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Former President Bill Clinton warned that he fears the United States is losing its freedom of speech after what appeared to be a reference to late-night host Jimmy Kimmel’s brief suspension on Wednesday.
Clinton gave remarks at the Clinton Global Initiative annual meeting in honor of its 20th anniversary, where he criticized several Trump administration policies, including cuts to foreign aid and restrictions on immigration asylum claims.
Though he did not mention Trump or Kimmel by name, Clinton referenced “the weight of government” being used to restrict forms of expression, including comedy.
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Former U.S. President Bill Clinton speaks during the 2025 Clinton Global Initiative (CGI) in New York City, U.S., Sept. 24, 2025. (Kylie Cooper/Reuters)
“I’m worried that we’re at risk of losing our freedom of speech, and that the weight of the government is being used to restrict expression from journalism to comedy,” Clinton said.
“Jimmy Kimmel Live!” was pulled off the air last week after Kimmel’s comments about the alleged assassin of Charlie Kirk sparked outrage from broadcasting companies and a veiled threat from the Federal Communications Commission (FCC).
Though Kimmel’s suspension was lifted on Sept. 23, Sinclair Broadcasting Group and Nexstar Media Group have said that they will continue to preempt the show across dozens of ABC affiliates while negotiations with Disney continue.
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ABC’s Jimmy Kimmel returned to the air on Tuesday, Sept. 23, 2025, after being briefly suspended following his controversial comments related to Charlie Kirk’s alleged assassin. (Randy Holmes/Disney via Getty Images)
Clinton then focused on journalism and the importance of the free press.
“But the press is supposed to be tough on us,” Clinton said. “Facing hard questions and being forced to think them through and answer them makes our ideas stronger and our politics better. And if the coverage is unfair and inaccurate, we can stand up and do that and point it out and express our disagreements without trying to put people who are doing their jobs under the Constitution out of business. That’s wrong.”
He added, “You don’t build strong societies by doing this. It’s an illusion. It causes societies to fail when their institutions are all discredited.”
Protesters gathered outside the studios where “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” is produced to demonstrate against the show’s suspension, claiming that it was an infringement of free speech. (Mario Tama/Getty Images)
Clinton also condemned political violence against Kirk and others like former Minnesota House Speaker Melissa Hortman and called for more peaceful dissent.
“I think we all have to acknowledge that vigorous debate and disagreements and dissent are necessary, healthy in a functioning democracy. But violence, intimidation, and repression are not. We got to be clearly all on the same side for the first and against the latter. And we start by practicing seeing each other as people again both in person and online,” Clinton said.
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Fox News Digital reached out to Clinton’s staff for additional comment but did not immediately receive a response.
