FCC's Carr Calls For Partisan Issues To Be Put On Hold

Federal Communications Commission Republican Brendan Carr has issued a statement congratulating President-elect Donald Trump “on his historical election victory” and urging the agency to stop work on what he deemed to be “any partisan or controversial matter and focus on the transition.”

TV Technology reports Carr, who wrote a chapter on communications policy for Project 2025 that aimed to lay out the policy goals for the upcoming administration, is widely believed to have an inside track to being named chair under Trump.

Brendan Carr

Carr has also weighed in on Trump’s side in recent controversies over how ABC handled its presidential debate and how CBS edited an interview with Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic presidential candidate defeated by Trump. In recent statements dissenting with current FCC policies, he has also been careful to phrase them as attacks on the wider policies of the Biden-Harris administration.

In his call for the FCC to stop work on “controversial” actions and focus on the transition, Carr is echoing a letter sent by Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-Wash.), chair of the House Energy and Commerce Committee to FCC chair Jessica Rosenworcel that said “The results of the 2024 presidential election are now apparent and leadership of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) will soon change. As a traditional part of the peaceful transfer of power, the FCC should immediately stop work on any partisan or controversial item under consideration, consistent with applicable law and regulation. There are many bipartisan, consensus items that the FCC could pursue to fulfill its mission before the end of your tenure. I urge you to focus your attention on these matters.”

In congratulating Trump, Carr also hinted a some of the policies he would focus on if named chair of the FCC, including reining in big tech and ensuring that broadcasters operate in the public interest.