Carville criticizes CNN, ABC, NBC for not airing Trump speech

Media Carville criticizes CNN, ABC, NBC for not airing Trump speech Comments: by Sophie Brams - 07/17/26 3:15 PM ET Comments: Link copied by Sophie Brams - 07/17/26 3:15 PM ET Comments: Link copied

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Veteran Democratic strategist James Carville on Friday criticized major television networks for not airing President Trump’s speech on election security the previous night, saying that it was a mistake for CNN, NBC and ABC not to provide “blanket coverage” of what he sees as the president’s deteriorating mental state.

“I think the president of the United States acting loonier than a tune is newsworthy,” Carville told CNN host Wolf Blitzer during an appearance on the network. “I don’t think we should have hidden that from the American people.”

CNN, NBC News and ABC News announced in the hours ahead of Thursday’s primetime speech that they would not carry it in full on their regular channels but rather make it available for viewers to watch on streaming platforms, with live editorial coverage to follow.

A CNN spokesperson said in a statement that Trump’s remarks would be covered as a “news event” with analysis and commentary from elections and intelligence experts. The channel also offered a live feed on its digital platforms.

“So, you think we should have given him more publicity?” Blitzer asked.

“I’m absolutely saying that,” Carville responded.

Blitzer on Friday defended his network’s handling of the coverage, noting that “a lot of the newsy excerpts” were shown and discussed on broadcasts and they had “full analysis and fact-checking going on.”

But Carville argued that clips were insufficient and cautioned that doing so could undermine credibility, as some viewers could think they were edited.

“I think the mistake was made by the networks not to show it in its entirety, so people could see him in full and understand just how far this man has gone down the road,” he said.

“I would say there was nothing normal about that [the speech], and you can do it with clips, and you can get, you know, people on, but there’s nothing like people sitting there, watching the whole thing to tell them what’s really going on.”

Trump teased “big news” ahead of his speech, which ultimately focused on allegations of Chinese interference in U.S. elections, vulnerabilities in the system and his widely unsubstantiated claims of voter fraud in the 2020 election.

But he also took a shot at the networks, accusing the media of being “part of a plot” to cover up alleged voter fraud.

“They want to continue this fraud for whatever reason,” he said. “They want to keep it going. They want to protect the radical left. They can’t have a great country, and that’s true.”

The president then called for the networks to have their broadcast licenses pulled by the Federal Communications Commission, a suggestion he often makes when frustrated with critical coverage of his administration.

“Fraud like this should mean a revocation of their licenses,” Trump said. “They use our public multibillion-dollar-in-value airwaves for absolutely no money. They pay nothing.”

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