U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders and a group of Democratic lawmakers on Tuesday implored the owner of CBS News' parent company not to cave in the face of President Donald Trump's legal assault on the outlet and other media organizations that he perceives as political enemies.
Sanders (I-Vt.) and his Senate colleagues argue in a letter to Shari Redstone, the controlling shareholder of Paramount, that the $20 billion lawsuit Trump filed against CBS News late last year represents "a blatant attempt to intimidate the media and those who speak out against him."
The lawsuit, which First Amendment experts have described as "frivolous" and potentially dangerous to press freedoms, claims CBS deceptively edited an interview it conducted with former Vice President Kamala Harris ahead of the 2024 election.
The senators wrote in their Tuesday letter that "this lawsuit is an attack on the United States Constitution and the First Amendment."
"In the United States of America, presidents do not get to punish or censor the media for criticizing them. Freedom of the press is what sets us apart from tin-pot dictatorships and authoritarian regimes," the senators added.
"It will only embolden him to shake down, extort, and silence CBS and other media outlets that have the courage to report about issues that Trump may not like."
But the lawmakers raised alarm over Redstone's push to settle the Trump lawsuit as she seeks to close a merger deal with the entertainment company Skydance. If federal regulators approve the deal, Redstone's family stands to receive $2.4 billion in cash from Skydance in exchange for the controlling stake in Paramount.
The Wall Street Journalreported last month that Redstone "has advocated for a settlement with Trump, hoping it would clear the way for the merger's approval."
According to the Journal, Paramount leaders have discussed settling the Trump lawsuit for up to $20 million. Redstone has also reportedly "kept tabs" on recent "60 Minutes" segments to monitor Trump-related coverage.
Sanders and his Senate Democratic colleagues argued that settling the lawsuit "would be a grave mistake," warning that "rewarding Trump with tens of millions of dollars for filing this bogus lawsuit will not cause him to back down on his war against the media and a free press."
"It will only embolden him to shake down, extort, and silence CBS and other media outlets that have the courage to report about issues that Trump may not like," the letter states. "We urge you and the board of directors at Paramount to make it clear to President Trump today that Paramount will not surrender to his attack on the First Amendment."
"Stand up for freedom of the press and our democracy," it continues. "Do not capitulate to this dangerous move to authoritarianism."
CBS is one of several media outlets Trump has targeted with legal action in recent months as part of a far-reaching assault on journalism in the United States.
"After nearly a decade of repeating insults and falsehoods, and filing lawsuits, Trump has normalized disdain for media to an alarming degree," the Committee to Protect Journalists said in a report released last month.