A planned primetime address left former President Donald Trump calling foul on corporate media as his campaign counsel put them on “notice” should they not provide him “equal access.”
In the midst of being absent from the public eye for nearly six whole days, President Joe Biden quit his re-election campaign and threw his weight behind Vice President Kamala Harris. As he was expected to make his first remarks to the American people on “what lies ahead” Wednesday evening, the Trump campaign reminded the major networks that how they proceeded could put their licenses on the line.
“We write to demand that your network provide equal time, in prime time, for President Trump to address the American people about his vision of the future,” wrote Trump campaign counsel David Warrington in duplicate letters submitted to ABC, Inc., CBS Broadcasting, Inc., Fox Corporation, and NBCUniversal Media LLC which were obtained by Breitbart News.
“On July 23, 2024, President Biden announced that he would be giving a primetime speech on Wednesday, July 24, 2024. This speech is expected to address President Biden’s decision to drop out of the 2024 presidential race in the wake of his widely panned debate performance and freefalling poll numbers,” stated Warrington. “It is also expected to address President Biden’s endorsement of Vice President (and ‘border czar’) Kamala Harris for the Democratic nomination for president.”
“As such,” he argued, “it appears that President Biden’s speech will not be a bona fide news event, but rather, a primetime campaign commercial to boost Vice President Harris’ anemic poll numbers.”
07232024 Equal Time Demand(… by Breitbart News
In addition to his daily briefing, the president’s public schedule listed the address from the Oval Office as his only planned event for the day, after Biden’s social media account announced Tuesday, “Tomorrow evening at 8 PM ET, I will address the nation from the Oval Office on what lies ahead, and how I will finish the job for the American people.”
Tomorrow evening at 8 PM ET, I will address the nation from the Oval Office on what lies ahead, and how I will finish the job for the American people.
— President Biden (@POTUS) July 23, 2024
Warrington proceeded to cite federal law about equal time to assert the networks would be “obligated to provide an equal opportunity for President Trump.”
According to the Federal Communications Commission, “FCC rules seek to ensure that no legally qualified candidate for office is unfairly given less access to the airwaves — outside of bona fide news exemptions — than their opponent. Equal opportunities generally means providing comparable time and placement to opposing candidates; it does not require a station to provide opposing candidates with programs identical to the initiating candidate.”
The criteria by which an individual was deemed a “legally qualified candidate” included publicly announced intention, meeting the qualifications for the office being sought, and qualifying for a place on the ballot.
Having already filed a complaint with the FEC after the Biden for President war chest worth over $90 million was handed over to the Harris for President campaign, Trump’s counsel warned what may come telling the networks, “any failure to provide equal access may be considered ‘willful’ and result in consequences up to and including the revocation of your station license.”
“Moreover, your granting of free airtime to President Biden to speak on behalf of Vice President Harris’ campaign may result in an impermissible and excessive corporate-in-kind contribution to the Biden (now Harris) for President Committee,” added Warrington who closed with a mic drop, “We await word on when we should schedule President Trump’s primetime address to the American people.”
Native of Brooklyn, NY, Kevin Haggerty is a graduate of Hunter College where he studied Cultural Anthropology and Geography. An avid reader and truth seeker, he currently resides in Texas with his wife and their dog and, when he isn't researching current events and their impacts, you'll find him spending time with friends and family or working on his next novel.
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