In 2024, an interview of then Vice President and presidential candidate Kamala Harris was aired on 60 Minutes. DT then sued CBS over the interview, claiming they had edited it to unfairly enhance how the Vice President sounded. And this editing supposedly caused the President to suffer “mental anguish.” CBS settled with him, agreeing to pay $16 million to his presidential library fund, despite the fact the suit was, according to even DT defenders like Washington University law professor Jonathan Turley, likely unfounded. Others, that it lacked any substance, and raised grave concerns over press freedom. The network later claimed it fired Colbert not to satisfy DT but for “financial reasons.”
CBS is owned by Paramount, which starting in early 2024 was trying to merge with another production company, Skydance. For the merger to go ahead, it would need approval by the FCC, which was controlled by DT. The bribe worked; the merger was allowed to proceed. The settlement by CBS with DT was announced on July, 2, 2025. And on July 14th, 2025, a day that has proven courageous but also ominous and fateful, Colbert mocked the $16 million settlement. He called it a bribe, and that was the beginning of the end.
CBS News President and CEO Wendy McMahon and 60 Minutes executive producer Bill Owens both opposed the settlement and later resigned over it. Critics like Jon Stewart and David Letterman also called the settlement a bribe or an attempt at appeasement.
This wasn’t the only example of appeasement of the would-be dictator by the media, law firms, GOP Congressmembers, etc. and I hope it works out better than allied appeasement of Mr. Hitler before World War II. The examples of appeasement of DT are numerous. CBS lawyers bowed to DT by blocking an appearance on the Late Show by Texas State Rep. James Talarico, who was then running in the Democratic Texas Senate primary. And ABC News also paid $15 million to DT and his lawyers, to settle a defamation claim against news anchor George Stephanopoulos for statements he made about the civil judgment against DT for sexually abusing E. Jean Carroll.
An article in USA Today reported the Chairman of the FCC, Brendan Carr, a DT sycophant, told a conservative gathering that the President is winning the battle [presumably to stop freedom of speech]. “Look at the results. PBS defunded. NPR defunded. Joy Reid gone from MSNBC… Chuck Todd, Jim Acosta… John Dickerson gone. Colbert is leaving…”
And lately, DT’s been ever more furiously editing the Republican party. His latest victims: Senator Bill Cassidy of Louisiana, who lost his primary bid to hold onto his Senate seat to an opponent backed by DT. He was ousted for voting in 2021 to convict the president on the article of impeachment over his role in the January 6th, 2020, violent coup attempt. Also primaried this week was Kentucky Rep Thomas Masssie, who consistently voted his own conservative views. He worked to make public all the Epstein files and opposed DT’s Big Beautiful (Ugly) Tax Bill and the wars in Iran and Venezuela. The list of Republicans eliminated by DT from the ranks of party members in power goes on and on.
We clearly never know what will result from our actions. Actions have consequences. For example, DT also recently expressed his desire to primary the highly regarded Texas Senator John Cornyn which, along with other concerns, has upset several Senate Republicans. It has led them to join with Democrats to revolt against DT’s leadership, stall his weaponization fund, stall even his push to use budget reconciliation to fund ICE. Bill Goodykoontz, writing for the Arizona Republic newspaper, said “CBS killed The Late Show, but Colbert gets the last laugh.”
The narrowing of the GOP means also a narrowing of what speech and behaviors will be tolerated by DT in his party, and thus a narrowing of his party’s base of support. Will Republicans allow themselves, and will we Americans let ourselves be so constricted, our lives so narrowed, while he, his supporters, and fellow billionaires expand their wealth and power and freely run over our lives, our freedoms, and our sense of humanity and justice?
We never know how deep this NOW goes into that LATER. But despite that not knowing, we have a hand, a voice, a role to play in fashioning that LATER. We just have to figure out what role we dare play. Maybe the Senate Republican are finally learning how much more they, and all of us, have to fear by appeasing DT rather than opposing him. Maybe they’ve reached a turning point. Maybe the rest of us will find ways to speak out and encourage them to expand on that turning point.
Montclair Film on Flickr Under CC License
