be fired. I think you could certainly see a path forward for suspension over this,” Carr added. “Again, the FCC is going to have remedies that we could look at.”
Carr also credited Donald Trump for having already toppled a number of his critics in “the legacy media”.
“NPR has been defunded, PBS has been defunded, Colbert is retiring, Joy Reid is out at MSNBC, Terry Moran is gone from ABC,” Carr said. “So I think you see some lashing out from people like Kimmel, who are frankly talentless.”
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ABC pulls Jimmy Kimmel's late-night show over Charlie Kirk comments after FCC chair threatens fines
ABC bowed to pressure from the Federal Communications Commission on Wednesday by announcing that Jimmy Kimmel’s late-night show will be taken off the air “indefinitely” following complaints about his comments on the killing of the conservative activist Charlie Kirk last week.
“Jimmy Kimmel Live will be pre-empted indefinitely,” an ABC spokesperson told CNN.
The decision by Disney-owned ABC came after one of the country’s largest owners of local ABC stations, Nexstar, announced that it would immediately preempt Kimmel’s show, “for the foreseeable future” because the company “strongly objects to recent comments made by Mr. Kimmel concerning the killing of Charlie Kirk.”
In his opening monologue on Monday, Kimmel said: “We hit some new lows over the weekend with the MAGA gang trying to characterize this kid who killed Charlie Kirk as anything other than one of them.”
The comedian added: “Some people are cheering this, which is something I won’t ever understand.”
Still, Andrew Alford, the president of Nexstar’s broadcasting division said on Wednesday: “Mr. Kimmel’s comments about the death of Mr. Kirk are offensive and insensitive at a critical time in our national political discourse, and we do not believe they reflect the spectrum of opinions, views, or values of the local communities in which we are located.”
Nexstar acted after Brendan Carr, the FCC chair, urged local broadcasters to stop airing the show.
In an appearance on the far-right podcaster Benny Johnson’s show, Carr said: “There’s actions we can take on licensed broadcasters, and frankly I think it’s really sort of past time that a lot of these licensed broadcasters themselves push back on Comcast and Disney and say, ‘Listen, we are going to preempt, we are not going to run Kimmel anymore until you straighten this out because we licensed broadcasters are running the possibility of fines or licensed revocation from the FCC if we continue to run content that ends up being a pattern of news distortion.”
The disappearance of Kimmel comes two weeks after he used his monologue to mock Donald Trump for predicting that he would soon follow Stephen Colbert in being canceled for making fun of him.
“You want us to be canceled because we make jokes about you?” Kimmel asked Trump. “I thought you’re against cancel culture – I thought that was like their whole thing – when did you become so woke?”
“Unfortunately for Frosty the Snowflake, the only place we are going is to New York,” Kimmel said, previewing a series of shows to be recorded in Brooklyn, one of which was to have featured Stephen Colbert.
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Senator Bernie Sanders said Tuesday that Israel is committing genocide in Gaza, calling the conclusion “inescapable” and becoming the first US senator to use the term.
“Over the last two years, Israel has not simply defended itself against Hamas,” Sanders wrote. “Instead, it has waged an all-out war against the entire Palestinian people.”
Sanders had long received flak from supporters and protesters alike for avoiding the term, which he previously said made him “queasy” when protesters chanted it last year during a speech in Ireland.
On Monday, an independent UN commission of experts concluded that Israel’s actions “meet the criteria set forth in the Genocide convention”.
“I agree,” Sanders wrote in a statement on his senate webpage titled: “It Is Genocide. The intent is clear.”
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Outside DC, and on the campaign trail, Kyle Sweetser, who is running as a Democratic candidate for US Senate in Alabama, delivered a speech this week where he accused Donald Trump of “tearing” down the economy.
Sweetser, who voted for Trump in both the 2016 and 2020 elections, noted that he once “believed” the president’s promises to “shake up Washington”.
But now, the president’s widespread tariffs, Sweetser says, have pushed him across the aisle and into electoral politics.
“His [Trump’s] favorite thing to do is raise OUR prices with HIS tariffs. Those tariffs have hurt businesses like mine and driven up prices on just about everything,” he said.
Sweetser, who owns a construction company, spoke at last year’s Democratic national convention in Chicago, and has said the January 6 attack led him to become a “Republican voter against Trump”.
At an event for rank-and-file Alabama Democrats in downtown Mobile, Sweetser said that instead of strengthening our economy, Trump has “made it harder for families and small businesses to get by”.
“I’ve come to understand that Trump isn’t the answer – he never was. His policies are cruel, reckless, and defy logic,” he said. “ He sees himself above the law, and with the Republican party groveling at his feet, bending over backwards to praise their so-called king, he can get away with anything – no matter the cost to the American people.”
But Sweetser also called out a wing of the Democratic party rallying around progressive policies and candidates – like Zohran Mamdani, the NYC mayoral candidate surging ahead in the polls.
“I’m a common sense, southern Democrat – not a New York City socialist. I’m a hardworking American who owns more guns than shoes,” Sweetser said.
Despite calling for Americans to treat the trans community with respect, Sweetser did note today that he doesn’t “think it’s fair for men to participate in women’s sports” and urged the party at large to “reevaluate” its “image and policies”.
“We need to start talking about the most important issues. Not focusing on everyone’s pronouns,” he added.
Sweetser is running to fill the Alabama Senate seat in 2026 – left open by Tommy Tuberville, the incumbent Republican running for governor. He faces a stiff challenge from the state’s attorney general and GOP front runner, Steve Marshall.
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'Dylan Ruth?' FBI director Kash Patel fails to recognize name of Charleston mass murderer Dylann Roof
In a remarkable moment during his appearance before the House judiciary committee on Wednesday, the FBI director, Kash Patel, appeared not to recognize the name of the white supremacist murderer, Dylann Roof, who killed nine Black congregants at Mother Emanuel AME church in Charleston, South Carolina, in 2015.
At the start of a series of questions on violent extremism coming from both sides of the partisan divide, Sydney Kamlager-Dove, a Democratic congresswoman from Los Angeles, asked Patel to tell her if he disagreed with the characterization that several violent extremists were motivated by rightwing views.
“So Dylann Roof, who followed white supremacist propaganda, murdered nine Black parishioners in Charleston in 2015. Do you deny this?” Kamlager-Dove asked Patel.
Video from a camera trained on Patel shows that he squinted his eyes and looked quizzically at the congresswoman after she mentioned Roof’s name. He then turned to consult an aide before looking back at Kamlager-Dove.
“I’m sorry, Dylan Ruth?” Patel asked, puzzled.
“Roof,” Kamlager-Dove corrected him.
“Roof. Can you give me some more information?” Patel asked.
“You’re head of the FBI, you probably know this,” Kamlager-Dove said. “If you don’t know, that’s fine.”
“If you can give me a reminder, I’ve got a lot in front of me,” Patel said.
“It was national news,” Kamlager-Dove said. She then moved on to ask if Patel disagreed with the statement that “Robert Bowers murdered 11 Jewish worshippers in Pittsburgh in 2018 – ”
“I do remember that,” Patel interjected.
“And it was the deadliest antisemitic attack. So do you admit that that happened?” Kamlager-Dove asked.
“I’m not saying the other thing didn’t happen, I’m just asking for a little information,” Patel replied.
Rep. Kamlager-Dove: "Dylann Roof, who followed white supremacist propaganda, murdered nine black parishioners in Charleston in 2015. Do you deny this?"
— The Bulwark (@BulwarkOnline) September 17, 2025
Patel: "Sorry. Dylann Ruth? Roof? Can you give me some more information?" pic.twitter.com/ptYX70mmo2
After the hearing, the congresswoman shared video of the exchange on social media with the comment: “The Director of the FBI doesn’t know who Dylann Roof is? It’s incredibly shameful and concerning that Kash Patel doesn’t know about one of the most heinous hate crimes against Black Americans in the last decade.”
The exchange came one day after Barack Obama, the former president, discussed his response to that racist mass shooting at an event in Pennsylvania.
“As president of the United States, my response was not, ‘Who may have influenced this troubled young man to engage in that kind of violence,’ and now let me go after my political opponents, and use that,” Obama said.
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As our colleague Lucy Campbell reports on the UK live blog, Donald Trump has just completed his toast to King Charles at the state banquet in the UK.
Trump’s remarks were laced with a heavy dollop of praise for his own leadership.
“We are, as a country, as you know, doing unbelievably well,” Trump said, reading from printed remarks. “We had a very sick country, one year ago, and today I believe we are the hottest country anywhere in the world. In fact, nobody’s even questioning it.”
This is a slight departure for Trump from a claim that he has made dozens of times this year, in a variety of settings. More usually, Trump claims that, during the presidency of Joe Biden, the United States was “a dead country”. What prompted his revised diagnosis of the state of the US under Biden is unclear.
Trump also did not, as he usually does, attribute the appraisal that the US is now “the hottest country” in the world to the king of Saudi Arabia, as he has done since visiting Riyadh in May. (Trump did not actually meet the Saudi king, who is elderly and in poor health, on that trip, but that has not stopped him from repeatedly claiming since then that it was the king who told him the US was “dead” a year ago, and is now “the hottest”.)
Trump also overlooked centuries of imperialism and unprovoked military aggression of the part of the UK and the US to claim: “Together, we’ve done more good for humanity than any two countries in all of history.”
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Patel's second day on Capitol Hill is punctuated by shouting matches over Epstein files
Also today, FBI director Kash Patel appeared before the House judiciary committee today. He answered questions from lawmakers about the department’s handling of the Jeffrey Epstein files.
In several exchanges Patel sparred with Democratic representatives. When congressman Jamie Raskin of Maryland – who also serves as the committee’s ranking member – asked why Patel had not released the full tranche of Epstein records, the FBI director said he was hamstrung by recent court orders preventing him from doing so. “I’m not going to break the law to satisfy your curiosity,” Patel said.
Raskin also played clips of Patel on a podcast where he urged the Biden administration to “put on your big boy pants” and release Epstein’s so called “client list”. Patel had previously claimed that the FBI was in possession of the list.
More broadly, Raskin denigrated Patel’s management of the FBI, including the firing of senior officials for, what they claim, are politically motivated reasons. “You share [J Edgar] Hoover’s dangerous obsession with blind loyalty over professionalism,” Raskin said. “For you, it’s blind loyalty to Donald Trump and keeping his secrets.”
Later, California congressman Eric Swalwell, also a Democrat, went back and forth with Patel over whether he spoke to attorney general Pam Bondi about the president’s name appearing in the Epstein files. When Swalwell pushed Patel for answer, the FBI director snapped back with an unrelated diatribe: “Why don’t you try serving your constituency by focusing on reducing violent crime in this country, and the number of pedophiles that are illegally harbored in your sancturary cities in California.”
After Swalwell attempted to discuss Patel’s history of listing several “political enemies” for investigation, the FBI director said: “I’m going to borrow your terminology and call bullshit on your entire career in Congress. It has been a disgrace to the American people.”
A group of 95 members of Congress have written a letter to Kristi Noem, the homeland security secretary, condemning the arrest of protected immigrants known as Dreamers and demanding to know how many have been detained and deported in recent months.
In a letter shared with the Guardian and submitted to Noem on Wednesday morning, Democratic representatives denounced the recent rise in the wrongful detention and deportation of immigrants residing in the US under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (Daca) program.
The representatives’ letter is also addressed to Todd Lyons, the acting director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (Ice), the federal agency tasked with carrying out the Trump administration’s mass deportation program.
In the letter, co-written by House members Delia Ramirez of Illinois and Sylvia Garcia of Texas and backed up by the dozens of other signatories, the representatives condemned the “blatant disregard” of the protections afforded to people under Daca.
The members of Congress also included various examples of the detention and even deportation in the second Trump administration of Daca recipients, who are known as Dreamers after the Dream Act, legislation first introduced in 2001 to protect a large group of undocumented people who had been brought to the US as children.
As Donald Trump’s second state visit to the UK continues, guests are due to start arriving for the state banquet shortly, with the dinner expected about 3.30pm EST/8.30pm BST, to top off a day off pomp, pageantry and parades in Windsor.
Prime minister Keir Starmer will want to make the most of the face time with Trump, with the aim of this unprecedented visit to keep relations sweet with the administration, as opposed to securing any immediate big-ticket deals or international agreements.
Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch is expected to meet the president for the first time. And a number of American business leaders, who accompanied Trump on Air Force One yesterday, will also attend the dinner, as the UK government tries to court investment and boost growth. Among those expected are Apple’s Tim Cook, Nvidia’s Jensen Huang and Open AI’s Sam Altman.
Both King Charles and Donald Trump are expected to deliver short speeches at today’s banquet.
You can follow the latest developments at our dedicated live blog below:
Updated
Per my last post, classes at Utah Valley University have resumed today – one week after Charlie Kirk’s murder on campus.
Following the shooting on 10 September, the university closed and students and faculty were sent home. There will be a vigil on campus in Kirk’s honor, scheduled for Friday 19 September.
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House oversight committee calls Discord and other online forum CEOs to congressional hearing
Republican congressman James Comer, who also serves as chair of the House oversight committee, has called the CEOs of the leading online forum and messaging companies – Discord, Twitch, Steam and Reddit – to a hearing on 8 October.
“The hearing will examine the radicalization of online forum users, including instances of open incitement to commit politically motivated acts,” Comer said. This comes after the news that Tyler Robinson, the man charged with killing conservative activist Charlie Kirk, used Discord to communicate that he had killed Kirk.
Comer added that the leaders of these platforms must appear before lawmakers to explain “what actions they will take to ensure their platforms are not exploited for nefarious purpose”.
At a Senate committee hearing on Tuesday, FBI director Kash Patel said that the department was investigating other members of the Discord group chat in which Robinson was providing updates.
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The Federal Reserve has cut interest rates by a quarter point – the first time in nearly a year. Rates now stand between 4% and 4.25%, the lowest since November 2022.
Fed chair Jerome Powell is due to host a press conference at around 2:30pm ET where our business blog will be bringing you all the details:
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Barack Obama addressed the recent killing of Charlie Kirk and told a crowd in Pennsylvania on Tuesday the country was “at an inflection point”, but that political violence “is not new” and “has happened at certain periods” in US history.
Obama added that despite history, political violence was “anathema to what it means to be a democratic country”.
The former president made the remarks at the Jefferson Educational Society, a non-profit in Erie, Pennsylvania. He explicitly denounced political violence, addressing the fatal attacks this year of Kirk and the Minnesota lawmaker Melissa Hortman. He called both incidents “a tragedy” and said that Donald Trump has further divided the country rather than work to bring people together.
“There are no ifs, ands or buts about it, the central premise of our democratic system is that we have to be able to disagree and have sometimes really contentious debates without resorting to violence,” he said.
For the full story, click here:
Interim Summary
With the hearing of fired CDC director Susan Monarez and fomer public health official Debra Houry now over, here’s a look at today’s key developments so far – both on Capitol Hill and beyond:
Susan Monarez said that there had been “several explanations” about her removal from the top role at the CDC. “I had refused to commit to approving vaccine recommendations without evidence, fire career officials without cause or resign,” she said, adding: I told the secretary that if he believed he could not trust me, he could fire me … I was fired for holding the line on scientific integrity.”
Asked by Senator Bernie Sanders why she refused to rubber-stamp vaccine recommendations without seeing them or the evidence behind them, the former CDC director explained that it wasn’t negotiable. “I refused to do it because I have built a career on scientific integrity, and my worst fear was that I would then be in a position of approving something that would reduce access of life-saving vaccines to children and others who need them,” she said.
Both Monarez and Houry expressed their concerns about the decisions that the vaccine advisory committee meeting tomorrow will make. “I know that the medical community has raised concerns about whether or not, again, they have the commensurate backgrounds to be able to understand the data and the evidence and to evaluate it appropriately.” Meanwhile Houry said she had “significant concerns” as the public had not been able to weigh in.
Health secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr did not express condolences for the police officer killed at the CDC shooting, Monarez said. David Rose was the police officer who was killed during the recent shooting at the CDC headquarters in Atlanta, Georgia. The perpetrator had blamed the Covid-19 vaccine for making him depressed and suicidal.
Houry also called for Kennedy’s resignation. Speaking at the hearing, she said: “After seeing his Senate finance testimony, and the number of misstatements, seeing what he has asked our scientists to do, and to compromise our integrity, and the children that have died under his watch, I think he should resign.”
The Trump administration is using civil rights laws to wage a campaign against the University of California in an attempt to curtail academic freedom and undermine free speech, according to a lawsuit filed on Tuesday by faculty, staff, student organizations and every labor union representing UC workers. The lawsuit comes weeks after the Trump administration fined the University of California, Los Angeles $1.2bn and froze research funding after accusing the school of allowing antisemitism on campus and other civil rights violations.
The Trump administration has aggressively rolled back efforts across the federal government to combat human trafficking, a Guardian investigation has found. The sweeping retreat threatens to negate decades of progress in the drive to prevent sexual slavery, forced labor and child sexual exploitation, according to legal experts, former government officials and anti-trafficking advocates.
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Cassidy closes hearing by debunking vaccine misinformation
As he brought the hearing with fired CDC director Susan Monarez, and former public health official Debra Houry to a close, Republican chair Bill Cassidy spoke about his years as a practising physician, specializing in liver issues.
He noted that in Thursday’s vaccine advisory panel meeting, ending the recommendation for the birth dose of the hepatitis B vaccine is reportedly set for discussion.
“Why should a child be vaccinated for a sexually transmitted disease when they’re at birth? The child passes through the birth canal and is exposed to the same secretions of one would otherwise, and that passage through the birth canal makes that child vulnerable to the virus being transmitted,” Cassidy said. “If that child is infected at birth, more than 90% of them develop chronic, lifelong infection.”
Cassidy summarized the impact of the vaccine on infection rates in the decades following the approval of a birth dose of the hepatitis B vaccine. “Now, fewer than 20 babies per year get hepatitis B from their mother,” he added. “That is an accomplishment to make America healthy again, and we should stand up and salute the people that made that decision, because there’s people who would otherwise be dead if those mothers were not given that option to have their child vaccinated.”
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Houry says that Kennedy should resign
Dr Debra Houry just said that Robert F Kennedy Jr should resign.
After seeing his Senate finance testimony, and the number of misstatements, seeing what he has asked our scientists to do, and to compromise our integrity, and the children that have died under his watch, I think he should resign.
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And another update on that front. Senator Cassidy has just said that Senator Mullin told reporters that “he was mistaken” in saying that the meeting between secretary Kennedy and Dr Monarez on 25 August was recorded.
“But in case he’s mistaken, that he was mistaken,” Cassidy said, invoking laughter from those in the hearing room. “If there is a recording, it should be released, and would beg the question of what other conversations were recorded.”
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Per my earlier post, where senator Mullin made claims that Monarez was lying about her meeting with Kennedy – where she told him that if he felt she was untrustworthy he could fire her.
Republican senator Bill Cassidy – the committee chair – has called out Mullin’s “implication” that he has a recording of that meeting.
“I will note that if materials have been provided to Senator Mullin, and invoked in official committee business, they’re committee records and all other senators on the committee have the right to see those records,” he said. “This is allegiance to President Trump’s values, and so I ask that that recording be released.”
He added:
I’ll also note that we put in a request for any documents or communications that would bring transparency to the situation. We have not yet received those documents. If a recording does not exist, I asked Senator Mullin to retract his line of questions.
Updated
Monarez and Houry both agree that politics is driving change to vaccine recommendation
When asked by Democratic senator Ed Markey, of Massachusetts, whether Dr Monarez and Dr Houry feel that politics is driving the change to vaccine recommendations, including hepatitis B vaccines, instead of science in children’s health, both former officials agree.
“I’m thankful to Senator Cassidy for really raising hepatitis B via social media,” Houry said of the series of posts by the Republican chair of the committee, which sought to debunk misinformation around testing and the vaccine. “I think there’s a lot of moms that don’t know they have hepatitis that can then transmit it to their baby, and even the mom is hepatitis B negative, we don’t know what the home situation is.”
Updated
Republican senator Markywane Mullin, of Oklahoma, is saying that Monarez is “not being honest” about her recollection of the conversation with secretary Kennedy.
“I tell my kids all the time, you know one thing I want from you. I can deal with any situation we walk into, as long as I know you’re being 100% honest with me,” he said.
Mullin has provided no evidence about how why he feels she is not telling the truth.
“Your personality and your answers aren’t correct,” Mullin said in an exchange with the fired CDC director.
Republican senators spar over Monarez contacting health committee
In a line of questioning, Republican senator Ashley Moody, of Florida, seemed to suggest that Dr Monarez planned her removal from the CDC.
Moody questioned why Monarez called senator Cassidy – the Republican committee chair – “immediately” about her claims that Kennedy demanded she issue blanket approvals of vaccine recommendations, without seeing scientific evidence.
“I committed during my confirmation process several elements, including integrity, transparency, working with Congress, but she had no advance plan with any colleagues,” Monarez said.
Cassidy also pushed back against his Republican colleague’s insinuation.
It is entirely appropriate for someone with oversight concerns to contact my office, or me, or, frankly, any of us. Upon receiving outreach from Dr Monarez, I contacted both the secretary and the White House to inquire what was happening and to express concerns about what was alleged. As soon as the director was fired, the Help committee began reviewing the situation, as it is our responsibility, and any and all communications with the witnesses was conducted by Help staff in coordination with attorneys.
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Monarez and Houry say that future pandemics 'keep them up at night'
When asked what keeps them “up at night” by Democratic senator John Hickenlooper, of Colorado, both Dr Monarez and Dr Houry expressed their fears for how the country might respond to any future pandemic.
“I don’t believe that we’ll be prepared,” Monarez said of the next outbreak.
“I’m concerned about the future of CDC and public health in our country,” Houry added. “We are not prepared, not just for pandemics, but for preventing chronic health disease, and we’re going to see kids dying of vaccine-preventable diseases.”
Updated
Monarez is now responding to questions from Republican senator Jim Banks, of Indiana, and says that the “only thing” that has changed in terms of her priorities were the “demands” for Monarez to “compromise” her integrity.
“I still support that we need to make our children healthier,” she said.
Monarez went on to summarize, again, what transpired in that consequential meeting with Kennedy.
“It had been clear that I was not going to fire scientists, that I was not going to pre-commit to pre-approving vaccine recommendations about data and science. I had been very alarmed at the demands, and I had reached out as part of what I understood my obligations to communicate that to this committee. The secretary became aware of that, and in the context of those activities, he told me he could not trust me,” she laid out. “I told him that if he could not trust me, he could fire me.”
Updated
In response to a question from Republican senator Tommy Tuberville, of Alabama, Monarez says she did not refuse to change language on the CDC website that would violate the executive order issued by Donald Trump, for federal agencies to delete references to diversity, equity and inclusion online.
Kennedy did not express condolences for killed police officer at CDC shooting, Monarez says
After a short break, lawmakers are now back. Democratic senator Maggie Hassan, of New Hampshire, kicked things off by saying that she was “unsure” about whether Monarez would “stand up to Secretary Kennedy”, but went on to thank the former director on her recent actions.
Monarez was visibly upset when she recounted Kennedy’s response after telling him that she needed to consult scientific evidence before making decisions on vaccine recommendations.
“He made another set of assertions associated with CDC that were particularly pointed and particularly hurtful and disparaging. He called, in that context, CDC ‘the most corrupt federal agency in the world’,” Monarez said. “He said that CDC employees were killing children and they don’t care. He said that CDC employees were bought by the pharmaceutical industry. He said CDC forced people to wear masks and social distance like a dictatorship.”
Monarez later said, when asked about his conduct in that meeting, that Kennedy did not express condolences for the death of David Rose, the police officer who was killed during the recent shooting at the CDC, or the two children who died of measles earlier this year.
Updated
One of the more heated exchanges in today’s hearing was between Republican senator Rand Paul, of Kentucky, and Monarez.
As my colleague, Melody Schreiber, notes, Paul falsely claimed that Covid vaccines don’t decrease transmission and don’t reduce hospitalizations or deaths.
Monarez disagreed, and pushed back on the senator’s assertions.
Dr Houry also detailed the way the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) responded differently to the measles outbreak earlier this year. Houry noted that neither she, nor the center director who oversaw measles, never briefed Kennedy. Typically, it would be a common response to hold a briefing following an outbreak.
Then, Houry said that Kennedy claimed “vaccines had fetal parts”, which required her to “send a note to our leadership team to correct that misinformation”.
Updated
Monarez and Houry both express concern about outcome of upcoming vaccine advisory committee
Both Dr Monarez and Dr Houry both expressed their concerns about the decisions that the vaccine advisory committee meeting tomorrow will make. “I know that the medical community has raised concerns about whether or not, again, they have the commensurate backgrounds to be able to understand the data and the evidence and to evaluate it appropriately,” Monarez said. “I don’t know what will happen, but I certainly will be watching.”
Meanwhile Houry said she had “significant concerns” as the public had not been able to weigh in. “The general vote should have been posted two weeks ago so the public knew what was being discussed,” the former chief medical officer of the CDC said.
Earlier, Houry said that she found out about the new Covid-19 vaccine recommendations from the Food and Drug Administration via social media.
“CDC scientists have still not seen the scientific data or justification for this change – that is not gold standard science,” Houry added.
Updated
Monarez says she was fired for refusing to offer a 'blanket approval' of upcoming vaccine recommendations
Earlier Monarez said that Kennedy demanded “blanket approval” of “each and every one of the recommendations” in the upcoming vaccine advisory panel meeting. Monarez claimed that Kennedy said if she couldn’t do that she would need to resign.
“I did not resign, and that is when he told me he had already spoken to the White House about having me removed,” Monarez said.
Monarez went on to push back on Kennedy’s claims that she was “a liar” in his Senate finance committee earlier this month.
When Senator Bernie Sanders asked Monarez why she refused to rubber-stamp vaccine recommendations without seeing them or the evidence behind them, the former CDC director explained that it wasn’t negotiable.
“I refused to do it because I have built a career on scientific integrity, and my worst fear was that I would then be in a position of approving something that would reduce access of life-saving vaccines to children and others who need them,” she said.
Updated
Cassidy just confirmed with Dr Debra Houry – the former chief medical officer – that Thursday’s upcoming vaccine advisory committee is the first in Houry’s 10 years at the CDC where political appointees have set the agenda for the meeting.
Typically, scientists who study inoculations and infectious disease set the agenda. But Houry said that “the senior adviser and HHS counselor worked with our staff and the designated federal official and proposed items.” Both of those roles are political appointees.
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Monarez: 'I was fired for holding the line on scientific integrity'
“I had refused to commit to approving vaccine recommendations without evidence, fire career officials without cause or resign,” Monarez said. “I told the secretary that if he believed he could not trust me, he could fire me.
“I was fired for holding the line on scientific integrity,” she added.
Monarez went on to say that she met with Kennedy twice in her 29-day tenure.
Updated
Monarez said that she was fired for not giving 'blanket approval' of vaccine advisory panel reccomendations
Monarez is now outlining a timeline of events before her firing. Here’s a breakdown of her summary.
On 8 August, a gunman “driven by vaccine distrust”, launched an attack at the CDC headquarters in Atlanta – killing officer David Rose.
On 19 August, Monarez says she received “a directive” from the secretary’s office that she “now required prior approval from my political staff for CDC policy and personnel decisions”.
On 21 August, she says she was “told to return to Washington from Atlanta immediately”, which would have meant missing officer Rose’s memorial. “Something I was not willing to do,” she adds.
On 25 August, Monarez says that secretary Kennedy “demanded two things of me that were inconsistent with my oath of office and the ethics required of a public official.” She claims that Kennedy directed her to commit in advance, to approving every recommendation for the vaccine advisory panel, “regardless of the scientific evidence”. She also says that Kennedy directed her to dismiss career officials responsible for vaccine policy without cause.
Monarez says that at this point Kennedy told her if she was “unwilling to do both” she should resign.
Updated
Monarez says today’s hearing ‘should be about the future of trust in public health’
Speaking now, Dr Susan Monarez says that there have been “several explanations” about her removal from the top role at the CDC.
“I told the secretary I would resign, that I was not aligned with the administrative administration priorities, or that I was untrustworthy. None of those reflect what actually happened,” Monarez said.
“I will share the details, but I want to be clear, today should not be about me. Today should be about the future of trust in public health,” she said.
Appearing alongside Dr Monarez is Dr Debra Houry – who resigned as chief medical officer of the CDC shortly after Monarez’s firing.
Senator Bernie Sanders, of Vermont, who serves as the ranking member of the health committee, said that today’s hearing was not just about determining why Dr Monarez was fired and why Dr Houry and other scientists at the CDC resigned.
“The issue is deeper than that,” Sanders said. “It is about Secretary Kennedy’s dangerous war on science, public health and the truth itself.”
Updated
Senate committee with ousted CDC director begins
The hearing where the fired CDC director Susan Monarez has started. In his opening remarks, Republican senator Bill Cassidy – who chairs the Senate health committee – summarized the crux of today’s proceedings.
If someone is fired 29 days after every Republican votes for her, the Senate confirms her. The Secretary said in her swearing in that she has “unimpeachable scientific credentials”, and the president called her an incredible mother and dedicated public servant. Like what happened?”
A reminder that Monarez was the first CDC director to require Senate confirmation.
Cassidy noted that health secretary Kennedy said in a Senate finance committee earlier this month that his decision to clear house at the CDC was “imperative” because of the agency’s “conflicts of interest and catastrophically bad judgment and political agendas”.
“If what he said is true, we as senators need to ask ourselves, did we look past something? Did we do something wrong?” Cassidy added.
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Driver rams into FBI field office in 'targeted attack' according to officials
A driver rammed into an entrance of the FBI field office in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania today. The individual was later identified as Donald Henson, from Penn Hills, which is about 10 miles from the site of the attack.
Henson allegedly got out of the car after the crash, and threw an American flag on to the gate. He then left the scene on foot, according to a statement from the FBI Pittsburgh office.
Law enforcement officials are treating as a “targeted attack”, but confirmed that no FBI personnel were injured.
Per my last post, it’s worth noting that Susan Monarez’s hearing today comes ahead of a meeting of the vaccine advisory panel on Thursday. They’ll discuss and set new guidelines and schedules for a batch of crucial inoculations – including Hepatitis B, MMR, and Covid-19.
Robert F Kennedy Jr fired all 17 members of the panel earlier this year, and is now facing criticism that several of his new, handpicked committee have expressed vaccine misinformation or skepticism.
A lawmaker to watch in today’s hearing will be Republican senator Bill Cassidy, of Louisiana. He’s also a physician and has expressed frustration at Kennedy’s handling of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). He was a deciding vote during Kennedy’s confirmation, and earlier this month accused Kennedy of effectively “denying vaccines” to Americans after the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) placed restrictions on who would be able to access the new Covid-19 jabs.
Fired CDC director to appear before Senate committee; Kash Patel to testify in front of House committee
Back on Capitol Hill today, we have two hearings that we’ll be watching closely, both are due to begin at 10am ET.
The fired director of the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) will appear before the Senate health committee following her termination in August.
After Susan Monarez was removed from her role, less than a month after she was confirmed to the agency’s top position, it set off a wave of resignations from top public health officials. One of those experts, Debra Houry, will join Monarez today. Houry was the CDC’s chief medical officer prior to stepping down from her post, citing the spread of vaccine misinformation and the interference of politics in the agency’s work.
A reminder, health secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr sat before the Senate finance committee earlier this month and was grilled about the circumstances around Monarez’s firing. He claimed that she was “lying” about her claims that her ousting was the result of refusing to sign off on the secretary’s new vaccine policies.
Instead, Kennedy said that she was removed because she admitted to being untrustworthy.
Meanwhile, in Congress’ lower chamber today, FBI director Kash Patel will testify before the House judiciary committee. His second Hill appearance of the week. On Tuesday, Patel sparred with Democratic lawmakers in the Senate about accusations that recent firings within the department were politically motivated.
Updated
Today, Donald Trump and the first lady, Melania Trump, kick off a series of engagements on their state visit to the UK – the president’s second since he returned to the White House this year.
When he landed on Tuesday, he characterized his upcoming meetings with the royal family as a “very big day”. The president and Melania Trump spent the night at Winfield House – the US ambassador’s residence in the London.
Trump and the first lady arrived on the Windsor Castle grounds earlier, and were greeted by Prince William and the Princess of Wales (Catherine), before meeting King Charles and Queen Camilla.
They’re due to have lunch shortly, and will then head to St George’s chapel to participate in a wreath laying ceremony at the tomb of Queen Elizabeth II.
A reminder, that you can follow our dedicated coverage of the president’s trip to the UK below:
The chair of the House foreign affairs committee moved to cut a contentious provision from legislation that would have granted the secretary of state sweeping powers to revoke US citizens’ passports over allegations of supporting terrorism.
Representative Brian Mast, a Florida Republican, filed an amendment to eliminate the measure from his department of state policy provisions act, a bill meant to reform the state department in the Trump administration’s image, after widespread criticism from civil liberties advocates, according to the Intercept.
The original language would have given Marco Rubio, the secretary of state, the power to deny or revoke passports for individuals the department determines have provided “material support” to terrorist organizations. Given similar language employed by the Trump administration in other contexts, it is believed to have been intended to target pro-Palestinian activists specifically.
Since Rubio became secretary of state, he has overseen efforts to deport pro-Palestinian international students and deploy an AI-powered “Catch and Revoke” system to target foreign nationals government authorities allege support Hamas. The US also recently announced it will look for “anti-American” views when assessing visa applications.
But the new measure would have significantly escalated these efforts by targeting US citizens. Mast had initially defended the broader legislation, saying it “ensures every dollar and every diplomat puts America First and is accountable to the president’s foreign policy” when the House foreign affairs committee introduced the package last week.
Donald Trump has claimed his administration has reached a deal with China to keep TikTok operating in the US, amid uncertainty over what shape the final agreement will take, with suggestions from the Chinese side that Beijing would retain control of the algorithm that powers the site’s video feed.
“We have a deal on TikTok ... We have a group of very big companies that want to buy it,” Trump said on Tuesday, without providing further details.
The deal, which was negotiated in Madrid between US treasury secretary Scott Bessent and Chinese vice premier He Lifeng, reportedly see the social media platform transfer its US assets to new US owners from China’s ByteDance.
One of the major questions is the fate of TikTok’s powerful algorithm that helped the app become one of the world’s most popular sources of online entertainment.
At a press conference in Madrid, the deputy head of China’s cyber security regulator said the framework of the deal included “licensing the algorithm and other intellectual property rights”.
Wang Jingtao said ByteDance would “entrust the operation of TikTok’s US user data and content security.”
Some commentators have inferred from these comments that TikTok’s US spinoff will retain the Chinese algorithm.
The boss of upmarket retailer Fortnum & Mason has said Donald Trump’s trade war has hit sales of its luxury tea exports to the US and forced up prices.
Tom Athron, the London-based retailer’s chief executive, said Trump’s stricter country of origin rules and the end of the “de minimis” cost exemption for parcels worth less than $800 (£587) had hit customers across the Atlantic.
“The American authorities have told us – this is the tea industry in its entirety – that if you’ve got tea from China and India in your tea, then its country of origin [is] China or India, and therefore those enormous tariffs apply,” he told the Financial Times.
Trump, who landed in the UK on Tuesday for an unprecedented second state visit for a US president, last month imposed a 50% tariff on imports from India as a punishment for buying Russian oil.
And earlier this year, the US administration raised tariffs as high as 145% on Chinese goods as the trade war intensified, before dropping them to 30% in May to facilitate talks between the two trading giants. The world’s two largest economies held talks in Madrid this week to try to reach a potential deal.
For a 250g canister of loose leaf Royal Blend tea, which retails to US consumers at $27.85, Fortnum’s has now been forced to charge delivery fees starting at $25.41 owing to the changes to US taxes and duties.
University of California students and faculty sue the Trump administration
The Trump administration is using civil rights laws to wage a campaign against the University of California in an attempt to curtail academic freedom and undermine free speech, according to a lawsuit filed on Tuesday by faculty, staff, student organizations and every labor union representing UC workers.
The lawsuit comes weeks after the Trump administration fined the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) $1.2bn and froze research funding after accusing the school of allowing antisemitism on campus and other civil rights violations. It was the first public university to be targeted by a widespread funding freeze. The administration has frozen or paused federal funding over similar allegations against elite private colleges, including Harvard, Brown and Columbia.
According to the lawsuit, the Trump administration has made several demands in its proposed settlement offer to UCLA, including giving government access to faculty, student and staff data; releasing admissions and hiring data; ending diversity scholarships; banning overnight demonstrations on university property and cooperating with immigration enforcement.
The Department of Justice didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment, nor did the office of the UC system’s president.
The coalition is led by the American Association of University Professors union, or AAUP, and represented by Democracy Forward, a legal group that has brought other lawsuits against the Trump administration over frozen federal funds.
“The blunt cudgel the Trump administration has repeatedly employed in this attack on the independence of institutions of higher education has been the abrupt, unilateral, and unlawful termination of federal research funding on which those institutions and the public interest rely,” the lawsuit filed in federal court in San Francisco said.
The US Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights has launched dozens of federal investigations also targeting K-12 school districts.
Trump administration retreats on combating human trafficking and child exploitation
The Trump administration has aggressively rolled back efforts across the federal government to combat human trafficking, a Guardian investigation has found.
The sweeping retreat threatens to negate decades of progress in the drive to prevent sexual slavery, forced labor and child sexual exploitation, according to legal experts, former government officials and anti-trafficking advocates. They say the administration’s moves are impeding efforts to prosecute perpetrators and protect survivors in the United States and around the world.
“It’s been a widespread and multi-pronged attack on survivors that leaves all of us less safe and leaves survivors with few options,” said Jean Bruggeman, executive director of Freedom Network USA, a national coalition of service providers, researchers and trafficking survivors.
Under Trump, key initiatives for fighting human trafficking have been cut back at the US Department of State, Department of Justice, Department of Labor, Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), the Guardian found. Senior officials and other staffers have been forced out, workers shifted to other priorities and grants delayed or cancelled.
At DHS, Trump has ordered agents formerly dedicated to investigating and arresting human traffickers to focus on deporting immigrants. Current and former DHS staffers interviewed by the Guardian confirmed that these investigators’ day-to-day work has been broadly shifted toward deportations and away from investigating “major crimes” with “real victims”.
At the state department, the Trump administration slashed more than 70% of the workforce at the agency’s office to monitor and combat trafficking in persons (Tip office), which is responsible for leading anti-trafficking efforts across the US government. The department has also held up grants for nonprofit organizations fighting trafficking around the world, putting their operations and services at risk.
Without establishing any link to last week’s shooting, president Trump and members of his administration have discussed classifying some groups as domestic terrorists, ordering racketeering investigations and revoking tax-exempt status for progressive nonprofits, AP reports.
The White House pointed to Indivisible, a progressive activist network, and the Open Society Foundations, founded by George Soros, as potential subjects of scrutiny.
Although administration officials insist that their focus is preventing violence, critics see an extension of Trump’s campaign of retribution against his political enemies and an erosion of free speech rights.
Any moves to weaken liberal groups could also shift the political landscape ahead of next year’s midterm elections, which will determine control of Congress and statehouses across the country.
“The radical left has done tremendous damage to the country,” Trump told reporters on Tuesday morning when leaving for a state visit to the United Kingdom. “But we’re fixing it.”
Dozens of nonprofit leaders, representing organizations including the Ford Foundation, the Omidyar Network and the MacArthur Foundation, released a joint letter saying “we reject attempts to exploit political violence to mischaracterize our good work or restrict our fundamental freedoms.”
“Attempts to silence speech, criminalize opposing viewpoints, and misrepresent and limit charitable giving undermine our democracy and harm all Americans,” they wrote.
A former CIA officer stripped of his security clearance by the Trump administration has announced he’s running for Senate as a Democratic candidate to claim Mitch McConnell’s long-held Kentucky seat.
Joel Willett launched his candidacy Wednesday, weeks after director of national intelligence Tulsi Gabbard revoked his clearance as part of a purge targeting 37 current and former intelligence officials.
“I’ve seen firsthand how the Trump administration and their far-right allies are trying to weaponize the government against anyone who disagrees with them,” Willett said in his announcement. “That just made me more determined to run.”
Following the revocation, Willett faced attacks from Trump-aligned online activists such as Laura Loomer and received death threats, according to his campaign. Gabbard at the time accused those targeted of “politicizing and manipulating intelligence” but provided no supporting evidence for the claims.
But for Willett, the experience has crystallized his concerns about democratic institutions and the treatment of public servants who express dissenting views.
“It’s not lost on me that this happened exactly two weeks after my name surfaced as a potential candidate,” Willett said in an early September interview with the Guardian, calling the revocations “a nakedly political act that is intended to silence dissent”.
Four arrested after images of Trump and Epstein projected on to Windsor Castle ahead of president’s visit
Four people have been arrested after images of Donald Trump alongside deceased sex offender Jeffrey Epstein were projected on to Windsor Castle, where the US president is set to be hosted by King Charles during his state visit to Britain.
Trump arrived in Britain late on Tuesday for an unprecedented second state visit, and will be greeted by Charles on Wednesday for a day of pomp at Windsor Castle, about 25 miles west of London.
Earlier on Tuesday, protesters unfurled a massive banner featuring a photograph of Trump and Epstein near Windsor Castle, and later projected several images of the two on to one of the castle’s towers.
The police said in a statement four adults were arrested on suspicion of malicious communications after an “unauthorised projection” at Windsor Castle, which they described as a “public stunt”. The four remain in custody.
Democrats in the US House of Representatives last week made public a birthday letter Trump allegedly wrote to Epstein more than 20 years ago, though the White House has denied its authenticity.
The letter was also projected on to the castle, along with pictures of Epstein’s victims, news clips about the case and police reports.
The release of the letter has brought renewed attention to an issue that has become a political thorn in the president’s side.
Updated
Fired CDC chief will testify Kennedy pressed her to endorse vaccine recommendations without evidence
Fired Centers for Disease Control and Prevention director Susan Monarez will tell senators that health secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr pressured her to endorse new vaccine recommendations before seeing scientific evidence, according to a copy of the testimony she plans to give during a Wednesday hearing.
According to a copy of the prepared remarks, obtained Tuesday by the Associated Press, Monarez will tell senators that Kennedy gave her an ultimatum: “Pre-approve” new vaccine recommendations from a controversial advisory CDC panel that Kennedy has stocked with some medical experts who doubt vaccine safety or be fired.
That panel is expected to vote on new vaccine recommendations later this week.
Monarez, initially handpicked by Kennedy and nominated by president Donald Trump, was fired just weeks into the job over disagreements on vaccine policies. She is set to appear before the Senate’s powerful health committee to discuss her firing.
“Even under pressure, I could not replace evidence with ideology or compromise my integrity,” Monarez will say in her opening testimony to senators. “Vaccine policy must be guided by credible data, not predetermined outcomes.”
She said she was “fired for holding the line on scientific integrity.”
Monarez also notes that Kennedy directed her to fire a number of high-ranking CDC officials without cause.
The Senate hearing will focus on the impact the turmoil at the nation’s leading public health agency, which is responsible for making vaccine recommendations to the public, will have on children’s health.
It will also undoubtedly serve as an opportunity for Monarez and former chief medical officer Debra Houry, who will also testify before the committee, to respond to a number of Kennedy’s contentious claims about their final days at the agency.
Kennedy has denied Monarez’ accusations that he ordered “rubber-stamped” vaccine recommendations.
Bondi faces rightwing backlash for saying she’ll target ‘hate speech’ after Kirk killing
US attorney general Pam Bondi’s pledge that the Trump administration will “absolutely target” people who use “hate speech” after in the wake of the killing of conservative activist Charlie Kirk has prompted criticism of the idea from across the political spectrum, including from prominent conservatives.
Bondi said on a podcast hosted by Katie Miller, the wife of the rightwing White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller, that there is “free speech and then there’s hate speech, and there is no place, especially now, especially after what happened to Charlie, in our society”.
Legal experts and conservative pundits have condemned the comments because there is no “hate speech” exception in the first amendment right to speech and as such, targeting people for their charged rhetoric would be unconstitutional.
“There is no unprotected category of speech in the constitution or in the case law called ‘hate speech’,” said Heidi Kitrosser, a Northwestern University law professor. “By being so vague and by talking about speech that doesn’t fit into any legal category, she is basically opening the door for taking action against anyone who engages in speech that the president or the Department of Justice or Stephen Miller doesn’t like.”
Kirk, the founder of the powerful rightwing youth activist group Turning Point and a close ally of Donald Trump, was killed on 10 September at Utah Valley University during one of his signature events in which he debated students.
The murder was part of a wave of political violence in the United States, including attempted assassinations of the US president and the assassination of Melissa Hortman, the Democratic speaker of the Minnesota House of Representatives, and her husband.
While some people on both sides of the aisle have spoken about the need for respectful dialogue, Trump and others in his administration have continued to largely blame the violence on the left and warned of a “vast domestic terror movement” prompting fears he plans a broad crackdown on his political opponents.
JD Vance guest-hosted Kirk’s podcast this week, during which the vice-president urged people to call the employers of people celebrating Kirk’s murder and said that the administration would “work to dismantle the institutions that promote violence and terrorism in our own country”.
When asked about Bondi’s comments on Tuesday, Trump told an ABC News reporter: “We’ll probably go after people like you because you treat me so unfairly. It’s hate. You have a lot of hate in your heart. Maybe they’ll come after ABC.”
Bondi also threatened to prosecute an Office Depot employee who reportedly refused to print flyers for a vigil for Kirk.
Opening summary
Hello and welcome to the US politics live blog. I’m Tom Ambrose and I will be bringing you all the latest news lines over the next few hours.
We start with news that Donald Trump has vowed to stop the “radical left media” from “destroying” the nation. Taking to his social media platform Truth Social, the president said that he had received “amazing” feedback on his case against the New York Times.
“The predominant feeling and sentiment is, “IT’S ABOUT TIME!” he wrote. “The Radical Left Media is working hard to destroy the U.S.A. We are going to stop them at each and every level!!!”
In a $15bn case filed in the Florida courts, Trump has accused the NYT of spreading “false and defamatory” content about him.
A spokesperson for the NYT said: “This lawsuit has no merit. It lacks any legitimate legal claims and instead is an attempt to stifle and discourage independent reporting. The New York Times will not be deterred by intimidation tactics. We will continue to pursue the facts without fear or favour and stand up for journalists’ first amendment right to ask questions on behalf of the American people.”
The case is the latest of several multibillion-dollar lawsuits Trump has launched against US media outlets since his return to the White House.
In other developments:
Utah county attorney Jeff Gray formally announced charges against Tyler Robinson, the suspect accused of fatally shooting Charlie Kirk. Prosecutors have charged Robinson on seven counts, including aggravated murder, and will seek the death penalty. Later, Robinson made his first court appearance at a virtual hearing, wearing an anti-suicide smock, where Utah judge Tony F. Graf ruled Robinson qualifies for a court-appointed attorney and granted a pre-trial protective order for Erika Kirk, the widow of Charlie Kirk. The next hearing in Robinson’s case is scheduled for September 29, and will be conducted virtually.
FBI director Kash Patel faced questions from the Senate judiciary committee during a more than four hour long hearing. The hearing twice included a shouting match between Patel and Democratic senator Cory Booker and later Adam Schiff. Patel defended his leadership of the FBI, denying that he has politicized the agency and ordered firings of agents and personnel over their work on cases related to Trump or the January 6 attack on the US Capitol. Patel also defended his actions over prematurely posting on social media that the suspect in Charlie Kirk’s killing had been found, only for that person to be released. Democratic senator Dick Durbin and others said Patel’s actions pointed to his lack of experience and “sparked mass confusion” during the investigation.
The Trump administration will appeal the court decision blocking Trump’s bid to fire Federal Reserve governor Lisa Cook. Yesterday, a US appeals court declined to allow Trump to fire Cook, in the latest step in a legal battle that threatens the Fed’s longstanding independence.
Four people have been arrested after images of Donald Trump alongside deceased sex offender Jeffrey Epstein were projected on to Windsor Castle, where the US president is set to be hosted by King Charles during his state visit to Britain. Trump arrived in Britain late on Tuesday for an unprecedented second state visit, and will be greeted by Charles on Wednesday for a day of pomp at Windsor Castle, about 25 miles west of London.
Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that Trump has invited him back to the White House on September 29. The trip will be the fourth time Netanyahu, a vocal supporter of Trump’s, has visited the White House since Trump’s second term began in January.
California governor Gavin Newsom joined a host of Democratic influencers and officials for a virtual rally in support of Proposition 50, also known as the Election Rigging Response Act. The act seeks to redraw California’s political map, in response to efforts by politicians in Republican-led states to do the same.
