CNN Host Insists Jimmy Kimmel Never Said Charlie Kirk’s Assassin Was MAGA

“CNN News Central” host Boris Sanchez appeared to assert Thursday that late-night talk-show host Jimmy Kimmel did not claim that the alleged assassin of Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk was a supporter of President Donald Trump.

ABC suspended Kimmel on Wednesday after broadcast station ownership groups Nexstar and Sinclair Broadcasting announced they would not air “Jimmy Kimmel Live” in the wake of comments Kimmel made on Monday about the Sept. 10 assassination of Kirk. Sanchez told viewers Kimmel was trying to make a point when he made the comments. (RELATED: Geraldo Rivera Says Jimmy Kimmel Owes Charlie Kirk’s Family An ‘Apology’ For Comments That Got Him Booted)

“Kimmel appeared to be making a point about alleged finger-pointing by the right wing toward the left in the wake of Kirk’s assassination,” Sanchez claimed. “What he said did not appear to suggest that the suspect was a MAGA shooter.”

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“Also important to note, ABC did not take action until days after this aired,” Sanchez continued. “In fact, it came shortly after the FCC chair threatened to pull ABC’s broadcast licenses. Also, after the two largest station groups, Nexstar and Sinclair, said they would preempt Kimmel’s show from their ABC stations. That’s the same Nexstar that’s currently trying to buy Tegna, another media company, a deal in which Nexstar would have to seek approval from the Trump Administration.”

Kimmel’s suspension came after other comments that celebrated, mocked or justified Kirk’s assassination took place in various social media venues online, especially on platforms like BlueSky, which led to numerous people, including MSNBC political analyst Matthew Dowd and Washington Post columnist Karen Attiah, being fired.

“We hit new lows over the weekend with the MAGA gang desperately trying to characterize this kid who murdered Charlie Kirk as anything other than one of them and doing everything they can to score political points from it,” Kimmel said Monday.

Republican Gov. Spencer Cox of Utah outlined some of the evidence recovered in the course of the manhunt for Tyler Robinson, who is accused of firing the shot that fatally wounded Kirk, during both a Friday press conference and on Sunday shows, including ABC’s “This Week” and “State of the Union” on CNN. Multiple outlets also reported on Robinson’s “leftist” ideology and left-wing slogans etched on the ammunition in the rifle.

The Federal Communications Commission did not immediately respond to a request for comment from the Daily Caller News Foundation.

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