Free Speech Under Fire, Trump’s UK Parade, and Gaza’s Genocide

"We are at a moment right now where people are asking themselves why can’t the Democratic Party defend this assault on democracy... and I would submit to you that if you can’t draw the line at genocide, you probably can’t draw the line at democracy.” – Ta-Nehisi Coates

1. A new UN report by an independent panel of experts concludes that Israel is committing genocide. The report states Israeli leaders and military have “committed four of the five genocidal acts defined by the 1948 Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide.” More on Gaza below.
2. Disney and ABC indefinitely suspended late-night host Jimmy Kimmel’s show after FCC Chairman Brandon Carr threatened the network for a joke Kimmel made about assassinated activist Charlie Kirk. Conservatives called the joke unacceptably hateful, and the suspension has fueled outrage over the government’s autocratic moves to suppress free speech. See Top Story.
3. The fired CDC director, Dr. Susan Monarez, told a congressional panel this week that HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy dismissed her after she refused to rubber-stamp a new childhood vaccine schedule without reviewing the science. Monarez—nominated by Trump and confirmed by Congress 51-47 in July—was fired by the White House just 29 days later. More on vaccine changes below.
4. Embattled FBI Director Kash Patel testified before Congress this week—like a four-year-old. Evasive and combative, Patel dodged questions about the Epstein files and the Kirk murder investigation, even reciting the ABCs to avoid answering. Yes, seriously.
5. Prosecutors in the Charlie Kirk murder case say they will seek the death penalty against Tyler Robinson. Officials claim Robinson confessed to his partner, telling him he shot Kirk because of the hate Kirk spread and that he had “had enough.”

• Sen. Bernie Sanders — after 23 months — now says what Israel is doing in Gaza is genocide.
• The Trump Administration is looking to sell nearly $6 billion in weapons to be delivered over the next 2–3 years, according to the WSJ. “The arms would be paid for by U.S.-provided foreign military financing, according to the documents. Israel buys most of its American-made weapons using U.S. taxpayer money that comes via billions of dollars in annual military aid.”
• The US was the sole vote against a UN resolution calling for a ceasefire in Gaza — its sixth such vote in the last two years. The US says the resolution didn’t condemn Hamas enough.
• On Monday, Britain, France, Canada, Australia, and Belgium are expected to call on the UN to recognize Palestinian statehood. It would be largely symbolic as Israel continues its genocide, but recognition could strengthen Palestine’s ability to enter treaties and pursue action in international courts.
• After the US denied visas for Palestinian officials to attend this month’s UN General Assembly, the body voted to allow Mahmoud Abbas to speak via video. Only five countries voted against — including the US. It’s worth noting UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer is a human rights lawyer. “The situation is simply intolerable,” he said in July. “I am particularly concerned that the very idea of a two-state solution is reducing and feels further away today than it has for many years.”
• Ahead of the UN meeting, Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-OR), Sen. Tim Kaine (D-VA), and others issued a Senate resolution — the first of its kind — to recognize a demilitarized Palestinian state.
• Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich says they are working with the US on turning Gaza into a “coastal enclave,” reports the Times of Israel. Calling it a real-estate “bonanza,” Smotrich — who exercises control over the occupied West Bank — said: “We have paid a lot of money for this war. We have to see how we are dividing up the land in percentages,” adding that “the demolition, the first stage in the city’s renewal, we have already done. Now we need to build.”
• Israel wants all aid entering the Gaza Strip distributed by the controversial and embattled Gaza Humanitarian Foundation and sourced from Israel. According to Middle East Eye, “multiple indicators suggest the Israeli economy is taking a hit as a result of its genocide in Gaza, on account of growing international isolation, lack of investment and consumer confidence as well as the high number of conscripts being called away from work to fight.”
• Jerry Greenfield — of Ben & Jerry’s — announced he’s leaving the company he founded after 47 years because he can no longer work there in “good conscience.” Greenfield has been vocal against Israel’s genocide in Gaza but says parent company Unilever has stifled him. “For more than 20 years under their ownership, Ben & Jerry’s stood up and spoke out in support of peace, justice and human rights, not as abstract concepts, but in relation to real events happening in our world… It’s profoundly disappointing to come to the conclusion that that independence, the very basis of our sale to Unilever, is gone.” Unilever’s ice cream division says it disagrees with Greenfield’s characterization. (X)

On Monday, Jimmy Kimmel joked in his monologue that the suspect charged in Charlie Kirk’s murder was tied to MAGA.

“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."

By Wednesday, the backlash had escalated into a full government-media clash. FCC Chairman Brandon Carr went on a conservative podcast and threatened ABC directly, saying:

“We can do this the easy way or the hard way. These companies can find ways to change conduct, to take action, frankly, on Kimmel, or… there’s going to be additional work for the FCC.”

That same day, Nexstar — which owns dozens of ABC affiliates — announced it would stop airing Kimmel’s show. Sinclair–who also distributes the show--followed. Just an hour before Kimmel was set to tape Wednesday’s episode, ABC suspended him nationwide. According to Rolling Stone, the decision wasn’t about whether Kimmel said anything wrong, but executives’ fear of FCC retaliation.

The fear is justified. Trump has promised to punish broadcasters and already extracted millions from flimsy lawsuits. ABC alone reportedly paid $15 million to Trump’s foundation and another $1 million in legal fees after an anchor stated an inconvenient fact. Carr has weaponized that leverage. In The Wall Street Journal this week, he said bluntly: “Broadcast licenses are not sacred cows.”

The moves by Nexstar and Sinclair weren’t just about Kimmel’s joke. Nexstar is trying to buy Tegna — a merger that would violate FCC ownership limits unless Carr signs off. Sinclair has its own regulatory fights. Both companies have every incentive to keep Carr happy, even if it means taking out Kimmel. We’ve seen this before: CBS’s parent company, Paramount, quietly settled a lawsuit with Trump while a merger involving CBS was pending at the FCC.

The stakes go far beyond late-night TV. Disney can make its own programming decisions. But when government officials and regulators lean on companies to silence critics, that collides directly with the First Amendment. And the double standard is glaring: when a Fox anchor called for homeless people to be executed, the FCC did nothing.

The message is clear. Under Trump and his FCC, networks are protecting their licenses, mergers, and bottom lines — not the public’s right to free speech.

• People are boycotting Disney.
• The response from Kimmel’s peers was nothing short of hilarious.
• Event Sen. Ted Cruz (R-FL) compared Carr’s move to the mafia.

More

• Days after claiming that hate speech was not protected by the First Amendment and would be targeted by the DOJ, Attorney General Pam Bondi walked it back, clarifying she meant only incitement to violence. Bondi said: “Freedom of speech is sacred in our country, and we will never impede upon that right. My intention was to speak about threats of violence that individuals incite against others.” The Supreme Court has consistently ruled that hate speech is protected.
• Washington Post contributor Karen Attiah says she was fired for quoting Charlie Kirk on affirmative action. She says the Post let her go after a tweet citing Kirk’s suggestion that Black women only advanced because of affirmative action.
• On Monday, Vice President JD Vance hosted Kirk’s radio show and threatened left-wing groups, saying: “While our side of the aisle certainly has its crazies, it is a statistical fact that most of the lunatics in American politics today are proud members of the far-left.” Except that’s not true. Studies consistently show the right incites far more violence than the left.

• President Trump and FLOTUS were in the UK this week, meeting royals and Prime Minister Keir Starmer. Trump — enamored with Great Britain, probably because they have a king — was greeted by the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, treated to a royal parade, and a state dinner at Windsor Castle with the king.
  • Trump and Starmer signed a technology investment deal bringing $350 billion in U.S. company investments to the UK, expected to create thousands of high-quality jobs and boost tech firms. The countries will also collaborate on AI and health research.
  • Four people were arrested after they projected an image of Trump alongside accused pedophile and sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein on Windsor Castle ahead of the visit.

• Speaking of Epstein, Alex Acosta — the former U.S. attorney in Miami who gave Epstein a “sweetheart” deal and immunity from prosecution for trafficking children in 2006 and didn’t inform victims — testified behind closed doors to the House Oversight Committee. Democrats say he was evasive and defiant. He claimed he didn’t find the victims credible. As part of the deal, Epstein was sentenced to 18 months, served only 13, and was allowed to work during the day and return to jail at night. Acosta later served as Trump’s Labor secretary.
• As expected, the Federal Reserve cut interest rates by a quarter point — its first cut since December 2024. The board meets two more times this year; further cuts are possible.
• Trump is expected to sign an executive order imposing a $100,000 application fee for H-1B work visas, claiming the program is abused. “H-1B visas are meant to bring the best and brightest foreigners for high-skilled jobs that tech companies find difficult to fill with qualified U.S. citizens and permanent residents. The program instead has turned into a pipeline for overseas workers who are often willing to work for as little as $60,000 annually. That is far less than $100,000-plus salaries typically paid to U.S. technology workers.”
• The U.S. military struck a second Venezuelan boat, killing three men, claiming they were transporting drugs to the U.S. An earlier strike this month killed 11. But a New York Times investigation found the boat had turned around and was heading away from the U.S. when it was attacked. “The Department of Defense has deployed at least eight warships to the Caribbean in the last month, escalating tensions between Venezuela and the United States. The country’s president, Nicolás Maduro, suggested that he was prepared for an ‘armed fight’ should Trump launch an attack on Venezuela,” NOTUS reports.
• Trump suggested the U.S. military could return to Bagram, Afghanistan, after Biden’s botched withdrawal from the country following decades of war. The WSJ reports talks are in early stages. Why? Per Al Jazeera: “Trump has repeatedly expressed regret that the base was abandoned, arguing that Washington should have maintained a small force, not because of Afghanistan but because of its location near China.”
• DHS arrested 11 New York local and federal lawmakers after they tried to access a holding area for immigration cases in a federal courthouse. They said they wanted to inspect conditions for people held for alleged immigration violations. Local lawmakers aren’t guaranteed that right; federal lawmakers are. All 11 were released. Just this week a federal judge “sided with immigrants represented by the NYCLU, the ACLU and Make the Road New York, agreeing with characterizations in more than a dozen affidavits of overcrowding, unsanitary conditions, limited access to food and water, and no ability to contact their attorneys confidentially,” according to The City.
• The Trump Administration is asking SCOTUS to:
  • pause a lower court’s ruling allowing people to choose their gender markers on passports, including “X” for nonbinary citizens.
  • issue an emergency order allowing him to fire Federal Reserve governor Lisa Cook. Trump tried to fire Cook by accusing her of mortgage fraud. Documents later proved she was innocent. “The White House campaign to unseat Cook marks an unprecedented bid to reshape the Fed board, which was designed to be largely independent from day-to-day politics. No president has fired a sitting Fed governor in the agency’s 112-year history.”
• Speaking of firings and mortgage fraud, Trump also wants to fire U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia Erik Siebert because he couldn’t find evidence that New York Attorney General Letitia James committed mortgage fraud. James won a civil suit against Trump finding he inflated property values to secure favorable rates. “DOJ officials told ABC News Friday that career prosecutors responded … with alarm regarding the future of the prosecutors’ office, which handles the bulk of the country’s national security cases. Officials have raised concerns about the collateral damage … potentially including prosecutors walking out or resigning en masse.”
• Which is notable because Bloomberg reports that Trump’s Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent did what Trump accuses James and Cook of — mortgage fraud. Bessent’s lawyers say everything is above board.
  • Also noteworthy: Politico reported that Bessent “lashed out” at Federal Housing Finance Agency director Bill Pulte for “badmouthing him to Trump.” “Why the fuck are you talking to the president about me? Fuck you,” Bessent told Pulte. “I’m gonna punch you in your fucking face.”
• Trump chided an Australian reporter who asked how much wealthier he’s gotten since returning to office. “You know, your leader is coming over to see me very soon. I’m going to tell him about you. You set a very bad tone. You can set a nicer tone,” Trump said.
• In addition to Monarez, Dr. Debra Houry — the CDC’s former chief medical officer — testified that Kennedy did not consult science for many decisions. Houry also said she “learned of changes to Covid vaccine policies through a post on X.” In a 58-second video, Kennedy and other HHS officials announced in May that the CDC was no longer recommending the vaccine for healthy children and pregnant women.
• Related: The government panel that makes vaccine recommendations voted not to recommend the combined measles, mumps, rubella, and varicella (MMRV) vaccine for children under four. “Despite the relatively low uptake of the combined shot, liaison members from professional medical groups repeatedly pointed out that there was no new evidence to justify the change and urged the panel not to act.” The move could fuel growing skepticism about vaccine safety. “The majority of children — roughly 85% — get separate MMR and chickenpox shots; only about 15% get the combination MMRV vaccine, according to CDC data presented at the meeting. Still, many external experts … criticized the proposed change … saying it would limit parents’ options and sow confusion among the public.”
• The Department of Education says it is partnering with conservative organizations like Kirk’s Turning Point USA to create educational programming on American values. “Called the America 250 Civics Education Coalition, the initiative was billed by the Education Department as an effort to renew patriotism and advance ‘a shared understanding of America’s founding principles in schools across the nation.’”
• The House voted 310–58 to adopt a resolution condemning political violence and honoring Kirk’s life, calling him a “patriot” who “live out his faith with conviction, courage, and compassion.” Ninety-five Democrats voted for it, 58 voted against, and 38 voted “present.” “Top Democratic leaders … said they would support the resolution but told individual members to vote their conscience. It proved an agonizing decision for many Democrats, especially those representing minority communities … Many viewed Kirk as a divisive figure, in the model of President Trump, not the unifier portrayed in the resolution.”
• A federal judge tossed Trump’s $15 billion lawsuit against The New York Times for being too long, allowing the government to refile but shorter. Trump accuses the Times of being a “mouthpiece” for Democrats and says several election-season articles were “malicious” and “disparaging.” (Axios)This nugget from the Times — reporting on its own suit — was too good to pass up: The judge “criticized Mr. Trump’s lawyers for waiting until the 80th page to lodge a formal allegation of defamation, and for including, ahead of it, dozens of ‘florid and enervating’ pages lavishing praise on the president and enumerating a range of grievances. ‘A complaint is not a public forum for vituperation and invective,’ Judge Merryday wrote. ‘Not a protected platform to rage against an adversary.’” (NYT)
• An immigration judge ruled that Mahmoud Khalil — the Columbia University student arrested and detained for months for protesting Israel’s genocide — must be deported to either Algeria or Syria, claiming he was not forthcoming on his green card application. Khalil is a lawful permanent resident. His lawyers are appealing and pursuing a separate lawsuit against the Trump Administration for violating his constitutional rights. The judge in that case ordered that Khalil not be deported. (The Hill)
• Meanwhile, Rep. Nancy Mace (R-SC) was on a tear this week trying to censure Rep. Ilhan Omar (R-TK) for not grieving Kirk to her liking. Mace accused Omar — without evidence — of glorifying his death. “Over the last week, Mace has advocated for stripping Omar of her committee assignments and censuring her, and has publicly suggested that Omar should be deported back to Somalia for having allegedly ‘smeared Charlie Kirk and implied he was to blame for his own murder’ during an interview with Zeteo’s Mehdi Hasan. Disjointed clips … were … recirculated by far-right personalities, who claimed that Omar had said Kirk deserved to die. But that wasn’t accurate.” The censure vote failed 214–213, with four Republicans joining Democrats.
• Congress passed a stopgap measure to fund the federal government until November 21 — which still needs to pass the Senate to avoid a shutdown when the fiscal year ends September 30. Republicans want additional security funding for government figures after Kirk’s killing. Democrats want healthcare changes, including extending subsidies set to expire next year. “The deadline is still over a week away, but Friday’s vote dramatically increases the likelihood of a funding lapse … neither side is blinking … both chambers could now leave Washington for the next week, or more, without a path forward.” (CNN)

• Nuclear-armed Pakistan and cash-flush Saudi Arabia have put a ring on it — sort of. The two signed a mutual defense deal: an attack on one is an attack on the other. They’ve had warm relations for decades and say the pact has been in the works for a year. It’s not lost on anyone that regional instability — namely Israel’s war; Israel is the only nuclear-armed state in the Middle East — has heightened insecurity. (Al Jazeera)
• The EU Commission wants its 27 member states to consider suspending trade with Israel for violating “human rights and democratic principles” in Gaza. The EU is Israel’s largest trading partner, accounting for 32% of its total trade in 2024. The proposal also calls for sanctioning right-wing Israeli ministers and settlers in the West Bank and East Jerusalem for incitement. Sanctions would freeze assets and ban travel within the EU. The order also calls for sanctioning members of Hamas. No word on timing for a vote. (EU)
• Leaked transcripts of meetings with Israeli leaders discussing a potential strike on Iran confirm they believed it would be years before Iran had nuclear weapons — not weeks, as Israel claimed to justify the attack. Netanyahu’s goal was to destabilize the region and take out Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ali Khamenei. (The Times of Israel)

• New York Governor Kathy Hochul endorsed NYC mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani in a New York Times op-ed. She supports his affordability agenda and wants to work with him on combating antisemitism. Mamdani — shunned by many leading Democrats — is running against Hochul’s former boss, former Governor Andrew Cuomo.
• A new consortium including American leaders will take over TikTok in a U.S.–China deal, but users will need to switch to a new app now being tested. As a result, Trump has (again) delayed the ban until December 16.
• Actor and activist Robert Redford died on Tuesday at 89.
• A man wanted on stalking charges is suspected of killing three police officers in Pennsylvania and injuring two others. He was shot and killed by police.
• Et tu? New York’s Cardinal Timothy Dolan called Kirk a modern-day saint and hero. “He’s one I think that knew what Jesus meant when he said the truth will set you free.” (New York Post)

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