Former President Barack Obama and former Vice President Kamala Harris have expressed outrage over the suspension of Jimmy Kimmel’s late-night talk show, labeling it a ‘direct attack on free speech.’
Yet both leaders have previously championed the very censorship tactics now being used against their political opponents.
In sharp social media remarks, the duo criticized ABC’s decision to remove Jimmy Kimmel from the air after he commented on Republican responses to the killing of conservative activist Charlie Kirk.
The decision, reportedly influenced by pressure from FCC Chairman Brendan Carr, has sparked a renewed debate over censorship, hypocrisy, and First Amendment rights.
Harris stated: ‘What we’re experiencing is a blatant misuse of authority. The administration is targeting critics and instilling fear to quiet those who dare to speak up.’
‘Media entities, from TV networks to print publications, are yielding to these threats. We must not be silent or indifferent in the face of this direct attack on free speech. The public deserves more.’
Critics, however, quickly pointed out a contradiction, referencing Harris’s September 2019 tweet in which she called for the suspension of President Donald Trump’s Twitter account during his first term.
‘Let’s be honest, @realDonaldTrump’s Twitter account should be suspended,’ Harris wrote at the time. ‘It’s a matter of corporate responsibility. Twitter should be held accountable and shut down that site. It is a matter of safety.’
Former President Barack Obama and former Vice–President Kamala Harris have erupted over the suspension of Jimmy Kimmel decrying it as a ‘frontal assault on free speech’
The former Vice President posted that ‘what we are witnessing is an outright abuse of power’
Yet in previous posts she had directly called for the account of President Donald Trump to be suspended
The post is a classic example in what many are calling a stunning reversal from the left. A movement once proud of silencing conservatives is now crying foul when one of their own is muzzled.
Obama, known for picking his political battles carefully since leaving office, also jumped into the fray slamming the Trump administration for allegedly strong-arming media companies into silencing dissenting voices.
‘After years of complaining about cancel culture,’ Obama wrote on BlueSky, ‘the current administration has taken it to a new and dangerous level by routinely threatening regulatory action against media companies unless they muzzle or fire reporters and commentators it doesn’t like.’
‘This is precisely the kind of government coercion that the First Amendment was designed to prevent,’ he continued. ‘And media companies need to start standing up rather than capitulating to it.’
Obama linked to a New York Times piece by columnist David French defending the First Amendment.
‘This commentary offers a clear, powerful statement of why freedom of speech is at the heart of democracy and must be defended – whether the speaker is Charlie Kirk or Jimmy Kimmel, MAGA supporters or MAGA opponents.’
Yet during his presidency, his administration was accused of surveilling journalists, weaponizing the IRS, and cheering the de-platforming of conservative commentators.
It’s not the first time Democrats have walked the fine line between defending speech and restricting it.
Obama attends the inauguration of Donald Trump in the U.S. Capitol Rotunda on January 20, 2025 in Washington, DC
Obama, known for picking his political battles carefully since leaving office, also jumped into the fray
During the Biden administration, White House aides were found to have pressured Twitter and Facebook to remove anti-vaccine content, a form of government influence that conservatives labeled ‘jawboning.’
Now, under Trump’s return to the White House, the roles appear reversed.
Conservatives once decrying cancel culture are now embracing what they call ‘consequence culture’ with liberals are alarmed at the very tools they helped create.
Deputy White House Chief of Staff Taylor Budowich dismissed the backlash entirely.
‘Free speech is alive & well. Kimmel can head down to Sunset Blvd & maybe even attract a bigger audience than his show did,’ Budowich wrote. ‘Bad jokes & bad TV are bad for biz. ABC is no longer paralyzed in fear by the woke mob.’
‘Welcome to Consequence Culture,’ he added.
California Governor Gavin Newsom accused the Trump administration of fascism.
‘There is no such thing as free speech under Donald Trump’s reign,’ Newsom tweeted.
‘There is no such thing as free speech under Donald Trump’s reign’, California Gov. Gavin Newsom tweeted following Jimmy Kimmel’s suspension
Demonstrators protest the suspension of the “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” show outside the El Capitan Entertainment Centre where the show is performed in Hollywood on September 18, 2025
Trump gloated on Truth Social, stating Kimmel has ‘ZERO talent.’
And yet, just five years ago, it was Newsom, Obama, and Harris who stood by or actively cheered as Trump, Charlie Kirk, and others were silenced by Big Tech platforms under Democratic pressure.
The backlash from Democrats comes as Kimmel’s show was abruptly pulled from the airwaves following his monologue criticizing Republicans for politicizing Charlie Kirk’s death.
‘The MAGA gang is desperately trying to characterize this kid who murdered Charlie Kirk as anything other than one of them,’ Kimmel said. ‘And doing everything they can to score political points from it.’
That line drew furious responses from MAGA-world – and a threat from FCC Chair Carr, who warned ABC of ‘regulatory consequences.’ Hours later, Jimmy Kimmel was suspended indefinitely.
Trump also called for two of Kimmel’s network rivals, Jimmy Fallon and Seth Meyers to be fired
JD Vance, backed the cancellation in harsher terms. ‘If you celebrate Charlie Kirk’s death, you should not be protected from being fired for being a disgusting person,’ Vance said
FCC Chair Brendan Carr who warned ABC of ‘regulatory consequences’
Trump gloated on Truth Social, calling Kimmel ‘ZERO talent.’
‘Great News for America,’ Trump wrote. ‘ABC finally had the courage to do what had to be done.’
‘Jimmy Kimmel was fired because he had bad ratings more than anything else, and he said a horrible thing about a great gentleman known as Charlie Kirk,’ Trump later told reporters. ‘He was fired for lack of talent.’
Meanwhile, his VP, JD Vance, backed the cancellation in harsher terms.
‘If you celebrate Charlie Kirk’s death, you should not be protected from being fired for being a disgusting person,’ Vance told Fox News.
‘The First Amendment protects a lot of very ugly speech – but not from consequences.’
