Welcome to The Fill From the Hill, a recurring political column where one University Times writer dissects the key political topics and controversies in the news, from domestic politics to international affairs. This week tackles a segment of the Stephen Colbert Show that was allegedly canceled by CBS. Despite my position, this column is not representative or a reflection of the opinions of the UT Staff nor the UT itself. 

On Monday, Feb. 17, Stephen Colbert told his audience that parent network CBS canceled a planned interview with Texas Democrat James Talerico. This interview was planned to air during that night’s show,  just before early voting started in Texas, in which Talarico is a candidate in the Democratic primary for the U.S. Senate.

In a short brief on his show, Colbert clarified that the show’s lawyers told him that he could not have Talarico appear that night. Further, he claims the network tried to tell him that he could not talk about the removal of the interview during the broadcast either. 

The following day, CBS responded, rejecting Colbert’s versions of events, claiming that they “received legal advice that the broadcast could trigger the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) equal-time rule.” In short, the rule dictates that talk shows and other news broadcasts must give equal airtime to not only one candidate, but also all of their opponents. Colbert later called this response “crap.”

In a statement posted to his X account, Talarico said that “This is the interview Donald Trump didn’t want you to see,” and “Trump is worried we’re about to flip Texas.” Talarico included a short clip from the interview in which Colbert opens with, “If people are watching this right now, it’s ‘cause they found us online.” 

FCC chairman Brendan Carr responded in a press conference two days later, calling the entire thing a “hoax.” This also comes just days after an FCC investigation into ABC for “The View,” which also aired an interview with Talarico under similar pretenses.  

Talarico is in a highly contested race for the Senate seat. In his primary, he is running against the current House Rep., Jasmine Crockett, and if he wins during the general election, he will face off against Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton or Sen. John Cornyn.

In an interview following Colbert’s show, Crockett appeared to back up the FCC’s claims, saying that “we did receive information suggesting that the federal government did not shut down the segment.” Although she also signaled that she was still waiting for more information to come out before she cast her judgment.

Now that the table has been set, let’s get into our views on the pulling of James Talarico’s interview.

Samuel Valencia: Talarico hit the nail on the head: Trump is running scared, and is using every trick he can to make it seem like he’s still in control. 

It’s no surprise that “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert” is in his crosshairs, following the cancellation of the show late last year. But to be so brazen as to use his relationship with the Ellisons, who recently purchased Paramount, to pressure CBS into cutting the segment just shows that Trump feels no need to try to hide his actions. It’s also not really a surprise that Bari Weiss capitulated, seeing as she is perfectly okay with using her network as a puppet of the Trump Administration.

If you’ve been paying attention– or even if you haven’t– the Republican Party has been rapidly digging itself an early grave ahead of the 2026 midterms. A grave so big that during a GOP dinner in Jan., Trump told them straight out that if they didn’t win, the Democrats would impeach him and his administration. 

From the Epstein cover-up to the kidnapping of the Venezuelan president, or even the fact that grocery prices have not gone down, the Republicans are flailing and failing at the same time. Their plan to just ram as much of their agenda as they can ahead of the midterms is struggling to become a reality, and races like this in Texas are proving that. 

Democrats had a fantastic season last November, where they swung districts that Trump won in 2024 by double digits in some areas. That was reason enough to sound the alarm bells, but with blunders, it gets to a point where even for Trump’s ego, it is untenable.

What is a shame is to see Rep. Crockett somewhat defend the FCC and the Trump administration in her statement. She has done a pretty good job during her time in the House deflecting attacks from the president, so to see her take this situation at face value is disappointing to say the least. Regardless of Talarico being her opponent, she should be wholeheartedly condemning this action. 

And, as for Brendan Carr and the FCC, well, they already got their kick in the pants after the whole Kimmel fiasco, so it’s in his best interest to just sit this one out. Going after talk-show hosts didn’t work then, so it’s probably not going to work now. But this administration is a long way from learning after the first mistake, so maybe the third time’s the charm?

Finally, to speak on how Colbert handled this, he has an incredible amount of calm in the face of an administration that has repeatedly tried to silence him.

When he announced the cancellation of his show last year, it was a sad day. We watched as the government basically stomped out his voice, yet Colbert has continued to stand up for what he believes is right, and continues to use his platform to amplify those who are also doing what they believe is right. 

It is a hard time for free speech right now, but with people as strong-willed in the face of adversity like Colbert and Kimmel, there is at least a glimmer of hope that we can come out of this on the other side.