A leading press freedom organization on Monday urged Democratic lawmakers to impeach US President Donald Trump’s Federal Communications Commission chairman when they take control of Congress in January, pointing to the official’s efforts to “intimidate and punish” media outlets that publish criticism of the White House.
The demand marked the first time that Reporters Without Borders, known internationally as Reporters sans frontières (RSF), has called for the removal of a US official in the group’s 40-year history, the organization said in a statement. Clayton Weimers, executive director of RSF North America, said the “severity and persistence” of FCC Chair Brendan Carr’s alleged wrongdoing “demand an extraordinary response.”
RSF points to Carr’s erosion of the FCC’s independence from the executive branch and eager willingness to act as the president’s attack dog, pursuing investigations into networks that Trump has publicly targeted.
“When Trump took office, Carr reinstated complaints against and announced inquiries into broadcasters that questioned the Trump administration’s policies, from public service media NPR and PBS to major private channels ABC, CBS, and NBC,” the group noted. “Carr’s relentless investigations have also targeted local stations, such as California radio station KCBS, which has faced politically motivated scrutiny for its reporting.”
RSF also pointed to Carr’s threat earlier this year to pull the broadcast licenses of networks accused by the administration of “news distortions”—a threat that came in direct response to Trump’s complaint about media coverage of his illegal war on Iran.
“Few individuals have been more instrumental to the White House’s campaign to weaken the First Amendment than Brendan Carr,” Weimers said on Monday. “The incoming Congress now faces a defining test of its commitment to the Constitution and the freedoms it guarantees. Press freedom cannot be defended through words alone.”
In addition to his attacks on journalism and legally dubious effort to roll back limits on media consolidation, RSF argued that Carr “likely violated the Hatch Act” by hailing his government work at a political rally for Republican US Senate candidate Dan Sullivan in Alaska. RSF and the Democracy Defenders Fund filed a formal complaint last month demanding an investigation into Carr’s appearance at the rally.
RSF’s call for Carr’s impeachment came days after Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) demanded that the FCC chair hand over records as part of an investigation into “how the president and the Federal Communications Commission’s actions erode and undermine freedom of speech and freedom of the press and bear on the laws governing media consolidation.”
Jessica González, co-CEO of the advocacy group Free Press Action, welcomed Blumenthal’s investigation and argued that Carr’s actions “should lead to his removal from office, by impeachment if necessary.”
“Carr’s capricious abuse of the law has no place in a legitimate democracy,” said González. “Over the past two years, Carr has regularly violated his oath to support and defend the Constitution. He’s been more than happy to browbeat and jawbone broadcasters into silence, though his claims have zero legal merit.”
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