# Cato’s Inserra: FCC Chairman Carr’s “Business as Normal” Claim Doesn’t Hold Up 

But when asked about the aggressive actions the FCC has taken against broadcasters for speech that criticizes the Trump administration, it strains credulity that the FCC’s actions are mere baseline regulation.

August 3, 2026 • News Releases 

Following a recent [interview](https://url.avanan.click/v2/r01/___https://zwly9k6z.r.us-east-1.awstrack.me/L0/https:*2F*2Fwww.politico.com*2Fblogs*2Fpolitico-press*2F2026*2F07*2F31*2Ffull-transcript-chairman-of-the-federal-communications-commission-brendan-carr-01020589/1/0100019fc8ee821b-3b47b1c2-8886-4ef3-8b5f-f6da800bcbdf-000000/6wgd8VYSWlQtartKkry354tQj5Q=473___.YXAzOmNhdG9pbnN0aXR1dGU6YTpvOmJiMGEzMTM0MTA0MDQ3ODE4NDY0NDQ0MWIxZjY2ZTVmOjc6MDUwNzo4NzI1MWE1NDRlZmM5YjI2MmEwZjBjZjVmM2U1ODFmNmQzM2Y2MmFjMDViZjQyN2Q4MjNhZGU1NTk1N2IxMjUxOmg6VDpO) with Dasha Burns and Chairman Brendan Carr of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), in which Chairman Carr claims the FCC is not acting out of the ordinary, [David Inserra](https://url.avanan.click/v2/r01/___https://zwly9k6z.r.us-east-1.awstrack.me/L0/https:*2F*2Fwww.cato.org*2Fpeople*2Fdavid-inserra/1/0100019fc8ee821b-3b47b1c2-8886-4ef3-8b5f-f6da800bcbdf-000000/4_tpEpcQr3KFcQcAM3I82q9sVBI=473___.YXAzOmNhdG9pbnN0aXR1dGU6YTpvOmJiMGEzMTM0MTA0MDQ3ODE4NDY0NDQ0MWIxZjY2ZTVmOjc6OWI2ZDo0M2MyOWZiNjYxYzhjN2RkYjAxNzQzOTgzZWIwZTUyYjQwMGRjMjJiNDI2MmM1NDgwOTQ2ZWU2ZjEyNzI2OGZhOmg6VDpO), a fellow for free expression and technology at the Cato Institute, released a statement:

> In an interview with *Politico*, FCC Chairman Carr works hard to argue that it is business as normal at the FCC. ‘It’s not our role to be the speech police. It’s not our role to fundamentally transform editorial decisions, but there is a baseline level of regulation that Congress wanted,’ Carr said
> 
> But when asked about the aggressive actions the FCC has taken against broadcasters for speech that criticizes the Trump administration, it strains credulity that the FCC’s actions are mere baseline regulation. Carr ultimately falls back on the idea that a nebulous public interest standard empowers him to act in this way. But as Carr himself knows, the public interest standard was last upheld by the Supreme Court decades ago under a very different First Amendment jurisprudence.
> 
> It is past time for Congress and the courts to fundamentally restrain the power of the FCC.

You can view Inserra’s previous work on the FCC below:

- [The FCC’s Public Interest Notice Is a House of Cards](https://url.avanan.click/v2/r01/___https://zwly9k6z.r.us-east-1.awstrack.me/L0/https:*2F*2Fwww.cato.org*2Fblog*2Ffccs-public-interest-notice-house-cards/1/0100019fc8ee821b-3b47b1c2-8886-4ef3-8b5f-f6da800bcbdf-000000/zuKTem63u609h0W0XLw0Luq_0LQ=473___.YXAzOmNhdG9pbnN0aXR1dGU6YTpvOmJiMGEzMTM0MTA0MDQ3ODE4NDY0NDQ0MWIxZjY2ZTVmOjc6NDQ0ODpmYzRlYWZkZWQ2MTE4M2JhZDZiZTgxYmU0N2RkNmZhZmY0MWJjY2Y5OWQ4Mjk0YjFmNjU4NGZiMzQ4NGM1YzhhOmg6VDpO)
- [Free Expression Under Fire from the FCC](https://url.avanan.click/v2/r01/___https://zwly9k6z.r.us-east-1.awstrack.me/L0/https:*2F*2Fwww.cato.org*2Fevents*2Ffree-expression-under-fire-fcc/1/0100019fc8ee821b-3b47b1c2-8886-4ef3-8b5f-f6da800bcbdf-000000/5VIvF2rkhpP0kY2GJtX1pyoCoHs=473___.YXAzOmNhdG9pbnN0aXR1dGU6YTpvOmJiMGEzMTM0MTA0MDQ3ODE4NDY0NDQ0MWIxZjY2ZTVmOjc6NDE2NzplM2MzMDk4MzY3NzFjYzZkNWU2ODU4YTc5YTdlODUxZDhjMTkyY2Q5ZmQ3MTgwN2Y1MDVkNmJhMGUxOWVmNDc3Omg6VDpO)

To speak with Inserra, contact Cato PR at [pr@​cato.​org](mailto:pr@cato.org).

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