Asshole of the Month: Brendan Carr

Donald Trump is not the first President to have a contentious relationship with the press. John Adams and Abe Lincoln imprisoned journalists they didn’t like. Teddy Roosevelt barred reporters from press conferences and sued newspapers for libel. Nixon composed an “enemies list” that included journalists. Lyndon Johnson railed against the media’s criticism of the Vietnam War and quipped, “If one morning I walked on top of the water across the Potomac River, the headline that afternoon would read: ‘President Can’t Swim.’”

But Donald Trump is the all-time champ of presidential press haters. He declared the whole Fourth Estate the “enemy of the American people” in his first term, and now he even spews venom at friendly Fox News when it reports inconvenient facts about the underperforming economy or Dear Leader’s declining approval rating. Earlier this year, he barred the Associated Press (AP) from sending a reporter to cover an executive order signing, because the AP had refused to recognize Trump’s new name for the Gulf of Mexico—the Gulf of America—in its style guide. So to tame the “enemy” in his second term, Trump appointed loyalist Brendan Carr as chairman of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). His mission: Use all the power at his disposal to transform the free press from a snarling watchdog into a submissive lapdog.

Carr worked in private practice as an attorney before he joined the FCC in 2012. He was appointed its general counsel in 2017. That same year Trump nominated Carr as an FCC commissioner. Signaling his allegiance to private business over the public interest, Carr promptly voted to repeal net neutrality rules designed to make internet service providers (ISPs) transmit all content equally. But in general, Carr seemed to be for protecting free speech from government interference, with remarks like this: “The American people want more freedom on the Internet—not freewheeling micromanagement by government bureaucrats.” A little over a year ago, he said, “If there ever were a time for a federal agency to show restraint when it comes to the regulation of political speech and to ensure that it is operating within the statutorily defined bounds of its authority, now would be that time.” But Trump’s electoral victory in 2024, and Carr’s promotion to powerful chair of the FCC, have changed his tune. Trump set the stage for Carr’s rampage with this whine: “They give me only bad press. They’re getting a license. I think maybe their license should be taken away. It will be up to Brendan Carr. I think Brendan Carr is outstanding…he’s a tough guy.”