AUSTIN, Texas (AP) 鈥� Late-night host said his interview with was pulled from Monday night鈥檚 broadcast over network fears it would violate regulatory guidance from the Trump administration on giving equal time to political candidates.
Colbert’s statements overshadowed Tuesday’s start of early voting for Texas primaries that feature a heated Democratic race between Talarico and Four-term Republican Sen. also faces the fight of his long career against Texas Attorney General and U.S. Rep.
Colbert said CBS lawyers said in 鈥渘o uncertain terms鈥� that Talarico could not appear on 鈥淭he Late Show with Stephen Colbert鈥� broadcast because the network feared violating guidance from the Trump administration. Colbert nevertheless interviewed Talarico for nearly 15 minutes and posted the video on YouTube, because online material does not fall under the equal-time rule.
鈥淭hen I was told, in some uncertain terms, that not only could I not have him on. I could not mention me not having him on,鈥� Colbert said. 鈥淎nd because my network clearly doesn鈥檛 want us to talk about this, let鈥檚 talk about this.鈥�
CBS disputed Colbert’s account, saying its attorneys only 鈥減rovided legal guidance鈥� that broadcasting an interview with Talarico could trigger the Federal Communications Commission’s equal-time rule.
Crockett expressed skepticism about the 鈥渕ania鈥� playing out on the first day of early voting, 鈥渨hich feels kind of convenient.鈥�
Two hot Senate races ramp up
Both Talarico and Crockett have built national profiles through as media organizations have navigated around changing broadcast guidance issued under President Donald Trump governing how they interview political candidates.
Talarico posted a nearly minute-long clip of his interview with Colbert on X, calling it 鈥渢he interview Donald Trump didn’t want you to see.鈥� During the interview, Talarico said he thinks Trump is worried that Democrats can win the Texas seat.
鈥淭he administration was playing politics and was trying to control what a late-night show puts on air, something that鈥檚 never been done before,鈥� Talarico told reporters during a news conference Tuesday in Austin after he voted early. “The executives at CBS were willing to go along with it.”
Crockett suggested that Colbert could have avoided an issue with the FCC by having her on the show, as he has in the past. Both she and Talarico also have appeared on ABC’s daytime show 鈥淭he View.鈥�
She told reporters after voting early in Dallas that she still was looking into the situation but added: 鈥淚鈥檝e done Colbert a number of times. I’ve done 鈥楾he View鈥� a number of times. I’ve done (Jimmy) Kimmel a number (of times). I鈥檝e done all of these shows a number of times.鈥�
On the Republican side, Paxton with a rally Monday evening in Tyler in eastern Texas, while Cornyn had his own rally Tuesday in Austin. Hunt released a new television ad on Tuesday.
Warnings from the FCC
Broadcast networks have been required to give equal time to political candidates, but that rule hasn’t traditionally been applied to talk shows.
In January, the Federal Communications Commission issued new guidance warning late-night and daytime hosts that they need to give political candidates equal time. FCC Chairman Brendan Carr, a Trump appointee, questioned the talk show exemption and posited that hosts were 鈥渕otivated by partisan purposes.鈥�
The public notice said the FCC had not seen evidence that talk shows would qualify for an exemption from the rule for 鈥渂ona fide news.鈥� Carr has often criticized network talk shows, suggesting last year that probing 鈥淭he View鈥� 鈥� whose hosts have frequently been critical of Trump 鈥� over the exemption might be 鈥渨orthwhile.鈥�
The FCC did not immediately respond Tuesday to a message seeking comment.
Colbert鈥檚 days as host are limited, following CBS鈥� announcement last year that it was canceling his show this May for financial reasons, shuttering a decades-old TV institution in a changing media landscape.
But the timing of that announcement 鈥� three days after Colbert criticized the , parent company of CBS, over a 鈥�60 Minutes鈥� story 鈥� led two U.S. senators to publicly question the motives behind the move, which served to remove from air one of Trump鈥檚 most prominent and persistent late-night critics.
Candidates look to avoid runoffs
Meanwhile, Talarico and Crockett are hoping to avoid a May 26 runoff by capturing at least 50% of the Democratic vote in the March 3 primary. While Paxton also is, until Friday, the only ad his campaign ran had attacked Hunt.
Hunt is trying to appeal to voters seeking an alternative to Cornyn but uneasy about Paxton. The Texas attorney general beat on corruption charges and to end a long-running securities fraud case but now faces a over allegations of adultery.
Hunt’s new ad shows photos of him with Trump, hitting Cornyn over his long political career and declaring, 鈥淭his is our moment to end the status quo.鈥�
But Paxton’s campaign has been airing its own ad featuring video clips of him with Trump since Friday. The president had not endorsed any candidate as of Monday.
Paxton on Monday night portrayed Cornyn as a creature of the Washington establishment, adding, 鈥淲ell, I鈥檓 not their person and I鈥檓 never going to be their person.鈥�
GOP fears about Paxton
Paxton looks like the GOP’s front-runner, even though Cornyn鈥檚 campaign and allied super PACs had spent more than $54 million on television advertising since last year, according to the ad-tracing service AdImpact.
Republican Senate leaders in Washington say Paxton would require hundreds of millions of dollars more to defend in a general election than Cornyn would 鈥� and that the party shouldn’t have to spend in a state Trump carried by over 13 percentage points.
Cornyn hit on those concerns during his Austin rally, saying nominating Paxton would 鈥渢ake a toll on everybody on the ballot鈥� for the GOP.
鈥淲e鈥檒l pay the price of having an albatross like our corrupt attorney general around their neck,鈥� he said.
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Kinnard reported from Columbia, South Carolina, and Hanna from Topeka, Kansas. Associated Press writers David Bauder in New York and Thomas Beaumont in Tyler, Texas, contributed.
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Meg Kinnard can be reached at
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