(18 Sep 2025)
RESTRICTION SUMMARY:
++SHOTS SEPARATED BY BLACK FRAMES++
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Washington, DC – 18 September 2025
1. Wide of Sen. Chris Murphy and other senators walk on stage
2. SOUNDBITE (English) Sen. Chris Murphy, (D) Connecticut
"The shooting of Charlie Kirk was a national tragedy. It should have been a line in the sand, an opportunity for President Trump to bring this country together, to do whatever is necessary to stamp out political violence that’s targeted both Republicans and Democrats, political violence that emanates from both right wing and left wing radicalization. But Trump and his lieutenants are choosing a different path. They are choosing to exploit this tragedy, to weaponize the federal government, to destroy Donald Trump’s political opposition."
++BLACK FRAMES++
3. SOUNDBITE (English) Sen. Chris Murphy, (D) Connecticut
"Last night, they showed us exactly how serious they are. Trump’s FCC forced a major network to pull a loud Trump critic, Jimmy Kimmel, off the air, essentially saying that any media actor that doesn’t say what Trump wants them to say about Charlie Kirk or Trump’s policies, is going to be silenced. That’s censorship. That’s state speech control. That’s not America."
++BLACK FRAMES++
4. SOUNDBITE (English) Sen. Chuck Schumer, Minority Leader
"What happened to Charlie Kirk is, of course, abhorrent. And even more chilling is that we know all too well it wasn’t an isolated incident. But it’s repulsive, repulsive that the Trump administration is perversely using this awful death as a predicate to supercharge their long-standing campaign against political opponents. How low can they go?"
++BLACK FRAMES++
5. SOUNDBITE (English) Sen. Chris Murphy, (D) Connecticut
"The No Political Enemies Act creates a specific defense for those that are being targeted for political reasons. It builds real consequences for government officials when they use the power of the government to target speech that is protected by the First Amendment. And it gives an ability to recover attorney’s fees when someone is the subject of government harassment. This is a decision moment for the country. Conservatives who say that they support democracy and free speech need to speak up right now. Our Republican colleagues need to put the health of our democracy before loyalty to their leader."
++BLACK FRAMES++
6. SOUNDBITE (English) Sen. Tina Smith, (D) Minnesota
"And what we are doing today is we are saying, stop it. Enough! We are at this moment in this great democracy, this great imperfect democracy where we actually need to spell out clearly that there will be costs when the federal government tries to go after people and organizations in our civil society and take away their rights to participate and to speak out. We are saying enough. That must be what we protect in this government, in this country."
7. Wide of Murphy and other senators walking off stage and exiting
STORYLINE:
Congressional Democrats are denouncing the Trump administration’s threats against political critics in the strongest terms, saying that it strikes at the fundamental right to free speech.
A group of senators have unveiled a bill that would bolster free speech protections against government officials. Though the legislation is unlikely to gain traction in the Republican-controlled Congress, Democrats at the news conference harshly criticized the Trump administration for pressuring ABC towards the suspension of Jimmy Kimmel’s show after his comments on the fatal shooting of Charlie Kirk.
===========================================================
Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork
Twitter: https://twitter.com/AP_Archive
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/APArchives
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/APNews/
You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/youtube/569537f7e3ef48a6b922b23877746580
Author: AP Archive
Go to Source
News post in September 23, 2025, 6:08 pm.
Visit Our Sponsor’s:
News Post In – News
